This is an adapted translation of the original story, published in November 2012 in the IstoÉ Magazine. The original can be found here.

Being fast, strong or good at hiding are not the only qualities an animal needs to avoid extinction these days. In the Anthropocene Era, they also need to be cute.

There are several campaigns and organizations concerned with saving fluffy pandas, gracious dolphins or majestic tigers. Meanwhile, species like the Blob Fish aren’t even in the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) lists. The organization classifies animals according to their risk of extinction.

The British organization Evolutionarily Distinct and Globally Endangered (Edge) is in charge of the defense of, let’s say, unfortunate-looking animals. They say that from a list of 100 amphibians that evolved in a singular manner, 85 get little or no attention at all.

Despite their less appealing looks, some species can be necessary for the discovery of new medical substances. But why do we love the koalas and despise frogs with slimy skin?

The explanation can be found in our evolution. As we spent millenniums developing a sense of love and protection towards human babies, some cute animals may have benefited from it as well. Furry mammals with big eyes reminded us of our own and ended up protected as well. Despite that and the fact that they wouldn’t look good as stuffed animals, Komodo dragons and blob fishes are essential for the environmental balance. The more they disappear, the more significant the chances of humans, pandas, and koalas ending up without an ecosystem.