Factors that May Make Species More or Less Prone to Extinction

1. Factors that May Make Species More or Less Prone to Extinction Javier Chewning Victoria Huertematte Cristina Rivera Pedro Icaza Sebastian Icaza

2. An “endangered” specie is one that is in danger of extinction throughout all or a significant portion of its range. A “threatened” species is one that is likely to become endangered in the foreseeable future. Factors that make species more prone to extinction: • the present or threatened destruction, modification, or curtailment of its habitat or range (habitat loss caused by human development) • over utilization for commercial, recreational, scientific, or educational purposes • disease or predation • the inadequacy of existing regulatory mechanisms • pesticides can runoff or drift, which may harm the environment and wildlife. • the multi-billion dollar illegal trade in wildlife driven by consumer demand for animals and plants used as luxury foods, medicines, trophies and tourist souvenirs. • species displacement, competition for food resources, and hunting • pollution • deaths caused by the propellers of outboard motors

4. Endangered Species (Case Studies)

7. World Population • · 1900: 100,000 (Nowell & Jackson 1996) • · 1920: 100,000 (Nowak & Paradiso 1983) • · 1970: About 5000 (Mountfort 1983) • · 1978: As low as 4000 (Nowak & Paradiso 1983) • · 1978: 5000 - 7500 (Humphrey & Bain 1990) • · 1986: At least 7690 - 7790 (Luoma 1987) • · 1994: 5080 - 7380 (Jackson 1994) • · 1996: 4792 - 7300 (Jackson 1996) • · 1998: 5166 - 7436 (Jackson 1998) • Current range of the tiger as of1998: Occurs in Bangladesh, Bhutan, Cambodia, China, India, Indonesia (Sumatra), Laos, Malaysia, Myanmar, Nepal, North Korea, Russia, Thailand, and Vietnam. (Jackson 1998)

8. Tiger (Panthera tigris) Source: http://www.primenet.com/~brendel/tiger.html

9. Red Wolf (Canis Rufus) RANGE AND POPULATION LEVEL: The red wolf was once found throughout the southeastern United States, from the Atlantic coast to central Texas and from the Gulf Coast to central Missouri and southern Illinois. Between the period of 19OO to 192O, red wolves were extirpated from most of the eastern portion of their range. A small number persisted in the wild in southeastern Texas and southwestern Louisiana until the late 197Os. By 198O, the species was determined to be extinct in the wild. The present red wolf population of at least 249 animals exists primarily in captivity. Two hundred (2OO) animals are located in 22 captive breeding facilities in the United States. The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service has a major captive breeding project at Graham, Washington. This project is administered by contract with the Point Defiance Zoo in Tacoma, Washington. To date, there are 26 to 3O adult and yearling red wolves in the wild at the Fish and Wildlife Service's Alligator River National Wildlife Refuge in North Carolina; there are 16 animals in the wild at the Great Smoky Mountains National Park in Tennessee. Also, there are seven animals in the wild on three islands managed as propagation projects. HABITAT: The last red wolves were found in coastal prairie and marsh habitat because this was the last area in which the animals were allowed to remain. Any habitat area in the southeastern United States of sufficient size, which provides adequate food, water, and the basic cover requirement of heavy vegetation, should be suitable habitat for the red wolf. Telemetry studies indicate that red wolf home range requirements vary from about 25 to 5O square miles.

12. Red Wolf (Canis Rufus) (Source: http://www.nczooredwolf.org/)

13. Endangered Species Organizations (Groups organized to help the prevention of extinction of animals)

18. The Giant Panda (Ailuropoda melanoleuca) The Giant Panda bear is found only in China and restricted to definite habitats. The Giant Panda lives in Bamboo forests, temperate broadleaf forests, and temperate mixed forests. It has been placed in the Endangered category for some time now, and even though several organizations have attempted to restore this species to a Low Risk category it doesn’t seem to help improve its situation. The Giant Panda is one of the hardest mammals to bring back to a stable existence for the following reasons: Causes for endangerment: • Two may be born, but usually only one survives. They require great care by the mothers, and losses of the young are a serious problem in recovery and management of these endangered animals. • The feeding habits of the giant panda are another serious problem in recovery and management, since they feed almost exclusively on bamboo, which is not highly nutritious. They have to spend 16 to 24 hours feeding each day. Also, bamboo species flower periodically en masse, and die shortly afterwards, which sometimes leads to starvation. The giant panda's broken-up range has created six isolated populations, with the total number in the wild estimated at about 1,500. Only very intense management and care will assure the survival of the species, but recent efforts have at best been barely adequate • The Giant Panda population has also been affected by hunting and collecting, shifting agriculture, livestock ranching, deforestation, human settlement, trapping.

19. Details of its endangerment: • The extent of the Giant Panda bear’s area of occupancy is less than 500km2, and the locations at which they inhabit are greatly fragmented; basically there are no more than five locations where Giant Panda bears are known to exist (in the wild). • It is predicted that the area, extent and/or quality of the Giant Panda’s habitat will continue to decline, as well as its area of occupancy and its territorial areas. • The population of pandas of 1500 matured individuals, is expected to continue declining. This is due mainly to the above mentioned facts as well as because of the large population fragmentation. Humans involved with Giant Panda conservation have attempted to increase the population mainly by recruitment, reproduction in safe isolated habitats, and by conserving the panda’s natural habitat. The main reason that these methods are so unsuccessful is because: 1) Panda’s are animals that base their diet almost entirely on Bamboo, which is low in nutritional content, and which demands the panda to eat between 16 to 24 hours a day. Any scarcity of bamboo could cause starvation easily. 2) Newborn pandas require the full dedication of parents (mother), and with one out of each two newborn dying, any change in the panda’s environment will make it even harder for the adult panda to feed and at the same time take care of the cub. 3) Inhabitants around pandas are not all educated and some trap the pandas and either poach them or sent them to places where they will be caged attractions. 4) There is a great amount of deforestation/destruction of the panda habitat, caused by overpopulation and agriculture. 5) Poaching for the high priced Panda furs, which can even range from $100,000 to $200,000!

20. The Giant Panda (Ailuropoda melanoleuca) (Source:www.giantpandabear.com)

21. Bibliography • www.awionline.org • www.tesf.org • www.nesarc.org • www.ewt.org.za • www.cites.org • http://www.animalinfo.org/species/carnivor/panttigr.htm • http://www.primenet.com/~brendel/tiger.html • http://www.nczooredwolf.org/ • http://eelink.net/EndSpp/ • http://www.nceet.snre.umich.edu/EndSpp/Endangered.html • http://www.eswr.com/ • http://www.stopextinction.org/org/members.html • http://www.endangeredspecie.com