The world is a complex set of beautiful living organisms but with the passage of time, some species have reached their extinction, either due to climatic changes or increased human activity.
Here are 5 iconic species that once roamed the Earth were driven to extinction:
The enormous close to the modern-day elephant mammal Woolly Mammoth's ancestors migrated from Africa about 3.5 million years ago. Covered in fur and curved tusks, the beautiful creature disappeared from the world 10,000 years ago due to hunting by humans and disappearance of its habitat through climate change.
2. Stellers Sea Cow
The Stellers Sea Cow was discovered in 1741, a herbivorous mammal by a naturalist George Steller. The creature was inhabited in the Near Islands, southwest of Alaska and the Commander Islands in the Bering Sea. However, the enormously beautiful creature was hunted to extinction within 27 years of discovery by the Europeans.
3. Tasmanian Tiger
From the family of tigers and dogs with dark stripes, the large carnivorous marsupial was a native of Australia, Tasmania, and New Guinea. The creature was driven to extinction in between 1910 and 1920 by bounty hunters and human encroachment into its habitat.
4. Western Black Rhinoceros
The Western black rhinoceros, a sub-species of the black rhino once roamed sub-Saharan Africa and became an endangered species in 2000, from hundreds to 10 in numbers. The creature was driven to extinction by poachers in 2011.
5. Pyrenean Ibex
Subspecies of the Spanish Ibex was a common creature to the Pyrenees but its population started disappearing in the 20th century and finally fell into extinction in 2000. However, scientists managed to clone a female in 2003 but the experiment failed within minutes.
It is deeply saddening that such beautiful creatures that once lived on this planet are no more and majorly due to human activities like deforestation, pollution, farming land expansion, the introduction of alien species and hunting. Human should realize that the lost creatures might not roam among us today or in years to come but there are so many endangered species that can be saved. These critically endangered species include the Orangutan, Mountain Gorilla, Amur Leopard, Yangtze Finless Porpoise and Sumatran Elephant.
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Here are 5 iconic species that once roamed the Earth were driven to extinction:
- Woolly Mammoth
Picture credits: Flying Puffin (Wikimedia Commons)
The enormous close to the modern-day elephant mammal Woolly Mammoth's ancestors migrated from Africa about 3.5 million years ago. Covered in fur and curved tusks, the beautiful creature disappeared from the world 10,000 years ago due to hunting by humans and disappearance of its habitat through climate change.
2. Stellers Sea Cow
Picture credit: Emőke Dénes (Wikimedia Commons)
The Stellers Sea Cow was discovered in 1741, a herbivorous mammal by a naturalist George Steller. The creature was inhabited in the Near Islands, southwest of Alaska and the Commander Islands in the Bering Sea. However, the enormously beautiful creature was hunted to extinction within 27 years of discovery by the Europeans.
3. Tasmanian Tiger
From the family of tigers and dogs with dark stripes, the large carnivorous marsupial was a native of Australia, Tasmania, and New Guinea. The creature was driven to extinction in between 1910 and 1920 by bounty hunters and human encroachment into its habitat.
4. Western Black Rhinoceros
Photo source: Google images
The Western black rhinoceros, a sub-species of the black rhino once roamed sub-Saharan Africa and became an endangered species in 2000, from hundreds to 10 in numbers. The creature was driven to extinction by poachers in 2011.
5. Pyrenean Ibex
Photo source: Google images
Subspecies of the Spanish Ibex was a common creature to the Pyrenees but its population started disappearing in the 20th century and finally fell into extinction in 2000. However, scientists managed to clone a female in 2003 but the experiment failed within minutes.
It is deeply saddening that such beautiful creatures that once lived on this planet are no more and majorly due to human activities like deforestation, pollution, farming land expansion, the introduction of alien species and hunting. Human should realize that the lost creatures might not roam among us today or in years to come but there are so many endangered species that can be saved. These critically endangered species include the Orangutan, Mountain Gorilla, Amur Leopard, Yangtze Finless Porpoise and Sumatran Elephant.
Have something to share about the story? Write in the comments section below