An Atlas of Endangered Species

Product Information

The Tahiti reed-warbler is also endangered because of human activity. The tropical weed Miconia is a non-native species that has taken over much of Tahiti’s native vegetation. The reed-warbler lives almost exclusively in Tahiti’s bamboo forests. The bird nests in bamboo and feeds on flowers and insects that live there. As development and invasive species such as Miconia destroy the bamboo forests, the population of Tahiti reed-warblers continues to shrink. A critically endangered species’ population has declined between 80 and 90 percent. This decline is measured over 10 years or three generations of the species, whichever is longer. A near threatened species is one that is likely to qualify for a threatened category in the near future. There isn’t a single map in this book – so the title is more than a little odd – no matter, the contents are good. With twenty percent of the earth's species facing extinction by 2030, this striking atlas brings up to date the data on those that have been lost already, those that are threatened, and those that are surviving today. Vividly illustrated with full-color maps and detailed graphics, The Atlas of Endangered Species catalogs the inhabitants of a wide variety of ecosystems, including forests, mangroves, and coral reefs. It examines the major threats to biodiversity, from loss of habitat to hunting, and describes the steps being taken toward conservation.

Many species of violets, native to tropical jungles in South America and Africa, are near threatened, for instance. They have healthy populations, but their rain forest habitat is disappearing at a fast pace. People are cutting down huge areas of rain forest for development and timber. Many violet species are likely to become threatened. Monoculture, the agricultural method of growing a single crop, can also reduce genetic variation. Modern agribusiness relies on monocultures. Almost all potatoes cultivated, sold, and consumed, for instance, are from a single species, the Russet Burbank. Potatoes, native to the Andes Mountains of South America, have dozens of natural varieties. The genetic variation of wild potatoes allows them to adapt to climate change and disease. For Russet Burbanks, however, farmers must use fertilizers and pesticides to ensure healthy crops because the plant has almost no genetic variation. Hexham Book Group's meets on the second Tuesday of the month at 7.30pm in Scott's Café at the Forum Cinema, Hexham. The Transcaucasian racerunner ( Eremias pleskei) is a lizard found on the Armenian Plateau, located in Armenia, Azerbaijan, Iran, and Turkey. The Transcaucasian racerunner is a critically endangered species because of a huge population decline, estimated at more than 80 percent during the past 10 years. A species is classified as critically endangered when its population has declined at least 90 percent and the cause of the decline is known. A species is also classified as endangered when its population has declined at least 80 percent and the cause of the decline is not known.A species is also classified as vulnerable if its population has declined at least 30 percent and the cause of the decline is not known. A new, unknown virus, for example, could kill hundreds or even thousands of individuals before being identified. Habitat loss from development in the 20th century is the main reason the tree went extinct in the wild. A single specimen survived at the Royal Botanical Garden in Peradeniya, Sri Lanka, until 1990, when that, too, was lost.

Megan McCubbin's mini-anthology of animals at risk is full of striking tales, including ones about snow leopards and partying orcas. It should provide a powerful motivation for concerned humansThere are currently 41,415 listed endangered species, and over 16,000 of them are threatened with extinction. Three species vanish every hour. Our incredible world is at risk, and we all have a part to play in saving it. There are plenty of species left to cover – I’m looking forward to the next volume already. And I keep daydreaming about camels. A species is classified as endangered when there are fewer than 2,500 mature individuals. When a species population declines by at least 20 percent within five years or two generations, it is also classified as endangered. Joyful and heartbreaking, an inspiring celebration of some of our planet’s most endangered species and those who champion them’– Dave Goulson, author of Silent Earth

But you could make your own choice from quite a lot of mammals, some birds, an amphibian, a fish, an echinoderm, a mollusc and that plant. The spread includes well-known and not-so-well-known species and a smattering of marine species as well as terrestrial and aquatic ones. A species is extinct in the wild when it only survives in cultivation (plants), in captivity (animals), or as a population well outside its established range. A species may be listed as extinct in the wild only after years of surveys have failed to record an individual in its native or expected habitat. The definitions of the three threatened categories (vulnerable, endangered, and critically endangered) are based on five criteria: population reduction rate, geographic range, population size, population restrictions, and probability of extinction. The Tahiti reed-warbler ( Acrocephalus caffer) is a songbird found on the Pacific island of Tahiti. It is an endangered species because it has a very small population. The bird is only found on a single island, meaning both its extent of occurrence and area of occupancy are very small. A species is classified as endangered when its population has declined at least 70 percent and the cause of the decline is known. A species is also classified as endangered when its population has declined at least 50 percent and the cause of the decline is not known.

An Atlas of Endangered Species: stories from the brink of extinction – and the fight for survival by Megan McCubbin is published by Two Roads.