Today, it is estimated that there are less than 250 Cross River Gorillas in the wild and only one known to be in captivity. Unfortunately, the Cross River Gorilla, which was first noted in 1907, was largely ignored until it was too late (in 1987) and its population numbers were already low. While all Gorilla and species are vulnerable, the Cross River Gorilla is unfortunately the most endangered great ape in the world. Photo source: Wikimedia Commons via Julielangford
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Location: Forested hills and mountains of the Cameroon-Nigeria border region at the headwaters of the Cross River (Nigeria) 1.8 million years ago).Įstimated Number of Mature Individuals: less than 250 in the wild one known in captivity 900,000 years ago), and even as far back as Pliocene-Pleistocene boundary (c. The Northern Bald Ibis is an ancient bird species with fossils dating to the Holocene (c.10,000 years ago), middle Pleistocene (c. The Northern Bald Ibis has been regionally extinct in Europe for over 500 years, but reintroduction programs are currently underway. Today, most of the wild population of Northern Bald Ibises live in Morocco with a few possibly left alive in Syria. For several decades, the Northern Bald Ibis was considered critically endangered, but successful conservation efforts over recent years has helped downgrade the species status to endangered – there are over 1,000 Northern Bald Ibises in captivity. The Northern Bald Ibis is one of the rarest birds in the world, with less than 250 mature individuals remaining in the wild. Photo source: Wikimedia Commons via Charles J Sharp Location: Southern Morocco and Syria previously also found throughout Europe, North Africa, and other parts of the Middle East
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Did You Know?Īddaxes only excrete dry feces and concentrated urine because they use every bit of water that they eat.Įstimated Number of Mature Individuals: less than 250 in the wild over 1,000 in captivity In recent years, with the success of breeding programs, Addax have been reintroduced to Morocco and Tunisia on wildlife preserves. Wild Addax populations have been in severe decline due to unregulated hunting. In the past, the Addax was common in North Africa, native to Chad, Mauritania, Niger, Algeria, Egypt, Libya, Sudan, and the Western Sahara. However, there are a number of successful breeding programs around the world, and while you most likely won’t catch a glimpse of an Addax in the wild, you might just see one of the thousands in captivity at your local zoo. The Addax or white antelope is on the verge of extinction in its wild habitat of the Sahara Desert, with the size of the wild population ranging from 30 to 90 mature individuals. Photo source: Wikimedia Commons via Haytem93 Did You Know?īlack-footed Ferrets primarily hunt prairie dogs and because of their dependence on the other species, the population of Black-footed Ferrets is heavily impacted by the wild population of prairie dogs, which has also been in decline in recent years.Įstimated Number of Mature Individuals: between 30 to 90 in the wild (possibly as few as three) more than 2,000 in captivityĬurrent Conservation Status: Critically Endangered While, the program has mostly been a success, recent updates only put the wild Black-footed Ferret population between 300 to 400 individuals. Since then, a captive breeding program was launched by the United States Fish and Wildlife Service and thousands of Black-footed Ferrets were re-released in Arizona, Wyoming, South Dakota, and Montana throughout the last few decades. That remaining population only survived until 1987 and the Black-footed Ferret was extinct in the wild again.
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A few years later, in 1981, the Black-footed Ferret was re-discovered by a dog in Wyoming.
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However, the population of the Black-footed Ferret sharply declined throughout the 20th century and was declared extinct in 1979. Originally, the Black-footed Ferret was native to the Great Plains of North America and ranged from southern Canada to northern Mexico. The Black-footed Ferret is often touted as a conservation success story as the species has come back from extinction status twice through the efforts of conservationists. Photo source: Wikimedia Commons via USFWS Mountain-Prairie Location: Arizona, Wyoming, South Dakota, and Montana, USA previously native to the Great Plains of North America Estimated Number of Mature Individuals: 300 to 400 in the wild many bred in captivity and released to the wild each year