#extinctober

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extinctober prompt 1: swimmer

The vaquita is the most endangered marine mammal in the world, and it might just end up as collateral damage of an illegal trade network involving Mexican cartels, Chinese black markets, and the so-called “cocaine of the sea”.   

At a maximum length of 150cm, vaquitas are the smallest living porpoise, a type of marine mammal in the whale family. The species' small territory is limited to around 2300km² in the north of Mexico's Gulf of California, where it was first scientifically documented in 1958. While it is unclear how big the population was at that time, the first census done in 1997 found only 567 animals – and this figure would shrink massively in the following decades.

The main cause for this rapid decline is the fishing industry. To catch shrimp and fish, they rely on huge gill nets – vertical walls of netting up to 1km long. Unable to detect the nets with their echolocation, vaquitas end up trapped and drown, dying as bycatch like many other animals like sharks and rays.

In a bid to save the species, the Mexican government has enacted a number of laws and initiatives – from establishing a no-fishing zone in the 2000s, to completely banning gill nets in 2017. But despite this, the practise has continued illegally – on the one hand, that is due to lax enforcement of the bans. On the other, it turns out that the Vaquita is unfortunate enough to share its habitat with a far more lucrative catch than shrimp and tuna: The totoaba fish, whose swim bladder is seen as a delicacy with healing properties in traditional Chinese medicine. Sold for between $20.000 and $80.000 per kilogram, these bladders have been nicknamed “cocaine of the sea” – and similarly, their trade takes place outside of the law: fishermen illegally catch the protected fish, often with gill nets financed by the local cartels, who then organize the smuggling of the bladders to Asia, where they end up being sold on the Chinese black markets.

Therefore, the fight for the survival of the Vaquita has become a multifaceted approach on many fronts. While the environmental organisation Sea Shepard patrols directly in the Gulf of California, monitoring the population and stopping illegal fishing vessels with the help of the Mexican Government, the NGO Earth League International investigates the illegal totoaba trade and works with international law enforcement to go after the people responsible – not to mention many other groups spreading awareness for the vaquita.

There have been positive developments in recent years, like a 98% reduction in fishing vessels in the protected zone after submerged hooks were installed to catch and destroy gill nets, or several arrests and seizures connected to the totoaba bladder trade, but with only an estimated 6-8 individual vaquitas left, their continued existence is still hanging by the thinnest of threads.

Sources:

wwf.de

news.mongabay.com ( 1 , 2 )

seashepherd.org

noticiasambientales.com

stiftung-meeresschutz.org

explore.britannica.com

[cypherdecypher]

Animal of the Day!

Carolina Parakeet (Conuropsis carolinensis)

(Photo from Naturalis Biodiversity Center)

Extinction Date- 1939

Habitat- Midwestern United States

Size (Weight/Length)- 280 g; 25 cm

Diet- Seeds; Fruits; Nuts

Cool Facts- The Carolina parakeet was once one of the three parrot species native to the United States. These brilliantly colored birds were once found from New York to the Gulf of Mexico along riverbanks and cypress swamps. Flocks had up to 300 individuals, building nests in tree hollows and eating nuts or fruits. Carolina parakeets were in decline since the last glacial maximum, and combined with inbreeding and capturing for museum specimens, the parakeets were eradicated from the wild by 1904. A pair of Carolina parakeets, Incas and Lady June, in the Cincinnati Zoo passed away in 1918. Strangely enough, they were not classified as extinct until 1939 under the hope that some parakeets remained in the mangroves of Florida. Today, the sun parakeet, or sun conure, remains their closest relative. Sun conures are endangered due to hunting for their feathers, habitat loss, and capture for the pet trade. Conservationists are rushing to protect the sun parakeet’s remaining habitat and cracking down on cross-border trade.

Rating- 11/10 (Possibly poisonous from their diet including cockleburs.)

[cypherdecypher]

Animal of the Day!

Great Auk (Pinguinus impennis)

(Photo from the Cincinnati Museum Center)

Extinction Date- 1844

Habitat- Northern Atlantic Ocean

Size (Weight/Length)- 75 cm

Diet- Fish; Crustaceans

Cool Facts- The great auk, while looking like a penguin, is nowhere close to being related to them. These seafaring birds were the only auk species to survive to the modern era, numbering in the millions during the Pleistocene. They were extremely powerful swimmers and the abundance of fish in the Northern Atlantic provided greatly. The great auk was held in high importance to Neolithic peoples due to their depiction in cave art and jewelry made of their bones. Unfortunately, great auks were easy to hunt and resulted in their extinction. Their feathers were used in pillows and their eggs were seen as a delicacy. The last pair of great auks were strangled to death and their egg was smashed in 1844. Today, the great auk’s closest relative is the razorbill. Luckily, the razorbill is of least concern with an increasing population due to protections placed on their fishing grounds.

Rating- 12/10 (In the genus Pinguinus, which penguins were later named after.)

[fliessbandunikat]

#extinctober prompt 2: arboreal

The Philippine eagle is a rare bird of prey found in the forests of 4 of the Philippines' islands. With an average wingspan of 2m and a height of around 1m, it is among the largest eagles in the world. Due to its imposing size, it even occasionally preys on monkeys, which earned it its previous name "monkey-eating eagle", although its diet mostly consists of smaller mammals, birds and lizards. As an apex predator, it plays an important role in keeping the animal populations in the forest in check.

Like most eagles, this species is monogamous - Pairs stay together for life, only searching for a new partner if the old one dies. Therefore, the choice of mate has to be made with care, requiring a courtship phase that includes aerial maneuvers, mutual talon presentation and presents of food and twigs before the birds decide to partner up.

The pair shares most work and even sometimes hunts together, with one bird distracting the prey while the other one attacks from behind.

Also in terms of reproduction, both male and female eagle equally take part in the required tasks of building the nest, hatching their egg and caring for their young. For two years, they raise their lone offspring until it can survive on its own, at which time the female lays another single egg.

To properly thrive, one Philippine eagle pair needs an area of 40-110 km² of forest as its territory. Therefore, one of the species' biggest threats is deforestation and illegal logging. Their shrinking habitat also leads to increased contact with humans, which often has deadly results: despite the species being under protection, at least one animal is still shot every year.

Nowadays, less than 400 breeding pairs of the animal remain in the wild according to the Philippine Eagle Foundation. The non-profit organisation is taking on the goal of preserving the species, which has been declared the national bird of the Philippines, with a number of campaigns: They educate the public, rescue and rehabilitate injured eagles, have breeding pairs in captivity to augment the population in the wild, help protect and restore the existing forests and monitor known nests. A lot of these tasks are accomplished in direct collaboration with local indigenous groups, as an important approach in the Foundation’s work is culture-based conservation: Since a lot of the species’ habitats are also ancestral domains of indigenous communities, it is vital to include them and their cultural practices and knowledge in the protection efforts.

Sources:

philippineeaglefoundation.org

peregrinefund.org

oneearth.org

news.mongabay.com

mindanews.com

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Animal of the Day!

Dodo (Raphus cucullatus)

(Photo from Smithsonian Magazine)

Extinction Date- 1681

Habitat- Island of Mauritius

Size (Weight/Length)- 22 kg; 90 cm tall

Diet- Fruits; Nuts; Roots; Seeds

Cool Facts- As dodos went extinct in the 1600’s, we only know what they look like from incomplete skeletons and illustrations. These large birds were found only on the tiny Island of Mauritius off the coast of Madagascar. Little is known about their behavior but their skeletons imply they could run extremely fast despite being unable to fly. Their large beak may have been used in territorial displays due to the Island’s limited resources. They were primarily vegetarians but would occasionally eat a crab or shellfish. People first visited the Island of Mauritius in 1507 and the dodos were quickly hunted by people and invasive species alike due to their flightless and fearless behavior. Today, the near threatened Nicobar pigeon is their closest relative. Cracking down on the illegal pet trade and their illegal poaching has resulted in the Nicobar pigeon doing much better than their long since passed relative.

Rating- 13/10 (Dodos were originally thought to be a myth and extinction to be propaganda.)

[cypherdecypher]

Animal of the Day!

Quagga (Equus quagga quagga)

(Photo from London Zoo)

Extinction Date- 1883

Habitat- Southern Africa

Size (Weight/Length)- 300 kg; 2.5 m

Diet- Grasses; Leaves

Cool Facts- The quagga was a subspecies of plains zebra that lacked stripes on its back half. Unfortunately, we don’t know a whole lot about quagga behavior. It is believed they gathered in herds of up to 50 individuals and spent their lives constantly on the move as they searched for fresh grass. It is unknown why quagga lacked stripes on their booty, although it could have been for dissuading biting flies from landing on them. Quagga have been found in cave art going back to the Pleistocene and were important to the San people of Southern Africa. Overhunting of quagga by colonists resulted in their population plummeting. The last quagga died in Amsterdam’s Natura Artis Magistra zoo, resulting in the only photographs of a quagga. Plains zebras today are threatened from competition for grass with livestock and habitat loss. Conservationists are making plans for sustainable livestock practices and wildlife corridors for plains zebras with the hope of their population making a full recovery.

Rating- 12/10 (A captive breeding program was attempted but unfortunately failed.)

[cypherdecypher]

Animal of the Day!

Eurasian Aurochs (Bos primigenius)

(Photo from Britannica)

Extinction Date- 1627

Habitat- Europe; Northern Africa; Central Asia

Size (Weight/Length)- 1,000 kg; 1.8 m tall

Diet- Grasses; Nuts; Leaves

Cool Facts- The Eurasian aurochs was a majestic species of megafauna cattle that lived throughout the Pleistocene. Aurochs were believed to live in small herds and have a similar hierarchy to their current descendents of domesticated cattle. Due to their massive size, Eurasian aurochs had little to fear outside of prides of lions or large tigers. Their cultural significance travels throughout the Neolithic peoples of Asia, Africa, and Europe. Aurochs were favored creatures for cave paintings and fights in the Roman Colosseum. Domestication of aurochs began in the Fertile Crescent when humans began civilization. Unfortunately, Eurasian aurochs were driven to extinction by over-hunting and a quickly transforming landscape that resulted in the death of many megafauna species. Today, their closest relative is the rare, Spanish Pajuna cattle.

Rating- 12/10 (The loss of prehistoric landscapes resulted in the loss of megafauna worldwide.)

[cypherdecypher]

Animal of the Day!

Falkland Islands Wolf (Dusicyon australis)

(Photo by Kane Fleury)

Extinction Date- 1876

Habitat- Falkland Islands

Size (Weight/Length)- 1.6 m

Diet- Birds; Insects; Carrion

Cool Facts- The Falkland Islands wolf was the only native land mammal of the Falkland Islands off the southernmost tip of Argentina. These wolves were the first canine to go extinct in modern times. They excelled in hunting nesting birds and seals and may have scavenged washed up whale carcasses. When Charles Darwin visited the Islands, he predicted that the wolves would soon go extinct due to human interaction. The wolves were rapidly hunted for their furs and out of fear of them killing livestock, resulting in the last Falkland Islands wolf being killed in 1876. The closest living relative to these wolves are the maned wolves of mainland South America. Maned Wolves are near threatened due to habitat destruction but luckily conservation efforts in breeding, habitat protection, and the education of locals is keeping their population relatively steady.

Rating- 12/10 (Canis antarcticus is no longer used as a scientific name but man that taxidermy does the wolf dirty.)