Endangered Species - Part 2

There are many new endangered species added to the list each year, and humans are to blame. Humans poach many magnificent creatures for their skins, tusks, and body parts. Then, they sell the parts through the black market, committing a huge crime, and killing off the animals without caring.

There are approximately 500 animal species endangered, and most of them caused in this century. This is a sad and real part of our world, but the saddest part is hardly anyone is doing anything to change this.

There are many endangered species, some of them we don't even realize are in danger, and the others have become extinct. Bears and tigers are some of the most threatened species today, while others are becoming more and more threatened as the days pass. One of the most endangered animals on Earth is the Florida panther, as there are less than 100 adults or sub-adults left in the Florida region.

Another animal was added to the "functionally extinct" list in late 2007, the Chinese river dolphin. The dolphin (also called “baiji”, meaning “white fin”) was as old as 20 million years and lived in China's Yangtze River. Scientists scoured the river for any signs of the dolphins, but came up blank. The scientist's had to come to a conclusion that there were definitely no baiji left. There hasn't even been a sighting since 2004. So what contributed to the extinction of the baiji? Many say it's from heavy pollution, ship collisions, over-fishing, dam-building, and environmental factors. But, in any case, the baiji are just one more extinct species on Earth.

Pretty much every species of animal is either endangered or on the brink of endangerment. If we keep going at this rate, many more will be permanently deleted off this Earth. I think, instead of trying to develop ways to bring dinosaurs back, scientists should develop ways to keep the animals we currently have alive and safe from the hands of poachers, construction, and pollution. The endangerment laws we currently have aren't effective, so it's time for something new. Let's make a difference and save those animals once and for all!

-Rebecca, 13, Indiana