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For every 10
species listed as endangered, nearly 6 of those species are
plants.
Although mammals and birds have gotten more attention,
it is
plants that are fundamental to nature's functioning,
as they
support most of the rest of life by converting sunlight into food.
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Graphic depicting Rosy
Periwinkle
(source of medicine to treat childhood Leukemia and
Hodgkin's disease.) |
Healthy forest
ecosystem
supporting a great variety of
plant and animal species. |
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Why Save
Endangered Species?
(Division of Wildlife
Conservation, Alaska Dept. of Fish and Game)
IUCN Red List of Threatened
Species
The International Union for Conservation of Nature and
Natural Resources "Red List" is the world's most comprehensive inventory of the global conservation status
of plant and animal species. It is recognized as the most authoritative guide to the status of biological
diversity.
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The
Giant Panda is a National Treasure of China and a symbol of the
world's endangered wildlife.
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Endangered Species Program
(U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service)
"...working to conserve and restore endangered and threatened species
and the ecosystems upon which they depend."
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Sea Turtles -
Endangered!
All seven species of Sea Turtles are listed as endangered,
threatened or vulnerable.
The female nesting population of the
100 million year old
Pacific leatherback sea turtle has collapsed by 95 percent since
1980. The Pacific Leatherback is listed as Critically Endangered,
and it is feared it could possibly go extinct in the next 5-30 years
unless immediate action is taken to remove the threats that are
endangering the species.
Photo of dead Leatherback on fishing vessel deck |
Dead Sea Turtle
Photo credit:
South Florida Water Management District |
Summary
of the ESA (Endangered Species Act)
(U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service)
Scroll down through History,
Administration, Listing, and Recovery
U.S.
Endangered Species Lists
U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, Division
of Endangered Species central listings of Threatened and Endangered plant and
animal species.
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Endangered! |
Manatees
Known as "the sea cow,"
the manatee is one of
the most endangered marine mammals in
coastal
waters of the United States today.
(Defenders of Wildlife) |
NatureServe
Search NatureServe Explorer,
an authoritative source for information on more than 65,000 plants, animals,
and ecosystems of the United States and Canada. Explorer includes
particularly in-depth coverage for rare and endangered species. Search
InfoNatura for information pertaining to Latin America and the Carribbean.
Laws on Collecting and
Endangered Species
(U.S. Fish and Wildlife
Service)
Importers, exporters, hunters, crafters, gallery owners, travelers, hikers
-
You may not be a smuggler or a poacher, but just "innocently"
collecting a few ornamental plants to decorate your home, using some bird
feathers in craftwork, or bringing home some souvenirs from your travels.
Beware - Know the current laws!
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Rhinos - Endangered!
Very
few Rhinos now exist
outside of protected areas.
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Gorillas -
Endangered!
All
great ape species are threatened
with extinction in the wild. |
Discoveries
of New Species (Eco-Pros Species
Biodiversity)
Red List of
Pollinator Insects of North America
(Xerces Society for
Invertebrate Conservation)
Species in need of
conservation attention that are near extinction, or in danger of extinction in
the long term.
Extinction Looms
for Borneo's Rhinos (Fox Science News,
3/17/06)
Poaching must be stopped immediately!
Endangered Species News
(Capitol Reports)
Refuges at
Risk: America's Ten Most Endangered National Wildlife Refuges 2005
Defenders of Wildlife has released its annual report
listing the threats facing the U.S. National Wildlife Refuge System,
highlighting lack of adequate staff and funding as major problems needing
addressing. “If we don’t turn back some of these immediate threats to our
wildlife refuge system, America’s most amazing wildlife spectacles will simply
not be there for our grandchildren.”
Click link at top of announcement for complete report.
World
Wildlife - WWF
Click on the links provided
on the side panels to see pictures and learn about the endangered and threatened
species WWF protects around the world.
The State of Disappearing Species and Habitat
(A
Sierra Club Report)
Includes Introduction, Causes and Effects of Habitat Destruction and Loss,
Trends in Habitat Loss, Types of Habitat in Decline, Where Habitat Loss is
Occurring in U.S., How the Endangered Species Act Works, Listing Endangered and
Threatened Species, Protecting Critical Habitat, Recovery Planning, Prohibited
Actions under the ESA, Incidental Take Permits and HCPs, Conclusion and
Recommendations for Protecting America's Imperiled Species and Ecosystems (i.e.,
Improving Federal Programs, Promoting the Conservation of Entire Ecosystems,
Eliminating Harmful Land Management Policies).
Florida Panther - Endangered!
The Florida Everglades is home to 68 threatened or endangered species!
See our Wetlands Loss and Recovery pages
Credit: South Florida Water Management
District
Understanding the Endangered Species Act
(Earth
Justice)
Including links to pledge your support to protect the Endangered Species Act,
information on legislation that would weaken the Endangered Species Act, and
Citizens' Guide to the Endangered Species Act, and an online publication of "30
Years of the Endangered Species Act" (a large PDF file) containing information
on species whose odds of survival have been improved by the Endangered Species
Act.
Endangered
Species Coalition
Stop extinction! Information about the
Endangered Species Act. Click on their links for other resources, and
check out their News page for links to publications and news updates regarding
endangered species.
The Endangered Species Coalition is
a national network of 360 conservation organizations, scientific associations,
religious organizations, hunting and fishing associations, businesses, community
organizations, humane societies, student groups, and concerned citizens working
to protect endangered species and habitat.
Center for
Plant Conservation - Recovering America's Vanishing
Flora
The Center's National Collection of Endangered
Plants contains plant material for more than 600 of the United States' most
imperiled native plants. This serves as a backup in the event a species
becomes extinct or is no longer able to reproduce in the wild.
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Purple Foxglove
Medicinal treatments for heart conditions
were derived from extracts of this plant. |
Rainforest
Vast areas of the tropical rainforests are
rapidly disappearing - and with them,
untold numbers of undiscovered
and endangered species. |
Millennium
Seed Bank
The United Kingdom's Millennium Seed Bank, run by the
Royal Botanic Gardens, is the largest global plant diversity conservation project of its kind in the world.
Millions of seeds designated as in danger will be stored in a specially-designed
underground site in an attempt to save 24,000 plant species from extinction.
(BBC News report)
Royal Botanic Gardens
Information on the seed bank, science, horticulture, collections, conservation,
wildlife and taxonomic resources.
Florida Bog Frog
Very rare species of frog
found in only a small area of western Florida.
Picture of the Florida Bog Frog
(The Center for North
American Herpetology)
Species disappearing at an alarming
rate - World Conservation Union Report
(MSNBC News, 11/17/04)
Non-Native
Invasive Species
- the second greatest threat in the loss of
plant and animal species and biodiversity.
Ivory-billed woodpecker not extinct
(CNN,
April 28, 2005)
Conservationists Worldwide Celebrate Rediscovery of Ivory-billed
Woodpecker
(Audubon)
Ivory-Billed Woodpecker, thought to be extinct, is alive and has
been sighted in Arkansas woods
Logging and
hunting caused a severe decline in this species, and the last
confirmed sighting had been in Louisiana in the 1940s.
Fluorescent proteins found in
coral reefs may lead to health cures
Scientists are using these glowing proteins to monitor and study processes
associated with many diseases, including cancer, AIDS and Alzheimer's. The
search is on to discover more fluorescent proteins, as coral reefs are suffering
great decline.
"Corals are some of the most endangered organisms on the Earth. There are
thousands of different kinds of coral, and many are headed for near extinction."
National Geographic
(January
12, 2005)
Bringing Back the
Whoopers
Rare Whooping
Cranes had dwindled to only 15 birds by 1941.
That is
almost extinct!
Now there numbers are increasing with the help of humans. But, how do you get young whooping cranes to find their way to
new habitat over 1,000 miles away (with no whooping crane parents to show them
the way or how to survive)? No, they don't have maps. Instead of
following their parents as migratory birds normally do, these young cranes
follow planes! Recovery teams in crane costumes are teaching new flocks of
whooping cranes how to find food, survive, and then to follow them in ultralight
aircraft and migrate south for the winter. The cranes will learn the
migration route so they can return north on their own in the spring.
bringbackthecranes.org
(read this overview of the project and then click on their
Home page)
Cloud Forests Fading in the
Mist, Their Treasures Little Known
Evergreen mountain forests provide vastly
important functions by capturing and filtering water that feeds rivers systems,
and they are huge storehouses of biodiversity - much of which we know nothing
about. Biologists warn cloud forests are disappearing at a rapid rate, and
the complexity of the ecological interactions and intricate mix of lifeforms
that maintain healthy ecosystems like these cannot be restored. Scientists
are needed to work in cloud forests to help catalog and preserve the
biodiversity of species.
National
Geographic
Wild
Places
Click on Endangered
America which will bring up a small window with a clickable map (click Start). Click on a region and then go
into the complete list of U.S. endangered species, broken down into 7 regions
(which opens in another new window). Click on various regions and then specific
areas to see detailed listings. When finished reviewing the lists, close
the windows.
ES2000
- Endangered Species of the Next Millennium
"By endangering wildlife, we are
endangering ourselves."
Causes of extinction, species
profiles, current worldwide situation, basic biology, preservation,
consumer awareness, media gallery, facts, quotes, and reforming the human
economic system
"in order to establish a sustainable society." (A Think Quest Project)
Endangered Species
(EELink)
- Links provided to information on the Web
Photos
links |
