.

Land clearing, farming and competition or predation by

introduced species has led to the extinction of many

native plants and animals.Throughout the world, more

than 30 000 species of plants and animals are currently

in danger of becoming extinct, mainly through the

activities of humans. The loss of a species affects other

species in the food web and reduces the diversity of the

planet. This presentatoin looks at some of the human

activities that have caused or are threatening to cause

the extinction and endangerment of various species.

These are species which are not found

after searches of known or likely areas where they may

occur. A species may be extinct from a local area,

region, country, continent or the entire earth.

Examples of such species are :

Asiatic cheetah

Pink head duck

Golden toad

An endangered animal is one whose species is on the

verge of going extinct unless steps are taken soon to

rescue it or An endangered species is a population

of organisms which is facing a high risk of

becoming extinct because it is either few in numbers,

or threatened by changing environmental or

predation parameters.

Pollutants and other threats in its habitat are

factors that cause endangerment.

Reasons for

Endangerment

Habitat

Destruc

-tion

Introd

uction of

Exotic

Species

global

warming

Limited

Distribu

tion

damag

e from

extreme

climate

events

global

aggreg

ate

impacts

Pollution

Disease

Over-

exploita

tion

As per the official records, in India, there are over

130000 endangered animal species, although some

experts believe that the number may be even more

than the projected figures. However, some claim

that the number is actually much more. The

number of endangered species in India accounts

for around 8.86% of the world’s mammals. The

mammals are extended over 186 genera, 45

families and 13 orders out of which around 89

species are listed as threatened in the IUCN Red List

of Threatened Animals (IUCN 2006).

Scientific classification

Kingdom : Animalia

Phylum : Chordata

Class : Mammalia

Order : Carnivora

Family : Felidae

Subfamily : Pantherinae

Genus : Panthera

Species : Panthera tigris

Subspecies : Panthera tigris tigris

The Bengal tiger (Panthera tigris ) is the most numerous

tiger subspecies. It is the national animal of India. Its

populations have been estimated at 1,706 – 1,909 in

India.

Bengal is traditionally fixed as the typical locality for the

binomial Panthera tigris.Since 2010, it has been

classified as an endangered species by IUCN.

The total population is estimated at fewer than 2,500,

and none of the Tiger Conservation Landscapes within the

Bengal tiger's range is large enough to support an

effective population size of 250 adult individuals.

The Bengal tiger's coat is yellow to light orange, with stripes

ranging from dark brown to black; the belly and the interior

parts of the limbs are white, and the tail is orange with black

rings.

Male Bengal tigers have an average total length of 270 to 310

cm including the tail, while females measure 240 to 265 cm

on average.The tail is typically 85 to 110 cm long, and on

average, tigers are 90 to 110 cm in height at the shoulders.

The average weight of males is 221.2 kg , while that of females

is 139.7 kg .

Phylum : Chordata

Clade : Dinosauria

Clade : Theropoda

Class : Aves

Order : Passeriformes

Family : Passeridae

Genus: : Passer

Species : P. domesticus

The House Sparrow (Passer domesticus) is a bird of

the sparrow family Passeridae, found in most parts of the

world.

A small bird, it has a typical length of 16 cm and a weight

of 24–39.5 g .

Females and young birds are coloured pale brown and

grey, and males have brighter black, white, and brown

markings.

One of about 25 species in the genus Passer, the House

Sparrow occurs naturally in most of India, and much of

Asia.

The House Sparrow is a compact bird, typically about 16 cm

long, ranging from 14–18 cm .It has a large rounded head,

and a stout bill with a culmen length of 1.1 to 1.5 cm. It has

a short tail, 5.2 to 6.5 cm long. The wing chord is 6.7 to 8.9

cm, and the tarsus is 1.6 to 2.5 cm.

In weight, the House Sparrow ranges from 24–39.5 g Younger

birds are smaller, males are larger during the winter, and

females are larger during the breeding season. Between and

within subspecies, there is further variation based on

latitude, altitude, climate, and other environmental

factors, under biological principles such as Bergmann's rule.

Kingdom : Animalia

Phylum : Chordata

Class : Mammalia

Order : Proboscidea

Family : Elephantidae

Genus : Elephas

Species : Elephas maximus

The Asian or Asiatic elephant (Elephas maximus) is the only

living species of the genus Elephas and is distributed

in India

.

Asian elephants are the largest living land animals

in Asia.

Since 1986, Elephas maximus has been listed

as endangered by IUCN as the population has declined by

at least 50%..In 2012, the wild population was estimated at

between 41,410 and 52,345 individuals.

Asian elephants are rather long-lived, with a maximum

recorded life span of 86 years.

This species has been domesticatedand is used for such

purposes as timber-carrying and transportation.

The Borneo elephant is smaller than other Asian elephant

subspecies, and has relatively large ears, a longer tail, and

straighter tusks.

In general, the Asian elephant is smaller than the African

elephant and has the highest body point on the head. The back is

convex or level. The ears are small with dorsal borders folded

laterally.

It has up to 20 pairs of ribs and 34 caudal vertebrae. The feet

have more nail-like structures than those of African elephants —

five on each forefoot, and four on each hind foot.

Scientific classification

Kingdom : Animalia

Phylum : Chordata

Class : Synapsida

Class : Mammalia

Order : Carnivora

Family : Ursidae

Genus : Ailuropoda

The panda (Ailuropoda melanoleuca) is also known as the

giant panda , to distinguish it from the unrelated red panda

it is a bear which is native to Asia.

It is easily recognized by the large, distinctive black patches

around its eyes, over the ears, and across its round body.

Though it belongs to the order Carnivora, the panda's diet is

99% bamboo. Pandas in the wild will occasionally eat other

grasses, wild tubers, or even meat in the form of birds, rodents

or carrion.

In captivity, they may receive honey, eggs, fish, yams, shrub

leaves, oranges, or bananas along with specially prepared

food.

The giant panda, a black-and-white bear, has a body typical of

bears. It has black fur on ears, eye patches, muzzle, legs, and

shoulders. The rest of the animal's coat is white.

Although scientists do not know why these unusual bears

are black and white, some speculate that the bold coloring

provides effective camouflage into their shade-dappled snowy

and rocky surroundings.

The panda's thick, wooly coat keeps it warm in the cool forests of

its habitat. Giant pandas have large molar teeth and strong jaw

muscles for crushing tough bamboo.

Scientific classification

Kingdom : Animalia

Phylum : Chordata

Class : Mammalia

Order : Carnivora

Family : Felidae

Genus : Puma

Species : P. concolor

Subspecies : P. c. coryi

The Florida panther is an endangered subspecies of cougar

(Puma concolor). This species is also known as the cougar,

mountain lion, puma, and catamount.

Males can weigh up to 160 pounds and live within a range

that includes the Big Cypress National Preserve, Everglades

National Park, and the Florida Panther National Wildlife

Refuge.

This population, the only unequivocal cougar representative

in the eastern United States, currently occupies 5% of its

historic range.

In the 1970s, there were an estimated 20 Florida panthers

in the wild, and their numbers have increased to an

estimated 100 to 160 as of 2011.

Characteristics

Florida Panthers are spotted at birth and typically have blue eyes.

As the panther grows the spots fade and the coat becomes

completely tan while the eyes typically become more of a yellow.

Florida panthers lack the ability to roar, and instead make

distinct sounds that include whistles, chirps, growls, hisses, and

purrs.

Florida panthers are mid-sized for the species, being smaller than

cougars from Northern climes but larger than cougars from the

neotropics. Adult female Florida panthers weigh 29–45 kg whereas

the larger males weigh 45–72 kg Total length is from 1.8 to 2.2 m

and shoulder height is 60–70 cm .

Kingdom : Plantae

(unranked) : Angiosperms

(unranked) : Eudicots

(unranked) : Rosids

Order : Malpighiales

Family : Rafflesiaceae

Genus : Rafflesia

Rafflesia is a genus of parasitic flowering plants. It contains

approximately 28 species , all found in southeastern Asia, on

Indonesia, Malay Peninsula, Borneo, Sumatra, Thailand and

the Philippines.

Rafflesia was found in the Indonesian rain forest by an

Indonesian guide working for Dr. Joseph Arnold in 1818, and

named after Sir Thomas Stamford Raffles, the leader of the

expedition.

It was discovered even earlier by Louis Deschamps in Java

between 1791 and 1794, but his notes and illustrations, seized

by the British in 1803, were not available to western science

until 1861.

Rafflesia is the official state flower of Indonesia, the Sabah

state in Malaysia, and of the Surat Thani Province, Thailand.

Characteristics

Rafflessia has no stems, leaves or true roots. It is a holoparasite of

vines in the genus Tetrastigma (Vitaceae), spreading its absorptive

organ, the haustorium, inside the tissue of the vine.

The only part of the plant that can be seen outside the host vine is

the five-petaled flower.

In some species, such as Rafflesia arnoldii, the flower may be over

100 centimetres in diameter, and weigh up to 10 kilograms . Even

the smallest species, R. baletei, has 12 cm diameter flowers.

The flowers look and smell like rotting flesh, hence its local names

which translate to "corpse flower" .

Kingdom : Animalia

Phylum : Chordata

Class : Mammalia

Order : Cetacea

Family : Delphinidae

Genus : Tursiops

Species : Truncatus

Bottlenose dolphins, the genus Tursiops, are the most common and

well-known members of the family Delphinidae, the family of

oceanic dolphin.

Recent molecular studies show the genus contains two species, the

common bottlenose dolphin (Tursiops truncatus) and the Indo-

Pacific bottlenose dolphin (Tursiops aduncus), instead of one.

Research in 2011 revealed a third species, the Burrunan dolphin

(Tursiops australis).

Bottlenose dolphins inhabit warm and temperate seas worldwide.

Bottlenose dolphins live in groups typically of 10–30 members,

called pods, but group size varies from single individuals up to

more than 1,000 .

Dolphins diets consist mainly of forage fish. Dolphins often work

as a team to harvest fish schools, but they also hunt individually.

Dolphins search for prey primarily using echolocation, which is

similar to sonar. They emit clicking sounds and listen for the

return echos to determine the location and shape of nearby items,

including potential prey.

Bottlenose dolphins also use sound for communication, including

squeaks and whistles emitted from the blowhole and sounds

emitted through body language, such as leaping from the water

and slapping their tails on the water surface.

Kingdom : Animalia

Phylum : Chordata

Class : Aves

Order : Piciformes

Family : Ramphastidae

Toucans are members of the family Ramphastidae of near

passerine birds from the Neotropics. The Ramphastidae

family is most closely related to the American barbets.

The family includes five genera and about forty different

species. The name of this bird group is derived from the

Tupi word tukana, via Portuguese.

The family includes toucans, aracaris and toucanets;

more distant relatives include various families of barbets

and woodpeckers in the suborder Pici.

Toucans are found in South and Central America in the

canopy layer of the rainforest.

Toucans range in size from the Lettered Aracari (Pteroglossus

inscriptus), at 130 g and 29 cm, to the Toco Toucan

(Ramphastos toco), at 680 g and 63 cm.

The legs of the toucan are strong and rather short. The colorful

and large bill, which in some large species measures more than

half the length of the body, is the hallmark of toucans.

A toucan's tongue is long narrow, grey, and singularly frayed

on each side, adding to its sensitivity as an organ of taste.

Toucans are arboreal and typically lay 2–4 white eggs in their

nests.

These are species whose population has declined to

levels from where it is likely to move into the

endangered category in the near future if the negative

factors continue to operate.

These designations are made by a group of biologists

who study these animals and are familiar with their

needs and numbers.

Examples of vulnerable species:

African Elephant

Gangetic Dolphin

Hornbill

Why do we need to CONSERVE?

The government can formulate laws and

policies, put various Conservation Projects

into place but the success of these projects lies

with the people. It is the community that is

responsible for the effective implementation

of these initiatives.As members of a

community it is our duty to conserve and

protect the Natural Vegetation and Wildlife

not just for our present but for the future

generation as well. It also ensures

sustainable development.

Nature has been giving us

every thing ,so its our time to

give something to nature &

to protect it. Without these

bio-diversity the life of

human is worthless. Nature

has always kept us teaching

in every part of our life. So,its

our humble request for

everyone to protect the

nature.

Year : 2014 – 2015

Class : IX .F

Aiswarya.B

Meghana E.C

B.S Sreelekshmi

Arunima P.M

Aysha Beevi Abdul Vahid

Geethika S.V