Endangered Animals And How To Save Them
What are endangered animals?
Endangered animals are animals that are in danger of extinction, or completely wiped out. Endangered animals have a very low population, and usually will be extinct within a year unless they receive lots of care and help from wildlife conservationists.
Why are animals endangered?
Animals are usually endangered because of excessive poaching or habitat loss. The Dodo bird became extinct because it was over-hunted by humans. Many other animals are also becoming extinct because they are hunted, often illegally, too much. Other animals become endangered because their homes get destroyed by us. Forests are burnt to make space for farms, and toxic waste from factories destroy rivers and forests, therefore destroying the animals’ shelter and leaving them to die.
Amur Leopard
Amur leopards are currently critically endangered. There are only around 100 Amur leopards left on Earth! The reason they have such a low population is because humans have hunted them for their beautiful fur for years. If we don’t do anything to repopulate them, this whole species will go extinct simply because us humans wanted a fancy coat.
Javan Rhino
The Javan rhino is another critically endangered animal, right on the brink of extinction. Before, tens of thousands of Javan rhinos roamed the fields of Asia. However, in the past 100 years or so, due to the large demand for the rhino’s horns, their population dropped dramatically. As of now, there are less than 70 Javan rhinos remaining. Luckily, thanks to a bunch of wildlife conservationists we have the remaining rhinos in captivity with high security to prevent them from being poached. If the conservationists weren’t there to clean up after our mess, the Javan rhinos would be extinct.
Vaquita
The vaquita is the world’s rarest marine mammal. The vaquita is a type of little porpoise. Vaquitas weren’t actually discovered until 1958, which was only sixty years ago. That, however, didn’t stop illegal fishing operations from dragging gillnets all over the Gulf of California, where majority of vaquitas live, trapping everything it came across, including the vaquitas. Now, less than a century after we even discovered the vaquitas, we are close to losing them forever, which is absolutely shocking. In fact, in March 2018 it was estimated that there were only 12 vaquitas left in the entire world. Unless drastic action is taken soon, the vaquitas will go completely extinct, once again as a direct result of our actions.
How can we help?
First off, we should stop buying items harvested from these animals. If you want to help these animals, if you see a fur coat in a shop, hold the temptation and don’t buy it. Remember, for every fur coat, another animal’s life is taken. If there is no demand for these products with fur on them, less of these endangered animals will be killed.
We could also join campaigns. We could rally for the government to impose stricter rules on poaching and hunting. Signing petitions can also help other campaigns.
If we don’t do anything about endangered animals, they might go extinct in the next few decades. Our children and grandchildren might not be able to see them in real life. Would you really wipe a whole species off the face of the planet just so that you can get a new carpet or coat?
