We have so many beautiful species on our planet. Animals so fascinating that never seize to amaze us with their intelligence, oddities and beautiful appearance. Most of them we’ve never seen live and chances are that we never will. The saddest part is that some of these animals are facing extinction and will disappear from the face of the Earth and we’ll only remember them from TV or biology books. Illegal hunting and other man-made damages threaten the lives of these creatures as we speak. Although efforts are being made to preserve the last of their kind, their future is uncertain. In a previous post we’ve showed you the rarest cats in the world. Now we would like to share with you 10 rarest animals that face extinction at the moment:
10. Tarsiers
These weird looking cute fury things live in the islands of Southeast Asia exclusively, mostly in Borneo. They are only 4-6 inches tall and their back legs are twice the size of their torso. Another weird thing about them is that their eyes are as big as their brains. They are the only primate species that are 100% carnivorous, insectivorous to be more precise. They also eat birds, lizards, bats and snakes. They are considered critically endangered, making them very rare animals since they cannot be bred in captivity.
9. Okapi
One might think twice before naming this strange looking beast. It could be a horse, a zebra or a giraffe. It’s actually called the Okapi, which is related to the giraffe and it reaches back to ancient Egypt, appearing in some of the carvings. The Okapi is considered to be a living fossil and it doesn’t have any close living relatives. There are about 10.000-20.000 living Okapi right now.
8. Sao Tome Shrew
This is creature entered our list of rarest animals because there are only a few left and their natural habitat is continuously declining. They live on Sao Tome Island, an island that is actually a shield volcano rising out of the Atlantic Ocean. They are about 3 inches in length, with white teeth and light bellies. They’re adorable and we wouldn’t want them to disappear.
7. Red Wolf
This is a close relative to the Gray Wolf, more precise, his cousin. The Red Wolf was close to extinction in the 80’s but thanks to 20 wolves that were in captivity at that time, the wildlife conservationists managed to increase their number to 207. Right now, there are about 100 red wolves in the world, living in wildlife reservations and protected from illegal hunting. Who would want to kill this wonderful, mystical creature?
6. Northern Hairy-Nosed Wombat
This wombat species is one of the rarest animals in the world, more exactly, the rarest large mammals that face extinction, with only 130 wombats still living. Their natural habitat is the Epping Forest in Queensland and a second colony of these animals live in a protected refuge in St. George.
5. Seychelles Sheath-Tailed Bat
With only 100 of them in the world, this bat is one of the rarest animals that is threatened by extinction. They live in the Seychelles islands and they live in harem colonies, with a high reproductive potential. Unfortunately, they adapt very hard to a new habitat and their chances of survival are not high.
4. Javan Rhino
Smaller than their relative, the Indian Rhinoceros, these rare rhinos were once very common in Indonesia and Southeast Asia, with only 60 of them remaining in the world. One of the biggest causes that deterred the Javan Rhino was the Vietnam War that depleted its natural habitat. It’s considered to be the largest, rarest mammals in the world.
3. Golden Tabby Tiger
This rare feline is only found in captivity. Because of a recessive gene, this tiger has a different coloring. It’s also called the “strawberry” tiger. These tigers have Bengal and Amur tiger parentage. There are less than 30 Golden Tabby tigers in the world at the moment.
2. Rarest Animals in the world – Baiji Dolphin
Also known as the Whitefin Dolphin or the Chinese River Dolphin, this species is not the same as the Chinese White Dolphin. One of the causes that made this dolphin one of the rarest animals in the world is Chinese heavy industrialization. They are considered to be extinct, although some believe that there are still 13 Baiji dolphins in the Yangtze River.
1. Pinta Island Tortoise
There was only one known survivor of this species left alive in the world. His name was Lonesome George. Sadly, he died on the 24th of June 2012. He was 100 years old. A zoo in Prague claimed that they have another specimen of the rare tortoise but the information was not true, the tortoise being of a different species. Biologists are still looking for a Pinta Tortoise that they believe might live on the Isabela Island
This was our list of the rarest animals that face extinction. What other animals do you know that are endangered? Let us know in the comment section below.
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