#Wittels- Posted November 12, 2021 Posted November 12, 2021 For some, the word "extinction" belongs to an ancient age of glaciations and asteroids, and to almost mythical beasts like dinosaurs and dodos. But extinction is happening at an astonishing rate right now, often quietly and beyond our gaze. There have been five deadly periods of mass extinction in the last 540 million years of Earth's history. Scientists believe that we are now in the middle of a sixth - the Anthropocene extinction - with human activity that is driving the rate of species loss 1,000 to 10,000 times more than it should be natural. (Related: Will Humans Survive the Sixth Great Extinction?) Human super-predators have reshaped the landscape since our ancestors rose to their feet and left Africa, annihilating other Earthlings on our journey, both directly through hunting and consumption, and indirectly through overpo[CENSORED]tion, overpo[CENSORED]tion. habitat loss, agriculture, pollution, the introduction of invasive species and climate change. The International Union for Conservation of Nature's Red List of Threatened Species, the world's most comprehensive source of information on the global extinction risk status of animal, fungal and plant species, has evaluated 138,300 species to date. and, of these, it is estimated that 28 percent are in danger of extinction. In total, the world's wild po[CENSORED]tions have declined an average of 68 percent since 1970. The 2021 COP26 summit in Glasgow offers the opportunity to halt the decline of global biodiversity caused by man, reverse the destruction of nature, stop the climate catastrophe and save the planet's endangered species, including ourselves. If we do not rise to these challenges in the next 10 years, designated by the United Nations as the Decade of Ecosystem Restoration, our world could change irreversibly. At this critical moment in Earth's history, we take a look at 26 animals destined for extinction if urgent action is not taken today, and we hear from conservationists striving to rewrite the latest chapter of their extraordinary stories. These are 26 of the species most threatened by climate change: There have been five deadly periods of mass extinction in the last 540 million years of Earth's history. Scientists believe that we are now in the middle of a sixth, the Anthropocene extinction, with human activity driving the rate of species loss between 1,000 and 10,000 times more than it should be natural. (Related: Will Humans Survive the Sixth Great Extinction?) Human super predators have reshaped the landscape since our ancestors rose to their feet and left Africa, annihilating other Earthlings on our journey, both directly through hunting and consumption, and indirectly through overpo[CENSORED]tion, overpo[CENSORED]tion. . habitat loss, agriculture, pollution, introduction of invasive species and climate change. Vaquita marina Endemic to the Sea of Cortez, in the Upper Gulf of California (Mexico), it is believed that only six of these small porpoises remain. His destiny is tragically intertwined with his marine neighbor, the totoaba, known as "the cocaine of the sea." Despite a permanent ban on fishing since 1975, the totoaba is illegally fished for its swim bladder, highly prized for its medicinal value (not demonstration) in Asia. The entanglement in the huge gillnets of poachers has made the vaquita the most endangered marine mammal in the world. The international direct action movement for ocean conservation, Sea Shepherd, patrols the UNESCO Vaquita Refuge, engaging fishing boats and removing nets. "Every net that is removed from the sea saves the lives of countless marine creatures and gives the vaquita a fighting chance," says Peter Hammarstedt, Sea Shepherd Global Campaign Director. European mink The European mink (Mustela lutreola) is seriously threatened by the expansion of the American mink, a species introduced in Spain that seems to be irreversibly displacing its native relative. The European Parliament has listed it as one of the most threatened mammals on the continent. Already in 2017, the World Wide Fund for Nature warned that the European mink (of which less than 500 specimens survive in Spain) could have completely disappeared in five years. Eastern lowland gorilla Gorillas, the world's largest primates and some of our closest living relatives, continue to face enormous challenges: from habitat loss to disease, poaching for bushmeat, and trade, mining and the extreme volatility in some of the regions they inhabit. More than 200 rangers have died in the Virunga National Park in the Democratic Republic of the Congo, defending mountain and eastern lowland gorillas, while the collapse of tourism due to the COVID-19 pandemic has meant a loss income and an increase in poaching. The eastern lowland or Grauer's gorilla, which is now only found in 13 percent of its original range and has experienced an estimated 60 percent po[CENSORED]tion decline in recent decades, is critically endangered, the last step before extinction. The Dian Fossey Gorilla Fund works with local landowners to develop sustainable management practices in the habitat of the eastern lowland gorilla. "The data shows that gorillas living in community-owned forests can do very well," says Tara Stoinski, President, CEO and Chief Scientific Officer of the Fund. "The people of the Nkuba Conservation Area (NCA) show us that it is possible to protect biodiverse wilderness areas and the animals that live in them, and at the same time build strong and caring human communities: this gives me hope for the future." . The Scottish Wild Cat Extinct in England and Wales, the Scottish Highlands remain the last stronghold of the only indigenous cat species left in Britain. Loss of habitat, hunting, interbreeding with domestic cats and disease have decimated the 'Highland tiger', and fewer than 400 individuals are believed to be in the wild today, leaving the po[CENSORED]tion no longer viable . The Saving Wildcats program is a European partnership project overseen by the Royal Zoological Society Scotland (RZSS), which breeds wild cats in captivity in the RZSS Highland Wildlife Park, in the Cairngorms National Park, and in the Alladale Nature Reserve, and aims to release 20 cats a year in the wild. Pangolin The once little-known pangolin has risen to fame in recent years for the wrong reasons, as this gentle mammal has tragically become the species featured on wildlife trade posters. According to the wildlife trade monitoring network Traffic, up to a million pangolins have been traded in the last decade. "The eight species of pangolin are classified as threatened by the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) and, although they are protected by national and international laws, they continue to be in high demand in China and Vietnam for their meat and scales, that are used in traditional Asian medicine, "says Michela Pacifici, a researcher with the Global Mammal Assessment (GMA) program, which is based on the IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. "Effective enforcement of the law, reducing the demand for pangolin items, and working with local communities are key to preserving the species." In the picture, a woman prepares to kill a pangolin in Cameroon. It is the non-human mammal that generates the most illegal traffic worldwide. North Atlantic right whale The North Atlantic right whale, one of the world's most threatened large whale species, has suffered years of human exploitation, being hunted near extinction by commercial whalers in the 1890s. Right whale, that is, the right whale or right whale. Said "right" in his name was a reference to the whalers being the "right" whale to kill). Despite being legally protected from hunting since the 1930s, fewer than 400 individuals remain, and entanglement in fishing nets, collisions with ships and climate change prevent the species from recovering. "Seasonal management areas should take into account whale migration routes, along with their feeding and breeding activities, to help mitigate collisions. Tighter restrictions on certain types of fishing gear are also urgently needed," says Michela Pacifici of The Global Mammal Assessment (GMA) program. Berthe's mouse lemur The smallest of the mouse lemurs and the smallest primate in the world, with a body mass of just 30 grams, it is unfortunately one of the lemurs most threatened with extinction. This small lemur, found only in the fragmented forests of the Menabe region of western Madagascar (Africa), with an estimated range of only 350 square kilometers, is at enormous risk due to logging, logging practices, slash-and-burn agriculture and charcoal production. "The annual deforestation rate in Menabe exceeded 40 square kilometers in 2017 and 2018," says Piero Visconti, principal investigator and head of the research group at the Biodiversity, Ecology and Conservation Group (BEC). "If deforestation continues at the same rate, the remaining habitat and species could be tragically lost in the next 10 years." For more .. Link: https://www.nationalgeographic.es/animales/especies-animales-que-el-ser-humano-esta-llevando-al-limite?gallery=79371&image=4_16
Premium
Recommended Posts