NATIONAL THREATENED SPECIES DAY is here! And in its honor, it’s important we take a moment to acknowledge those animals in need of protection most.
Biodiversity loss is one the biggest threats facing our world. In the past 50 years alone, global wildlife decreased by nearly 70%. And today, of the 8 million total estimated number of animal and plant species, over 1 million are at risk of extinction — including 40% of amphibians, 33% of corals and marine mammals, 30% of trees, 9% of terrestrial species, potentially 10% of insects. It is a rate of decline of unprecedented scale, hundreds of times higher than the average over 10 million years, and has been dubbed the world’s sixth mass extinction.
This rate of decline has been accelerated due to the following human-driven activities:
- Habitat loss from deforestation and agricultural activities threatens 85% of all species.
- Fishing at unsustainable levels has led to a 39% drop in marine species in the last four decades.
- Poaching and wildlife trade pushes 30,000 species to extinction each year.
- Climate change could result in 35% of species becoming extinct by 2050.
Extinction also breeds extinction — about 200 species have been lost due to co-extinction and 6,300 are classified as co-endangered.
According to the WWF, these are the top ten most endangered animals in world:
- Amur Leopard
- Rhino
- Orangutan
- Gorilla
- Vaquita
- Sunda Tiger
- Yangtze Finless Porpoise
- Turtle
- Elephant
The time is now — help protect the world’s ENDANGERED species before it’s too late. Donate today.
