It is time to abandon our obsession with big-eyed "famous species", which is harmful to thousands upon thousands of other creatures in need. Here, then, is a quick rundown of some less popular but equally endangered species, which will soon be gone if we don't start taking action for them too.
He is about to end up run over, his mother saves him
Most of the donations for the environmental protection of endangered species it is destined every year to just a dozen of our animals. They are our favorites: monkeys, elephants, big cats, black rhinos and giant pandas, in the top five.
Public opinion on these creatures is very positive, but also highly polarized. Nevertheless, there are no ugly animals, but only species most in need of protection. Perhaps, then, we should feel guilty for having destroyed the habitat of numerous other animal and plant species that arouse our love less.
It is time to abandon our obsession with big-eyed "famous species", which is harmful to thousands upon thousands of other creatures in need. Here, then, is a quick rundown of some less popular but equally endangered species, which will soon be gone if we don't start to act for them too.
1) GOLDEN FROG
It is one of the most poisonous creatures on earth, it is Phyllobates terribilis. A native of Colombia, she has enough poison in her body to kill ten adult men. Little is known about the origin of this lethal power, also because the specimens bred in captivity grow "non-toxic". Unfortunately, the golden frog population is decreasing and is further threatened by deforestation.
2) ALBATRO CODACORTA
The short-tailed or Steller's albatross (Phoebastria albatrus Pallas) is a rare North Pacific seabird. Once common, it was brought to the brink of extinction by the feather trade by Japanese hunters. For women all over Europe they were considered extremely fashionable. Fortunately, the population has increased slightly, but recent clashes with fishermen's lines continue to decimate them.
3) ORINOCUS CROCODILE
Crocodylus intermedius, is one of the South American giants of the Crocodylia order that populated the Orinoco River in Colombia and Venezuela with millions of specimens. Hunting indiscriminately practiced in the last century has almost wiped out him. Today there are only about 1.500 individuals.
4) MUSSELS OF NORTH AMERICA
There are about 300 species of mussels inhabiting the North American continent, and about 70 percent of them are extinct or endangered, according to an estimate by the US Geological Survey. The fault lies with the excessive harvesting, the introduction of invasive species and the degradation of habitats caused above all by water pollution. They are disappearing, taking with them the free water filtration services they have provided for centuries.
5) RUNNING SNAKE OF SAINT LUCIA
Snakes are arguably second only to spiders on the list of the scariest beings in the eyes of men. The rarest snake in the world is the Saint Lucia runner, which was rediscovered in 1973 after being declared extinct in 1936. The blame lies with the introduction of the mongoose in India in the 2011th century. In 18 only XNUMX specimens were registered.
6) CONDOR CALIFORNIANIANO
There is nothing cute about the condor: it is ugly, it feeds on the rotting flesh of deceased animals and communicates with horrible, grunting-like noises. The California condor (Gymnogyps californianus, G.Shaw, 1797) is a bird belonging to the family of the Catharts (or New World vultures), and is the only living specimen of the genus Gymnogyps.
At one time it occupied a vast area of diffusion that covered the entire Pacific coastal area of North America, from Canada to Mexico. But the number of California condors dropped dramatically in the XNUMXth century as a result of poaching, lead poisoning and deliberate damage to its natural habitat by humans. The animal still holds a place on the ICUN's list of "vulnerable" species.
7) LORD HOWE ISLAND STICK INSECT
The Lord Howe Island stick insect (Dryococelus australis), also known as the land lobster, is an insect of the order phasmids. It was thought to have been extinct since 1930, but was rediscovered in 2001. It is extinct in its largest habitat, Lord Howe Island, and has been dubbed "the rarest insect in the world", as the rediscovered population consisted of just over thirty individuals living on the small islet of the Ball's Pyramid.
LAWS: The miracle of life in a video: here is the earth lobster, considered extinct and rediscovered after 80 years
8) BLOBFISH
Psychrolutes marcidus lives in the southwestern Pacific Ocean, in the southern Australian coastal waters, at a depth of between 600 and 1.200 meters. It has a flaccid body, not very compressed at the hips, with a large head and large eyes. The fins are broad and rounded. The livery is simple: the whole body is pinkish gray, mottled with brown. The mouth and lips are pinkish-white.
These characteristics earned him to win the title of ugliest animal in the world: to him the mission of protecting the least graceful creatures on the planet. It is currently at risk of extinction due to bottom trawling.
READ: Blobfish: here is the ugliest animal in the world (to be protected)
Roberta Ragni
ALSO READ:
Top 10 rare sharks facing extinction
10 animal species at risk of extinction
In Africa, 25 species of monkeys and primates face extinction
