There was bad news, however, for the world’s largest gorillas, with officials at the IUCN conference saying the species has been pushed to the brink of extinction by a surge of illegal hunting in the Democratic Republic of Congo.
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The lovable bears, however, are still at risk, though the downgrade in the species’ listing from “endangered” to “vulnerable” is certainly a marked step in the right direction, according to both the World Wildlife Foundation and International Union for Conservation of Nature.
The sharp decline of Grauer’s gorilla meant that the larger species to which it belongs, the Eastern gorilla – which also includes the Mountain gorilla – was listed as “critically endangered”.
Four of six species of great apes are now rated “critically endangered”, or one step away from extinction, by threats such as hunting and a loss of forests to farmland from West Africa to Indonesia, according to the annual list by wildlife experts released on Sunday.
It was back in 1990 that the giant panda was placed on the endangered species list, but with the decrease in poaching and an expansion of the #Animals’ protected natural habitat, finally things are improving.
A leading global group has taken the giant panda off its endangered list thanks to decades of conservation efforts, but China’s government discounted the move on Monday, saying it did not view the status of the country’s beloved symbol as any less serious.
But the conservation body said while the improvement should be celebrated, pandas remain scattered and vulnerable with much of their habitat threatened by poorly-planned infrastructure projects. Giant Pandas, meanwhile, are experiencing a comeback as conservation efforts pay off.
The Tibetan antelope, an endangered species slaughtered in past decades for its fine fur, is also recovering. The population has reduced by 24% in the past 14 years from around 660,000 to a current estimate of just over 500,000 animals.
Critically endangered: The Eastern gorilla.
To see the eastern gorilla – one of our closest cousins – slide toward extinction is truly distressing.
“Evidence from a series of range-wide national surveys indicate that the previous population decline has been arrested, and the population has started to increase”, the IUCN’s updated report said.
When you think about every adult panda on Earth needing 12.5 kg of bamboo every single day, you realise just how important their habitat is for them.
Hunting and habitat destruction are taking a toll on animals and plants in variety of areas, the report said.
“The threat of declining bamboo availability due to climate change could, in the near future, reverse the gains made during the last two decades”.
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The Bridled Nailtail Wallaby also moved down a category, from Endangered to Vulnerable, after a successful but expensive translocation conservation programme. These organizations will jointly commit more than US$10 million over the next five years towards achieving an ambitious strategic plan that aims to double the number of species assessed on The IUCN Red List by the year 2020.
