The Sumatran Rhino - armed and endangered...
undefined
Abbott’s Booby
A large seabird of the gannet family, the Abbott’s Booby is normally only found on Christmas Island in the Indian Ocean and is the sole living member of the Papsula genus. Breeding only once every two years, this 79cm seabird may well not make it into the next generation.
Addax
A nocturnal antelope found in the sand dunes of the Sahara Desert, the Addax is characterised by its straggly beard and spiral horns. With wide hooves designed to stop it sinking into the sand this nomadic species can grow to 109cm and rarely, if ever, drinks water.
Angel Shark
Once common throughout the Northeast Atlantic, Mediterranean and Black seas, this bottom feeding beast is now critically endangered. More resembling a manta ray than its familiar shark cousins, the Angel Shark hides in sea bottom mud by day and hunts fish and crustaceans by night.
Bengal Florican
Almost extinct, less than 1000 of these Bustard’s remain in their native Cambodia, Vietnam, Nepal and India. The only surviving member of the Houbaropsis genus, adult Floricans grow to around 68cm. Males have distinctive black plumage from head to underparts with bright yellow feet and legs.
Black-faced Lion Tamarin
Only discovered in 1990 on the island of Superagui, off Brazil, only 400 of these cute little primates remain. With just 17,300 hectares of available habitat left for the Tamarin to inhabit their numbers are increasingly threatened by tourism, palm heart harvesting and deforestation for cattle ranching.
Burmese Roofed Turtle
Once abundant in the rivers of central and southern Myanmar (Burma), the population of Roofed Turtles has been decimated in recent years by hunting and egg poaching. Programs to save the turtle in its natural habitat have been hampered by gold mining and panning along the Chindwin River.
The Abbott’s Booby is normally only found on Christmas Island in the Indian Ocean and is the sole living member of the Papsula genus. Breeding only once every two years, this 79cm seabird may well not make it into the next generation.
Dragonflies of Sri Lanka
Of the 53 species of dragonfly found in Sri Lanka, at least 20 are seriously threatened due to widespread redevelopment of wetlands for urban and industrial building. On top of this, the ecosystem is endangered by a flow of pollutants from upstream industrial, agricultural and domestic activities.
Golden Arrow Poison Frog
Endemic to the Pacific coast of clombia. This amphibian of the dendrobatidae family is considered the most poisonous vertebrate on the planet. With an optimal habitat of rainforest at altitudes between 328 - 656 feet (100 to 200 metres) this brightly coloured amphibians numbers have been decimated by highly infectious fungal disease.
North Atlantic Right Whale
With around 400 of these great beasts remaining in the North Atlantic Ocean, their natural feeding grounds between the Gulf of Maine and Florida have been threatened by heavy shipping.
Ricord's Iguana
Conversion of this iguana’s naturally arid habitat on the Isla Cabritos and Parque National Jaragua in the southwestern Dominican Republic to agricultural and pasture land has contributed to the rapid decline in the species’ numbers in recent years. Because so little is known about Ricord’s Iguanas in the wild, extensive studies are required in order to mitigate the species’ decline.
Pygmy Hippopotamus
A smaller cousin to the common hippopotamus, the Pygmy Hippo is reclusive and nocturnal in its native swamps of western Africa. Semi-aquatic it lives close to water to keep its skin and body cool and lives on plants, grasses and fruits. There are currently fewer than 3000 Pygmy Hippo’s left in the wild.
Sumatran Rhinoceros
One of five extant rhinoceros species, the Sumatran Rhino remains in just six substantial populations; four on Sumatra, one on Borneo and one on peninsula Malaysia. Solitary in nature, there are probably no more than 250 of these remarkable creatures left on earth and their decline is primarily due to poaching for their horns.
For more from GF Explorer head to the website atwww.glenfiddichexplorers.com, or to create and share your own lists visitwww.glenfiddich.com/explorers
Click here for more Travel stories
Click here to follow Sabotage Times on Twitter
Click here to follow Sabotage Times on Facebook