Endangered Animals What Is an Endangered Species?
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8CMa Assembly Endangered Animals What is an endangered species? A Critically Endangered (CR) species is one which has been categorized by the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) as facing a very high risk of extinction in the wild.[1] It is the highest risk category assigned by the IUCN Red List for wild species. As of 2014, there are 2464 animals and 2104 plants with this assessment, compared with 1998 levels of 854 and 909, respectively.[2] Extinction could happen because of: damage to habitat Entertainment purposes Disease hunters African Dogs The wild dog is one of the world’s most endangered mammals. The largest populations remain in southern Africa and the southern part of East Africa (especially Tanzania and northern Mozambique). Iberian Lynx The Iberian lynx is the world's most endangered feline species. There are real fears that it may soon become the first cat species to become extinct for at least 2,000 years. Ivory Billed Woodpecker The largest of the woodpeckers north of Mexico and the third largest in the world, the Ivory-billed Woodpecker was a bird of old-growth forests of the Southeast. Destruction of its forest habitat caused severe population declines in the 1800s, and only a handful of birds remained into the 20th century. It was thought to have gone extinct in the middle of the twentieth century. The bird was rediscovered in the "Big Woods" region of eastern Arkansa Cross River Gorilla Cross River gorillas live in a region populated by many humans who have encroached upon the gorilla’s territory— clearing forests for timber and to create fields for agriculture and livestock. Poaching occurs in the forests as well, and the loss of even a few of these gorillas has a detrimental effect on such a small population. Panda Forest destruction also reduces pandas’ access to the bamboo they need to survive. The Chinese government has established more than 50 panda reserves, but only around 61% of the country’s panda population is protected by these reserves. Dhole Main threats to the species include ongoing habitat loss, depletion of prey base, persecution and possibly disease transfer from domestic and feral dogs. Black Rhino Today, black rhinos remain Critically Endangered because of rising demand for rhino horn, which has driven poaching to record levels. A recent increase in poaching in South Africa threatens to erase our conservation success https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7DYwMVQJr4k What can we do….. • Support local and national zoos. • * Support the World Wildlife Foundation!.