Animals That Could go Extinct in 2016. These awesome animals are all at risk of extinction. These animals might even go extinct in 2016 still. Planet Earth is home to a vast array of fascinating creatures. Unfortunately, as human behavior and natural phenomenons continue to harm the populations of certain species, the likelihood of their extinction increases. The following animals could go extinct by the end of 2016 Black Rhino Back Rhinos are actually grey. They live in eastern and central Africa, and are listed as critically endangered. In fact, subspecies the western black rhino, the southern black rhino and and the northeastern black rhino are already extinct. Black Rhinos have no natural predator. Like pretty much any other creature unlucky enough to cross a crocodile, they have been known to be killed by by these beasts in some cases. However, due to their size, aggressive behavior, thick skin and deadly horns, few animals in the wild have the gumption to mess with a Black Rhino. Living only in the Gulf of California, the Vaquita is a near extinct porpoise. It is estimated that fewer than 100 of them are left. They tend to live near the shorelines, feasting on any type of small fish or squid they come across. Gillnet fishing kills close to 40 Vaquitas a year. Additionally, pollution has damaging their habitat. The poor level of water nutrients and low minerals levels are killing fish in the area, so food sources for the Vaquitas are pretty scarce. The damming of rivers in the region stop the flow of fresh water into their habitat, which may have long term effects on the population, should they even survive the next few decades. In order to curb the population decline, restrictions on gill fishing have been put into place. Furthermore, the Mexican government has created nature reserves in the gulf of California where the Vaquita live. There are even economic compensation plans to encourage fishermen to not fish in protected areas, as fishing remains the number one threat. South China Tiger As its name would suggest, the South china tiger lives southern China. since 1996, it has been listed as critically endangered by the IUCN. It is quite possible that they are extinct in the wild, existing solely in captivity. There has been no official sighting of a Chinese Tiger in the wild since the 1970’s, and that Tiger was taken in protective captivity. Up until the 1950’s, the South China Tiger was widespread across southern China, and more than 4,000 of these big cats roamed free. Hunting and deforestation quickly lead to a decline in the population. By the late 1980’s, the population had dipped to around 30-40 tigers. Even though there had not been an official sighting of a South China Tiger since the early 70’s, there was evidence of these few tigers left in the wild. There are roughly 70 South China Tigers in captivity today, and biologists hope to eventually reintroduce these tigers into the wild. Some conservationists have toyed with the idea of placing them in South Africa where they will have more space, food to hunt and experts in the area to help stabilize the population. However, there are concerns as to how well they would do in the wild. Blue Throated Macaw These critically endangered parrots live in Bolivia, where they are regarded as a cultural heritage. Due to the illegal, yet lucrative pet trade, only about 400 of these exotic birds remain alive today. Blue Throated Macaws are among the rarest in the world. They only live in parts of the Benni Department in Bolivia. In the 1980’s, some estimations tallied as many 1000 of the birds in the wild. By the late 1990’s, less than 200 were still alive. Recent efforts to increase the population have seen modest gains. A more recent survey, indicates that at least 350 Blue Throated Macaws are now in the wild. The Bolivian government has implemented legislation that protects these parrots, and has made the trapping and selling of them illegal. Additionally, a huge 11,500 acre land reserve for the birds was built in an effort to save the population from extinction. Northern Sportive Lemur They live in Madagascar, and thanks to ecological deterioration, and threats posd by humans, the Northern Sportive Lemur is the most endangered primates on the planet. Subscribe to World5List http://goo.gl/cpJSA6 Find us on... -- http://www.twitter.com/world5list -- http://www.pinterest.com/world5list -- http://www.boredbadger.com -- http://www.facebook.com/world5list

• published: 23 Jan 2016
• views: 14210