Endangered Animals

It is a duty of every human being to save the marvelous array of life on our planet. You will be happy to know that conservation efforts have already brought many animals back from the brink of extinction, but still, our work is far from done. The statistics regarding endangered animals are shocking.

Endangered Animals in the Rainforest

Do you know that destructive human activities are responsible for the current rate of species extinction, which is at least 100-1,000 times higher than the expected natural rate? Rainforests are the biggest suppliers of oxygen on the earth, but it is estimated that 23 plants species are extinct in the wild, 151 species are endangered, 274 species are vulnerable and 688 species are rare. According to the expert's estimations and available statistics, we are losing 137 plant, animal and insect species every single day, due to rainforest deforestation, which equates to 50,000 species a year. Disappearance of plants leads to disappearance of animals. If you browse 'rainforest animal adaptations', you will come to know how animals try their best to survive, by adapting with the nature. According to the nature's law regarding 'survival of the fittest', those animals who cannot adapt with nature cannot survive. But animal hunting and deforestation has led to a very serious situation, wherein the rate of extinction of animal species has speedup unnaturally over the last 400 years, rising sharply since 1900. Tigers, cheetah, jaguars, leopards, mountain gorillas are some of the endangered animals in the rainforest.

Endangered Animals in Africa

If you will take a look at the ten most endangered animals of the world, you will find that most of them were found in Africa. If extinction is a part of natural process of evolution, then there is no cause of worry. But it has been observed that extinction is caused directly or indirectly by humans. Black lemur, chimpanzee are examples of endangered animals in Africa. Here is an overview of some of the extinct and endangered animals.

Extinct and Endangered Animals

Dodo: A turkey-sized flightless pigeon, which lived on the island of Mauritius. It was extinct by 1681.

Siberian Tiger: Siberian tiger are found in cold, snowy Siberia. These are the largest of all the tigers and are highly endangered. Perhaps less than 200 are left in the wild, probably all in special nature reserves. Hunting and loss of habitat have resulted in reduced number of Siberian tiger.

Loggerhead Turtle: These turtles are found in the Mediterranean Sea, the Black Sea and Atlantic Ocean. They were brutally hunted for their shells and meat. Encroachment near the sea shores by hotels and resorts has destroyed their breeding sites.

Lion-Tailed Macaque: This small monkey used to live in India's tropical rainforests. Deforestation and hunting has led to destruction of the species.

Mandarin Duck: It is usually found on water near forests, but it is now included in the list of endangered species.

Mountain Gorilla: Gorilla depends on dense forests for survival. It is protected by law and it is one of the most popular animals that are included in the list of all endangered species.

Blue Whale: The largest animal, blue whale who lives in the cold waters of the Arctic and Antarctic, has been a protected species by law since 1966, but thousands were killed until then. According to the estimates, there are probably less than 6,000 alive today. Blue whale needs more than one hundred years of protection and then perhaps we can be sure that it will not become extinct.

It is just impossible to describe each and every endangered animal. Here is a list of some endangered animals of the world.

Endangered Animals List

African Elephant African Wild Dog American Alligator Asian Lion Atlantic Ridley Atlantic Salmon Black Footed Ferret Black Lemur Blue Whale Bowhead Whale California Condor Carolina Parakeet Cheetah Chimpanzee Coelacanth Dodo Eastern Cougar Eskimo Curlew Fin Whale Florida Manatee Galapagos Flightless Cormorant Galapagos Flightless Gaur Gavial Giant Anteater Giant Armadillo Giant Panda Golden Lion Tamarin Gorilla Great Auk Greater horseshoe Bat Greater Prairie Chicken Green Turtle Gray Whale Grizzly Bear

Hooded Seal Hoolock Gibbon Humpback Whale Indian Rhinoceros Indus River Dolphin Jaguar Japanese Crested Ibis Japanese Giant Salamander Kagu Kakapo Komodo Dragon Leatherback Turtle Leopard Loggerhead Turtle Mediterranean Monk Seal Mountain Gorilla Numbat Orangutan Piping Plover Pronghorned Antelope Przewalski's Horse Pygmy Hippopotamus Sea Otter Sei Whale Shortnose Sturgeon Snow Leopard Spectacled Bear Takahe Tapir Tiger Trumpeter Swan Vancouver Island Marmot White Rhinoceros Wild Ass Wild Yak

Saving Endangered Animals

It is good that there is more awareness about wildlife conservation these days and people have now realized that it is important to maintain the planet's biodiversity. People all over the world are working to help save endangered animals from extinction. Several organizations are trying to make people aware of the problems faced by wild animals. Forestry and habitat protection, captive breeding, setting up more nature reserves and parks and avoiding using products from endangered animals or using alternative products in place of products from rare animals (Fur, Crocodile skin, Ivory, etc.) can save the endangered animals from being extinct. Governments can help by making animal protection laws and regulations for international trade. Scientists are already busy setting up gene banks in which an animal's genetic material can be preserved.

There is a lot to learn from our mistakes of the past, such as destroying rainforest and over-hunting animals. There is always a harmonious relationship between nature and animals but unfortunately, an 'anti-nature pattern' is observed in human behavior. Forests are necessary for the functioning of the natural ecosystem and animals are an important part of that ecosystem. If we succeed in conservation of forests, endangered animals will also be saved. It is shocking to read the survey results, which inform us that there are about 5,000 endangered animals and at least one species dies out every year. It is possible that many more may become extinct without anyone even knowing about it.