Transcript Extinction/Endangered Species

BIODIVERSITY and
ECOSYSTEMS
• Biodiversity is critical in any self-sustaining environment. Complex
and diverse ecological systems are made up of many organisms
and a huge variety of interactions. All ecosystems , whether diverse
or sparse, involve an intimate interaction of living things with a biotic
environment. Biodiversity implies variety, variety in an ecosystem
often ensures a grater chance of survival in a changing world.
• The planet earth is losing its biodiversity at an alarming rate.
Humans simplify ecosystems for many reasons, mainly, to increase
agricultural base, to make way for cities and industrial zones, and for
aesthetic reasons, such as making lawns and gardens.
• This practice has direct effects upon the survival and maintenance
of diversity of species.
OBJECTIVES
• Identify extinct species.
• Identify endangered species.
• Identify the threats/causes to vanishing or extinct
species.
• Examines the history of these species.
• Explain biodiversity and its importance.
• Relate success in protecting endangered
species to methods used to protect it.
• Describe strategies used to conserve
biodiversity.
MATERIALS
• COMPUTER LAB
• COMPUTER DISC
• DIGITAL CAMERA
PROCEDURES
STUDENTS USE VARIOUS
WEBSITES TO FIND ANWERS TO
QUESTIONS AS GIVEN IN THE
OBJECTIVES.
STUDENTS’ RESEARCH
FINDINGS
• Endangered (Gorillas
Western Lo9wlands)
• Do Do Birds
• Bengal Tigers
• Jaguars
• Quagga
• Tasmanian Tiger
• Thylacine
• Golden Lion
Tamarinds
• Dinosaurs
• Giant Pandas
• Margay
• Siberian Tiger
• Polar Bears (URSUS
MARITIMUS)
“Extinction/Endangered Species”
By: Ashley Benoit
Endangered Gorillas
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In western Africa there remain approximately 94,000 western lowland
gorilla's
in the wild, but recent surveys indicate a decline
of up to 56 percent across their range, due to poaching and disease. In
areas
hard hit by the Ebola virus, over 90 percent of great apes have been killed.
It is this subspecies most frequently seen in captivity and mounted in
museum collections.
Western lowland gorillas
• Western lowland gorillas are endangered, but they
remain far more common than their relatives, the
mountain gorillas. They live in heavy rain forests, and it
is difficult for scientists to accurately estimate how many
survive in Cameroon, Central African Republic, Congo,
Equatorial Guinea, Gabon, Angola, and the Democratic
Republic of Congo.
Western lowland gorillas tend to be a bit smaller than
their mountain cousins. They also have shorter hair and
longer arms.
Golden Lion Tamarin
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The golden lion tamarin is listed as endangered by the U.S. Fish and
Wildlife Service and the International Union for the Conservation of Nature
and Natural Resources (IUCN).
Only about 800 are left in the wild, and about 30% of these were either
relocated from depleted areas or released as part of a reintroduction
program.
The primary threats to this species’ survival is continued loss of forest
habitat and population fragmentation due to agriculture and urban and
resort development.
Golden Lion Tamarins
• Most golden lion tamarins live in reproductive groups
that occupy stable territories. The average number of
individuals/group in one study was 5.4. In the wild,
groups usually consist of one breeding adult of each sex
and younger animals. Golden lion tamarins are
cooperative breeders: all adult members of a group help
to carry and feed the offspring of the group, with the
adult male commonly doing the largest share. The
mother only takes the babies to nurse them.
• In the 19th century, the golden lion tamarin occurred in
Brazil in the coastal forests of the states of Rio de
Janeiro and Esparto Santo. By the early 1980's it was
known only from remnant forests in the state of Rio de
Janeiro in an area of occupied habitat probably totaling
considerably less than 900 sq km (350 sq mi). The wild
population is currently fragmented into 17 different
When discussing the causes of endangerment, it is important to
understand that individual species are not the only factors involved in
this dilemma. Endangerment is a broad issue, one that involves the
habitats and environments where species live and interact with one
another. Although some measures are being taken to help specific
cases of endangerment, the universal problem cannot be solved until
humans protect the natural environments where endangered species
dwell.
• Plants and animals
hold medicinal,
agricultural,
ecological,
commercial and
aesthetic/recreational
value. Endangered
species must be
protected and saved
so that future
generations can
experience their
presence and value.
The End.
The Extinction of Dinosaurs
Dinosaurs were the dominant vertebrate animals
of terrestrial ecosystems for over 160 million
years, from the late Triassic period (about
230 million years ago) to the end of the
Cretaceous period (65 million years ago), when
most of them became extinct in the Cretaceous–
Tertiary extinction event.
The Cretaceous–Tertiary extinction
event, which occurred approximately
65.5 million years ago, was a large-scale
mass extinction of animal and plant
species in a geologically short period of
time.
Because atmospheric particles
blocked sunlight, reducing the
amount of solar energy
reaching the earth's surface,
species that depended on
photosynthesis declined or
became extinct.
Evidence suggests that
herbivorous animals died out
when the plants they
depended on for food became
scarce; consequently, top
predators such as
Tyrannosaurus rex also
perished.
Dinosaurs are now extinct and
what's left of them are now fossils in
a museum on display some where.
Dodo bird
The dodo was a flightless bird
endemic to the Indian Ocean
island of Mauritius. Related to
pigeons and doves, it stood
about a meter tall, weighing
about 20 kilograms (44 lb), living
on fruit and nesting on the
ground.
The dodo has been extinct since
the mid-to-late 17th century. It is
commonly used as the archetype
of an extinct species because its
extinction occurred during
recorded human history, and was
directly attributable to human
activity.
The adjective phrase "as dead as
a dodo" means undoubtedly and
unquestionably dead. The phrase
"to go the way of the dodo"
means to become extinct or
obsolete, to fall out of common
usage or practice, or to become a
thing of the past.
According to Encarta Dictionary
and Chambers Dictionary of
Etymology, "dodo" comes from
Portuguese doudo (currently
doido) meaning "fool" or "crazy".
The present Portuguese name
for the bird, dodô, is of English
origin. The Portuguese word
doudo or doido may itself be a
loanword from Old English.
The dodo bird is extinct and
will never be seen again.
Endangered Species
By: Patricia Honea
Bengal Tiger
• The Bengal Tiger was listed as an
endangered species on June 2, 1970.
• The main cause of endangerment is
poaching and loss of habitat.
• They are often killed for fur and bones
(which are used in Chinese medicine).
• They are now legally protected.
Bengal Tiger
• They are listed as endangered in
Temperate and Tropical Asia.
• Most tigers (with the exception of the white
tiger) have brown or black stripes with
orange fur.
• They feed mostly on deer, wild boar, wild
cattle, and even young rhinos and
elephants.
Gray Wolf
• The gray wolf was added to the
endangered species list on March 11,
1967.
• It can live up to 13 years.
• It has an excellent sense of smell and
hearing.
• There are only about 200,000 wolves left.
• Their main threat was hunting and
trapping by humans.
Gray Wolf
• They are listed as endangered in Mexico,
USA-lower 48 states.
• Also called the Timber Wolf, Tundra Wolf,
and Arctic Wolf.
• They have a gray fur coat with long tawnycolored legs, a narrow chest, and tawnycolored flanks.
Jaguar
• The Jaguar was listed on the endangered
species list on March 28, 1972.
• The main cause of endangerment in
population is hunting, poaching, and
clearing of forests.
• They are hunted for their beautiful coats.
• They are now legally protected in most
areas.
Jaguar
• They are listed as endangered in Arizona,
California, Central and South America,
Louisiana, Mexico, New Mexico, and
Texas.
• Their fur is tan, with black rings and dots.
Some have completely black coats.
• They feed on deer, peccaries, otters, and
fish.
Giant Panda
• Giant pandas were added to the list on
January 23, 1984.
• They are mostly endangered because of
destruction of habitat and poaching.
• They are reported endangered in China.
• They are very rare and are only found in
parts of China.
• They are now legally protected.
Giant Panda
• The head and body is mainly white except
for the ears, eye patches, nose, shoulders,
arms, and legs.
• The panda has very small eyes and poor
vision.
• They eat bamboo leaves and shoots, fruit,
berries, fungi, grass and small mammalssuch as birds and fish.
Margay
• The margay was added to the endangered
species list on March 28, 1972.
• The main reason for endangerment is
hunting and habitat loss due to
deforestation.
• They are hunted for their fur and for the
pet trade.
• They are found in Central and South
America, and Mexico.
Margay
• They are grayish in color and covered with
dark brown spots. The head is rounded
and short and they have big eyes.
• They eat rodents, monkeys, lizards, birds,
tree frogs, and fruit.
• They are mainly nocturnal, and are very
skilled jumpers and climbers.
• They are often called the “tree ocelot.”
Conclusion
• There are lots of animals that are
threatened, endangered or extinct
because of being hunted or losing their
habitats.
• There are lots of things we can do to help
these animals. Help protect some of them.
It will help them and make you feel like a
better person.
By: Lyle Lewis
QUAGGA
• One of Africa's most famous extinct animals, the quagga
was a subspecies of the plains zebra, which was once
found in great numbers in South Africa's Cape Province
and the southern part of the Orange Free State. It was
distinguished from other zebras by having the usual vivid
marks on the front part of the body only. In the midsection, the stripes faded and the dark, inter-stripe
spaces became wider, and the hindquarters were a plain
brown. The name comes from a Khoikhoi word for zebra
and is onomatopoeic, being said to resemble the
quagga's call.
• The quagga was originally classified as an individual
species, Equus quagga, in 1788. Over the next fifty
years or so, many other zebras were described by
naturalists and explorers. Because of the great variation
in coat patterns (no two zebras are alike), taxonomists
were left with a great number of described "species", and
no easy way to tell which of these were true species,
which were subspecies, and which were simply natural
variants. Long before this confusion was sorted out, the
quagga had been hunted to extinction for meat, hides,
and to preserve feed for domesticated stock. The last
wild quagga was probably shot in the late 1870s, and the
last specimen in captivity died on August 12, 1883 at the
Artis Magistra zoo in Amsterdam
• Because of the great confusion between
different zebra species, particularly among the
general public, the quagga had become extinct
before it was realized that it appeared to be a
separate species. The quagga was the first
extinct creature to have its DNA studied. Recent
genetic research at the Smithsonian Institution
has demonstrated that the quagga was in fact
not a separate species at all, but diverged from
the extremely variable plains zebra.
• After the very close relationship between the quagga and surviving
zebras was discovered, the Quagga Project was started by Reinhold
Rau in South Africa to recreate the quagga by selective breeding
from plains zebra stock, with the eventual aim of reintroducing them
to the wild. This type of breeding is also called breeding back. In
early 2006, it was reported that the third and fourth generations of
the project have produced animals which look very much like the
depictions and preserved specimens of the quagga, though whether
looks alone are enough to declare that this project has produced a
true "re-creation" of the original quagga is controversial. DNA from
mounted specimens was successfully extracted in 1984, but the
technology to use recovered DNA for breeding does not yet exist. In
addition to skins such as the one held by the Natural History
Museum in London, there are 23 known stuffed and mounted
quagga throughout the world. A twenty-fourth specimen was
destroyed in Konigsberg, Germany (now Kaliningrad), during World
War II.[2]
• DNA analysis has shown that the Quagga
was not a separate species of zebra but in
fact a subspecies of the Plains Zebra
(Equus Quagga) The Quagga, formerly
inhabited the Karoo and southern Free
State of South Africa. Like other grazing
mammals, Quagga's had been ruthlessly
hunted. They were seen by the settlers as
competitors for the grazing of their
livestock, mainly sheep and goats.
• Zebras have been cross-bred to other equines
such as donkeys and horses. There are modern
animal farms which continue to do so. The
offspring are known as zeedonks, zonkeys and
zorses (the term for all such zebra hybrids is
zebroid). Zebroids are often exhibited as
curiosities although some are broken to harness
or as riding animals. On January 20, 2005,
Henry, a foal of the Quagga Project, was born.
He most resembles the quagga.
• In his 1859 The Origin of Species, Charles
Darwin recalls seeing coloured drawings
of zebra-donkey hybrids, and mentions
"Lord Moreton's famous hybrid from a
chesnut [sic] mare and male quagga..."
Darwin mentioned this particular hybrid
again in 1868 in The Variation Of Animals
And Plants Under Domestication,[4] and
provides a citation to the journal in which
Lord Morton first described the breeding.
• A quagga appears in a sequence in the Soviet
Union's animated The Cat Who Walked by
Herself, in which Dog tracks the hoofprints of
one, and Cat tells the boy of the Red Book of
endangered species, and how Quagga had "her
track severed" (that is, made extinct) due to
Man's selfish actions.
• A Quagga is one of the main characters in The
Katurran Odyssey, a fantasy children's book by .
• Also the Quagga has had a part in the
book Artemis Fowl: The Time Paradox, by
author Eoin Colfer, where the protagonist,
Artemis Fowl, is made to ride a Quagga in
his attempts to flee the clutches of an evil
pixie genius, Opal Koboi.
• The quagga was the first extinct creature
to have its DNA studied. Recent genetic
research at the Smithsonian Institution has
demonstrated that the quagga was in fact
not a separate species at all, but diverged
from the extremely variable plains zebra,
Equus burchelli, between 120,000 and
290,000 years ago, and suggests that it
should be named Equus burchelli quagga.
• The quagga lived in the Karoo and
southern Free State, and differed in
appearance from other zebras: it was
striped on the front half of its body only
and was a creamy, light brown on its upper
parts and whitish on its belly and legs.
• THE END!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
By: Kai Murray
The Thylacine was the largest known carnivorous marsupial of modern times. Native to
Australia and New Guinea, it is thought to have become extinct in the 20th century. It
is commonly known as the Tasmanian Tiger (due to its striped back), and also known
as the Tasmanian Wolf, and colloquially the Tassie (or Tazzy) Tiger or simply the Tiger.
It was the last extant member of its genus, Thylacinus, although a number of related
species have been found in the fossil record dating back to the early Miocene.
The Tiger was about 5 feet long, and had light brown fur with dark stripes across its lower back.
Tigers were common toward the start of the century but were hunted extensively because they
threatened sheep. Over 4,000 were killed by hunters between 1888 and 1909. Another reason for
there endangerment is the destruction of their habitat.
 The Thylacine was one of only two
marsupials to have a pouch in both
genders (the other is the Water
Opossum). The male Thylacine had a
pouch that acted as a protective
sheath, protecting the male's external
organs while running through thick
brush.
Like the tigers and wolves of the Northern Hemisphere, from which it
inherited two of its common names, the Thylacine was an apex predator. As
a marsupial, it was not related to these placental mammals, but because of
convergent evolution it displayed the same general form and adaptations. Its
closest living relative is the Tasmanian Devil.
Native to Australia and New Guinea, it is thought to have become
extinct in the 20th century. It is commonly known as the Tasmanian
Tiger (because of its striped back), the Tasmanian Wolf, and
colloquially the Tassie (or Tazzy) Tiger or simply the Tiger.[3] It
was the last extant member of its genus, Thylacinus, although
several related species have been found in the fossil record dating
back to the early Miocene.
The Western Hemisphere's largest cat has disappeared from
much of its range, which once extended from the southern
United States through Mexico, Central and South America
east of the Andes to Argentina.
Hunting and trapping for its highly prized fur, and loss of
habitat to forest clearing for farms, pastures, roads, and
airstrips for mining and exploration have all been factors in
the animal's decline. It now survives in non-developed areas
south of southern Mexico, especially the Amazon rain forest.
The jaguar is protected from illegal hunting and trade in
skins, but law enforcement in some areas is difficult. There
is also protection in a few national parks and on some large,
private ranches, but it may not be sufficient.
 This spotted cat most closely resembles the leopard
physically, although it is usually larger and of sturdier
build and its behavioural and habitat characteristics are
closer to those of the tiger. While dense rainforest is its
preferred habitat, the jaguar will range across a variety
of forested and open terrain. It is strongly associated
with the presence of water and is notable, along with the
tiger, as a feline that enjoys swimming. The jaguar is a
largely solitary, stalk-and-ambush predator, and is
opportunistic in prey selection. It is also an apex and
keystone predator, playing an important role in
stabilizing ecosystems and regulating the populations of
prey species.
 The jaguar has developed an exceptionally powerful
bite, even relative to the other big cats. This allows it
to pierce the shells of armoured reptiles and to
employ an unusual killing method: it bites directly
through the skull of prey between the ears to deliver
a fatal blow to the brain.
 The jaguar is a near threatened species and its
numbers are declining. Threats include habitat loss
and fragmentation. While international trade in
jaguars or their parts is prohibited, the cat is still
regularly killed by humans, particularly in conflicts
with ranchers and farmers in South America. Although
reduced, its range remains large; given its historical
distribution, the jaguar has featured prominently in
the mythology of numerous indigenous American
cultures, including that of the Maya and Aztec.
Siberian Tiger
Panthera tigris altaica
Facts
• Siberian (or Amur) tigers are the world's largest cats.
They live primarily in eastern Russia's birch forests,
though some exist in China and North Korea. There are
an estimated 400 to 500 Siberian tigers living in the wild,
and recent studies suggest that these numbers are
stable. Though their northern climate is far harsher than
those of other tigers, these animals have some
advantages. Northern forests offer the lowest human
density of any tiger habitat, and the most complete
ecosystem. The vast woodlands also allow tigers far
more room to roam, as Russia's timber industry is
currently less extensive than that of many other
countries
More Facts
• The Siberian tiger (Panthera tigris
altaica), also known as the Amur tiger,
Manchurian tiger, or Ussuri tiger, is a
rare subspecies of tiger (P. tigris) confined
completely to the Amur region in the Far
East, where it is now protected. It is
considered to be the largest of the nine
recent tiger subspecies and the largest
member of the family Felidae.
Distribution and Population
• The Siberian tiger is endangered. In the early
1900s, it lived throughout northeastern China,
the Korean Peninsula, northeastern Mongolia
and southeastern Russia. Today, the majority of
the population is confined to a tiny part of
Russia's southern Far East: the Amur-Ussuri
region of Primorsky and Khabarovsky Krai.
There are very few tigers in northeastern China
and fewer still in North Korea. The South Korean
population died out in 1922.
Physiology
• The Siberian tiger is typically 2-4 inches taller at the head than the
Bengal tiger, which is about 107-110 cm (42-43 in) tall.[7] Mature
males reach an average head and body length of 190220 centimetres (75-97 in). The largest male with largely assured
references was 350 cm (138 in) "over curves" (3,30 m/130 in.
between pegs) in total length.[8] The tail length in fully grown males
is about 1 m (39 in). Weights of up to 318 kg (700 lb) have been
recorded[8] and exceptionally large males weighing up to 384 kg
(847 lb) are mentioned in the literature but, according to Mazak,
none of these cases can be confirmed via reliable sources.[8] A
further unconfirmed report tells of a male tiger shot in the Sikhote
Alin Mountains in 1950 weighing 384.8 kg (846.6 lb) and measuring
3.48 m (11.5 ft).[9] Females are normally smaller than males and
weigh 100-167 kg (220-368 lb),[10] probably up to 180 kg
(400 lb).[11]
[edit] Reproduction
Siberian tiger cub
Siberian tigers reach sexual maturity at 4[16] years of age. They
mate at any time of the year. A female signals her receptiveness
by leaving urine deposits and scratch marks on trees. She will
spend a week with the male, during which she is receptive for
three days. Gestation lasts 3–3½ months. Litter size is normally 3
or 4 cubs but there can be as many as 6. The cubs are born blind
in a sheltered den and are left alone when the female leaves to
hunt for food.
Cubs are divided equally between genders at birth. However, by
adulthood there are usually 2 to 4 females for every male. The
female cubs remain with their mothers longer, and later they
establish territories close to their original ranges. Males, on the
other hand, travel unaccompanied and range farther earlier in
their lives, thus making them more vulnerable to poachers and
other tigers.[
• Genetics
• Several reports have been published since the 1990s on the genetic
makeup of the Siberian tiger and its relationship to other subspecies. One of
the most important outcomes has been the discovery of low genetic
variability in the wild Far Eastern population, especially when it comes to
maternal or mitochondrial (mtDNA) lineages.[17] It seems that a single
mtDNA haplotype almost completely dominates the maternal lineages of wild
Siberian tigers. On the other hand, captive cats appear to show higher
mtDNA diversity. This may suggest that the subspecies has experienced a
very recent genetic bottleneck caused by human pressure, with the founders
of the captive population being captured when genetic variability was higher
in the wild.[18]
• However, it may well be that the Siberian tiger population has always shown
relatively low genetic diveristy, due to a small number of founders colonising
the Far East. Work with the preserved remains of the now extinct Caspian
tiger (P.t. virgata) has shown that the two subspecies share a comparatively
recent common history, at least when it comes to mtDNA lineages. It
appears that tigers colonised central Asia at most 10,000 years ago, and the
modern Siberian stock may be the result of a few Caspian tigers
subsequently wandering east via northern Asia
• Dietary habits
• Like all other cats, the Siberian tiger is a
carnivorous predator. It preys primarily on wild
boar and red deer, which make up 65-90% of its
diet in the Russian Far East. Other important
prey species are moose, roe deer, sika deer,
musk deer, and goral. It will also take smaller
prey like lagomorphs (hares, rabbits, and pikas)
and fish, including salmon. Because its main
prey are red deer and wild boar, protecting
these and other prey animals from illegal
hunting may be just as important to the tiger's
survival as preventing the direct killing of the big
cats.
• [edit] Attacks on humans
• Unlike the Bengal tiger, the Siberian tiger very
rarely becomes a man-eater. There are
currently only six cases in Russia of
unprovoked attacks leading to man-eating
behaviour. Provoked attacks are however more
common, usually the result of botched attempts
at capturing them.[7]
• In an incident at the San Francisco Zoo on 25
December 2007, a Siberian tiger named Tatiana
escaped and killed one visitor, injuring two
others. The animal was shot dead by the police.
Whether the tiger was provoked is very much in
dispute.[
Polar bear
• The polar bear is on the threatened
species list. Decided by the endangered
species act of 1945.
Ursus maritimus
• Naming and etymology
• Constantine John Phipps was the first to describe the polar
bear as a distinct species.[1] He chose the scientific name
Ursus maritimus, the Latin for 'maritime bear',[7] due to the
animal's native habitat. The Inuit refer to the animal as
nanook[8], (transliterated as nanuuq in the Inupiat language[9],
nanuuk in Siberian Yupik, and also as nanuq or nanuk[citation
needed]; and hence the title of the early 20th century
documentary on Inuit life, Nanook of the North). The bear is
umka in the Chukchi language. In Russian, it is usually called
Белый Медведь (Bely Medved, the White Bear), though an
older word still in use is Ошкуй (Oshkuy, which comes from the
Komi Oski, "bear").[10] In Quebec French, the polar bear is
referred to as Ours polaire.[11]
• The polar bear was previously considered to be in its own
genus, Thalarctos.[12] However, evidence of hybrids between
polar bears and brown bears, and of the relatively recent
evolutionary divergence of the two species, does not support
the establishment of this separate genus, and the accepted
scientific name is now therefore Ursus maritimus, as Phipps
originally proposed.[
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Taxonomy and evolution
Polar bears depend on sea ice as a platform for hunting seals. Large feet and short,
stocky claws are adaptations to this environment.
The bear family, Ursidae, is believed to have split off from other carnivorans about 38
million years ago. The Ursinae subfamily originated approximately 4.2 million years
ago. According to both fossil and DNA evidence, the polar bear diverged from the
brown bear, Ursus arctos, roughly 200,000 years ago. The oldest known polar bear
fossil is less than 100,000 years old. Fossils show that between ten to twenty
thousand years ago, the polar bear's molar teeth changed significantly from those of
the brown bear. Polar bears are thought to have diverged from a population of brown
bears that became isolated during a period of glaciation in the Pleistocene.[14]
More recent genetic studies have shown that some clades of brown bear are more
closely related to polar bears than to other brown bears,[15] meaning that the polar
bear is not a true species according to some species concepts.[16] In addition, polar
bears can breed with brown bears to produce fertile grizzly–polar bear
hybrids,[14][17] indicating that they have only recently diverged and are genetically
similar.[18] However, as neither species can survive long in the other's ecological
niche, and with distinctly different morphology, metabolism, social and feeding
behaviors, and other phenotypic characteristics, the two bears are generally
classified as separate species.[18]
When the polar bear was originally documented, two subspecies were identified:
Ursus maritimus maritimus by Constantine J. Phipps in 1774, and Ursus maritimus
marinus by Peter Simon Pallas in 1776.[19] This distinction has since been
invalidated.
One fossil subspecies has been identified. Ursus maritimus tyrannus—descended
from Ursus arctos—became extinct during the Pleistocene. U.m. tyrannus was
significantly larger than the living subspecies.[14
• Habitat
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• A cub nursing
• The polar bear is often regarded as a marine mammal because it spends
many months of the year at sea.[24] Its preferred habitat is the annual sea
ice covering the waters over the continental shelf and the Arctic inter-island
archipelagos. These areas, known as the "Arctic ring of life", have relatively
high in comparison to the deep waters of the high Arctic.[20][25] The polar
bear tends to frequent areas where sea ice meets water, such as polynyas
and leads (temporary stretches of open water in Arctic ice), to hunt the seals
that make up most of its diet.[26] Polar bears are therefore found primarily
along the perimeter of the polar ice pack, rather than in the Polar Basin close
to the North Pole where the density of seals is low.[27]
• Annual ice contains areas of water that appear and disappear throughout the
year as the weather changes. Seals migrate in response to these changes,
and polar bears must follow their prey.[25] In Hudson Bay, James Bay, and
some other areas, the ice melts completely each summer (an event often
referred to as "ice-floe breakup"), forcing polar bears to go onto land and
wait through the months until the next freeze-up.[25] In the Chukchi and
Beaufort seas, polar bears retreat each summer to the ice further north that
remains frozen year-round
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Physical characteristics
The polar bear is the largest predator that lives on land, being twice as big as the
Siberian Tiger.[28] Adult males weigh 352–680 kg (780–1,500 lb) and measure 2.4–
3 m (7.9–9.8 ft) in length.[29] Adult females are roughly half the size of males and
normally weigh 150–249 kg (330–550 lb), measuring 1.8–2.4 metres (5.9–7.9 ft) in
length. When pregnant, however, they can weigh as much as 499 kg (1,100 lb).[29]
The polar bear is among the most sexually dimorphic of mammals, surpassed only
by the eared seals.[30] The largest polar bear on record, reportedly weighing
1,002 kg (2,210 lb), was a male shot at Kotzebue Sound in northwestern Alaska in
1960.[31]
Polar bears have evolved unique features for Arctic life, including furred feet that
have good traction on ice.
Compared with its closest relative, the brown bear, the polar bear has a more
elongated body build and a longer skull and nose.[18] As predicted by Allen's rule for
a northerly animal, the legs are stocky and the ears and tail are small.[18] However,
the feet are very large to distribute load when walking on snow or thin ice and to
provide propulsion when swimming; they may measure 36 cm (12 in) across in an
adult.[32] The pads of the paws are covered with small, soft papillae which provide
traction on the ice.[18] The polar bear's claws are short and stocky compared to
those of the brown bear, perhaps to serve the former's need to grip heavy prey and
ice.[18] The claws are deeply scooped on the underside to assist in digging in the ice
of the natural habitat. Despite a recurring internet meme that all polar bears are lefthanded,[33][34] there is no scientific evidence to support this claim.[35]
The 42 teeth of a polar bear reflect its highly carnivorous diet.[18] The cheek teeth
are smaller and more jagged than in the brown bear, and the canines are larger and
sharper.[18] The dental formula
• Hibernation and fasting
• With the exception of pregnant females, polar
bears are active year-round,[43] although they
have a vestigial hibernation induction trigger in
their blood. Unlike brown and black bears, polar
bears are capable of fasting for up to several
months during late summer and early fall, when
they cannot hunt for seals because the sea is
unfrozen
• Hunting and diet
•
•
• The long muzzle and neck of the polar bear help it to search in deep holes
for seals, while powerful hindquarters enable it to drag massive prey.[44]
• The polar bear is the most carnivorous member of the bear family, and most
of its diet consists of Ringed and Bearded Seals.[45] The Arctic is home to
millions of seals, which become prey when they surface in holes in the ice in
order to breathe, or when they haul out on the ice to rest.[44] Polar bears
hunt primarily at the interface between ice, water, and air; they only rarely
catch seals on land or in open water.[46]
• The polar bear's most common hunting method is called still-hunting:[47]
The bear uses its excellent sense of smell to locate a seal breathing hole,
and crouches nearby in silence for a seal to appear.[44] When the seal
exhales, the bear smells its breath, reaches into the hole with a forepaw, and
drags it out onto the ice.[44] The polar bear kills the seal by biting its head to
crush its skull.[44] The polar bear also hunts by stalking seals resting on the
ice: Upon spotting a seal, it walks to within 100 yd (91 m), and then
crouches. If the seal does not notice, the bear creeps to within 30 to 40 feet
(9.1 to 12 m) of the seal and then suddenly rushes forth to attack.[44] A third
hunting method is to raid the birth lairs that female seals create in the
snow.[47]
• A widespread legend tells that polar bears cover their black noses with their
paws when hunting. This behavior, if it happens, is rare — although the story
exists in native oral history and in accounts by early Arctic explorers, there is
no record of an eyewitness account of the behavior in recent decades.[42]
• Behavior
• Unlike grizzly bears, polar bears are not territorial. Although stereotyped as
being voraciously aggressive, they are normally cautious in confrontations,
and often choose to escape rather than fight.[55] Fat polar bears rarely
attack humans unless severely provoked, whereas hungry polar bears are
extremely unpredictable and are known to kill and sometimes eat
humans.[49] Polar bears are stealth hunters, and the victim is often unaware
of the bear's presence until the attack is underway.[56] Whereas brown
bears often maul a person and then leave, polar bear attacks are almost
always fatal.[56]
• In general, adult polar bears live solitary lives. Yet, they have often been
seen playing together for hours at a time and even sleeping in an
embrace,[49] and polar bear zoologist Nikita Ovsianikov has described adult
males as having "well-developed friendships."[55] Cubs are especially
playful as well. Among young males in particular, play-fighting may be a
means of practicing for serious competition during mating seasons later in
life.[57]
• In 1992, a photographer near Churchill took a now widely-circulated set of
photographs of a polar bear playing with a Canadian Eskimo Dog a tenth of
its size.[58][59] The pair wrestled harmlessly together each afternoon for ten
days in a row for no apparent reason, although the bear may have been
trying to demonstrate its friendliness in the hope of sharing the kennel's
food.[58] This kind of social interaction is uncommon; it is far more typical for
polar bears to behave aggressively towards dogs.[58]
• Reproduction and lifecycle
•
•
• A polar bear swimming
• Courtship and mating take place on the sea ice in April and
May, when polar bears congregate in the best seal hunting
areas.[60] A male may follow the tracks of a breeding female for
100 km (62 mi) or more, and after finding her engage in intense
fighting with other males over mating rights, fights which often
result in scars and broken teeth.[60] Polar bears have a
generally polygynous mating system, however recent genetic
testing of mothers and cubs has uncovered cases of litters in
which cubs have different fathers.[61] Partners stay together
and mate repeatedly for an entire week; the mating ritual
induces ovulation in the female.[62]
• After mating, the fertilized egg remains in a suspended state
until August or September. During these four months, the
pregnant female eats prodigious amounts of food, gaining at
least 200 kg (440 lb) and often more than doubling her body
weight.[60
The end
THE
END!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
“Extinction / Endangered
Species”
Siberian
TIGERS
Siberian Tiger
• The Siberian tiger, also known as the
Amur tiger, Manchurian tiger, or Ussuri
tiger, is a rare subspecies of tiger,
confined completely to the Amur region in
the Far East, where it is now protected. It
is considered to be the largest of the nine
recent tiger subspecies and the largest
member of the family Felidae.
Distribution and population
• The Siberian tiger is endangered. In the early
1900s, it lived throughout northeastern China,
the Korean Peninsula, northeastern Mongolia
and southeastern Russia. Today, the majority of
the population is confined to a tiny part of
Russia's southern Far East: the Amur-Ussuri
region of Primorsky. There are very few tigers in
Northeastern China and fewer still in North
Korea. The South Korean population died out in
1922.
• By the 1940s the estimated population was down to
fewer than 50 in the Russian Far East, although some
hundreds still populated neighboring China. The number
increased to more than 200 in 1982, although in China
there are now thought to be no more than a dozen or so
Siberian tigers. Poaching has been brought under better
control by frequent road inspections. Captive breeding
and conservation programs are active. The Feline
Breeding Center in the northern Heilongjiang province of
China togetherwith its partner Heilongjiang Siberian
Tiger Park in Hharbin, plan to release 620 Siberian tigers
after its numbers have increased from 708 to 750. A
1996 count reported 430 Siberian tigers in the wild.
Feeding
• Siberian Tigers are typically solitary hunters and prey mainly on deer
and wild pig.
Tigers have dens in caves, tree hollows and dense vegetation. They
are mostly nocturnal but in the northern part of its range, the
Siberian subspecies may also be active during the day at wintertime. Using their sight and hearing rather than smell, the tiger stalks
its prey and once it has reached close proximity, attacks from the
side or rear and kills by a bite to the neck or the back of the head.
Unless they die, tigers are never replaced on their range. Although
individuals do not patrol their territories, the range is visited over a
period of days or weeks and it is marked with urine and feces.
Attacks on Humans
• Unlike the Bengal Tiger, the Siberian tiger very rarely
becomes a man eater. There are currently only six
cases in Russia of unprovoked attacks leading to
man-eating behavior. Provoked attacks are however
more common, usually the result of botched attempts
at capturing them.
• In an incident at the San Francisco Zoo on 25
December 2007, a Siberian tiger named Tatiana
escaped an killed one visitor, injuring two others. The
animal was shot dead by the police. Whether the tiger
was provoked is very much in dispute.
Conclusion
• It has been very fortunate and productive, and
the breeding program for the Siberian tiger has
actually been used as a good example when
new programs have been designed to save
other animal species from extinction.
• The Siberian tiger is not very difficult to breed in
captivity, but the possibility of survival for
animals bred in captivity released into the wild is
small.
• Approximately 330-370 adult Siberian tigers are
left in the wild, with 95% of these animals in the
Russian Far East.
Earth’s seven species of sea turtle have survived more
than 110 million years of evolution and geological
change. Fascinating, charismatic and highly visible,
they are bellwethers for the condition of the world’s
oceans. As our oceans have been devastated by
development and industry in the past century, so, too,
have sea turtles suffered. Incidental capture in
fisheries, destruction of habitat, pollution, consumption
by humans and pollution are but a few of the forces
that have endangered the biodiversity of marine
ecosystems as a whole and the sea turtle in particular.
Keep Swimming
•
As such, the sea turtle is a precious
ambassador — a strategic tool for
engaging the public in marine
conservation. Resounding the fate of the
sea turtle to audiences across the globe,
capitalizing upon the species’ unique
character, the SWOT aims to generate
far-reaching and long-lasting positive
changes to the ways in which industries,
cultures and individuals impact sea
turtle life, oceanic ecosystems and
marine biodiversity as a whole. Only
through efforts by dedicated scientists,
conservationists and sea turtle
enthusiasts have sea turtles been
safeguarded from extinction thus far.
A Long Time Coming
• .Seven distinct species of sea turtles grace our
oceans today; they constitute a single radiation
that was distinct from all other turtles at least 110
million years ago. During that radiation, sea
turtles split into two main subgroups, which still
exist today: the unique family Dermochelyidae,
which consists of a single species, the
leatherback; and the six species of hard-shelled
sea turtle, in the family Cheloniidae.
Just Observing
Minor Setbacks
All marine turtle species are
experiencing serious threats to their
survival. The main threats are pollution
and changes to important turtle
habitats, especially coral reefs, sea
grass beds, mangrove forests and
nesting beaches. Other threats include
accidental drowning in fishing gear,
over-harvesting of turtles and eggs,
and predation of eggs and hatchlings
by foxes, feral pigs, dogs and goannas.
Survival of the Fittest
Stand our ground
• Due to increasing threats to marine turtles, all
the six species which occur in Australian waters
are listed under the Australian Government's
EPBC Act. The loggerhead and olive ridley turtle
are listed as endangered under this Act which
means that the species may become extinct if
the threats to its survival continue. The green,
leatherback, hawksbill and flatback turtles are
listed as vulnerable which means that they may
become endangered if threats continue. The Act
identifies the need to prepare a recovery plan
and specifies the content of the plan.
Due to Extinction
Students at Work
George Buck
Kori Landry and Christopher Pharr
Kai Murray
Kai Murray