| GENEVA
(Reuters) - One in four species of mammal and one in eight
species of bird are at risk of extinction, a World Conservation
Union report shows.
The
Swiss-based environment agency's latest Red List of Threatened
Animals, last published four years ago, reveals 11,046
species of plants and animals face extinction in the near
future if nothing is done.
From
the Wandering Albatross, with its 11-foot wingspan, to
the Caspian Sea's sturgeon fish, whose eggs are used to
make caviar, the report shows the total number of threatened
animal species has increased from 5,205 to 5,435.
``We
are in an extinction crisis. The trends are shocking,''
said Maritta Koch-Weser, director-general of the World
Conservation Union.
The
group's research, undertaken by a network of around 2,000
scientists from around the world, was based on an assessment
of 18,276 species and subspecies.
That
is a tiny fraction of an estimated 10 million or more
species that exist in the world, of which only 1.4 million
have been named, said World Conservation Union official
Simon Stuart.
``Every
10 days, a new species is facing a significantly elevated
risk of extinction,'' Stuart said.
``And
that is almost certainly an underestimate because that
rate is based on mammals and birds which are a tiny fraction
of all the species that exist.''
Twenty-four
percent of mammal species and 12 percent of bird species
face a high risk of extinction, the report showed.
It
added that approximately 25 percent of reptiles, 20 percent
of amphibians and 30 percent of fish were threatened.
Humans
To Blame
Extinction
is a natural process -- most animals and plants that have
evolved over the millions of years since life began are
now extinct. But the rate has accelerated with the growing
human population, habitat destruction, pollution and over-harvesting.
Primates
were the worst hit among mammals. If present trends in
habitat destruction and hunting continue, some species
of gorillas and apes will not be around much longer, Koch-Weser
said.
Among
them was the Cross River Gorilla, with the lowest population
among African apes with just 150 to 200 left. It was listed
as critically endangered.
Also
in danger was the African ape species known as Miss Waldron's
Red Colobus, originally discovered by Willoughby Lowe
in Ghana in 1933 and named after his traveling companion.
The World Conservation Union said the animal had not been
seen for some time.
The
report said Madagascar had more endangered primates than
anywhere else in the world while Indonesia, home to 10
percent of the world's primate species and a big timber
exporter, had the largest number of threatened mammals
with 135 species, followed by India, Brazil and China.
In
Europe, the report said Caspian Sea's sturgeon faced extinction
due to a free-for-all trade controlled by smugglers.
The
Wandering Albatross was threatened by long-line fishermen
who trail thousands of baited hooks behind their boats
and inadvertently catch the bird, it said.
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