The animal species not alive anymore in the wild are considered extinct. On the contrary, endangered animals are at a high risk becoming extinct. The only members of the extinct species only exist in a zoo or animal conservation facilities. Animals extinction can happen because of natural and human created reasons.
Reasons Behind Animals Extinction
There are many reasons behind animals extinction. Let us have a look at the reasons.
Body Parts of the Animals
Humans use different body parts of animals. These body parts include horns, feathers, and fur among others. Elephants in Africa are the animals disappearing due to massive hunting. There was a time when they were present in high numbers. But now, only a few hundred of the African Elephants are left. Despite the protection, the population of these animals keeps going down. Similarly, the tigers in China see a similar decline. The animal was hunted for its expensive fur and bones for making medicines.
Hunting
Many species went into extinction or became endangered due to hunting. For example, there was a time when millions of America Bison would roam the surface of Earth. But now, only a few hundred American Bison exist. The farming of American Bison has improved the numbers of these animals back to significant numbers. The extinction of animals living in islands is another problem. Hunters find it easy to access islands for hunting them where it’s hard to protect these animals.
Expansion of Human Population
Animals extinction can also take place because of the expansion of human population. There are many examples of how human population had an impact on the animal ecosystem and survival. There are many species in the animal kingdom which could not survive human encroachment onto their habitat. The tigers in Bangladesh also face a similar fate due to the human population invading the habitat of this rare animal species. The government of India is taking necessary measures to revive the tiger population from the verge of extinction.
Natural Calamities
Many times, the forces of nature may also become responsible for eliminating different species. For example, the Polar Bears are facing global warming and finding it hard to survive with ice shrinking below their feet. Natural extinctions do not happen in a matter of years. It may take hundreds of years to make a species extinct. There are many theories behind why there are no more dinosaurs. One theory states that they became extinct due to climate change.
List of Extinct Animals
Here is the list of top endangered animals.
- Giant Panda
- Javan Rhinoceros
- Monarch Butterfly
- Mountain Gorilla
- Bluefin Tuna
- Leatherback Turtle
- Magellanic Penguin
- Pacific Walrus
- Polar Bear
- Tiger
