Endangered Species

There are six groups of living creatures on the planet earth that if not allowed to live, hunt, feed and procreate will become extinct : Amphibians, Birds, Fish, Invertebrates, Mammals and Reptiles.

Amphibians are the single most endangered group of the six. When our ecosystems tip out of balance due to pollution, overkilling, and habitat destruction, they are the first affected. The world would be in a widespread ecological downfall if there was suddenly a huge mass appearance of frogs and salamander deaths everywhere. It would probably be too late to recover. That is why watching for patterns and improving the environment and taking steps to combat pollutions now, is so important to the world.

There are presently 1,811 species of amphibians on the endangered list and the top cause is loss of habitat. The dangers are present all over the world: The Andes in Columbia (the Golden Poison frog); The United States of America (the California Tiger salamander); China (the Chinese Giant salamander); New South Wales, Australia (the Carroboree frog); and South Africa (the Western Leopard toad).

There are 10,000 bird species and 1,200 of them are endangered or threatened. Over-fishing, pollution and loss of habitat are responsible for endangered fish and reptiles.

20% of Mammals are threatened or on the endangered list, many of them living in water. That percentage results in over 1000 species. Hunting, loss of habitats, pollution, overfishing of food sources and noise from boat engines are blamed for the main reasons.

Two mammals that are endangered are the Baiji and the Blue Whale. Baiji live in the Yangtze River system in China and search the muddy bottom for food. It is a toothed whale with an elongated sleek body and a long beak, and can reach 300 pounds. Because of collisions with boats, over-fishing, dams, water pollution and engine noises, they are beyond help. They rely on their echolocation instincts to navigate, which has been compromised to deadly proportions. They are not expected to survive.

There is hope however for the Blue Whale. It is the largest animal on the planet earth, growing to as large as 100 feet in length. The Blue Whale lives in most oceans and feeds on a shrimplike crustacean called Krill for their diet. We must take precautions not to over-fish Krill, and to find a way to combat noise pollution, the Blue Whale’s biggest threat for the Blue Whale to thrive.