Wildlife in Peril - a 1980's newspaper partwork

Wildlife in Peril - a 1980's newspaper partwork
12-08-2012

Looking through various old books in my room today, I found this supplement which was released at some point in the 1980s in the Mail on Sunday, aiming to illustrate the species which - in the opinion of the authors - were most likely to be extinct by the turn of the century. Looking through it, there are indeed a few extinct species - some which were likely extinct before the supplement was even published - but also a good few success stories.

So, I thought it would be illuminating to list the various species discussed, and note their current conservation status. It may also be interesting to hear which ones we have seen, whether this is in the wild or in zoos. I'll have to do this in several posts though

Any I have seen will be marked in bold.

Marsican Brown Bear (Ursus arctos marsicanus) - The current population is estimated to be as low as 30 indivisuals. Not currently an IUCN recognised subspecies.

Wolf (Canis lupus) - distributed worldwide. Some populations have become extinct in the past 3 decades, however other populations have enjoyed sizeable increases due to improved protection. IUCN Least Concern

Maned Wolf (Chrysocyon brachyurus) - IUCN Near Threatened

Blackfooted Ferret (Mustela nigripes) - Declined in the late 1970's to point it was declared extinct, however the rediscovery of a small population and the ensuing captive breeding and reintroduction programme means there are now over 1,000 mature, wild-born individuals in the wild in 18 states of the USA. IUCN Endangered.

Spectacled Bear (Tremarctos ornatus) - IUCN Vulnerable.

Polar Bear (Ursus maritimus) - Global population of polar bears is 20,000 to 25,000, and declining. IUCN Vulnerable.

Giant Panda (Ailuropoda melanoleuca) - Approximately 1,590 individuals in the wild, with roughly 250 in captivity. IUCN Endangered.

Iberian Lynx (Lynx pardinus) - Total population is estimated to be 99 to 158 adults. IUCN Critically Endangered.

Ocelot (Leopardus pardalis) - IUCN Least Concern

Jaguar (Panthera onca) - IUCN Near Threatened

Asiatic Lion (Panthera leo indica) - Wild population estimated at 411. IUCN Endangered

Amur Leopard (Panthera pardus orientalis) - Less than 25 individuals left in the wild. IUCN Critically Endangered.

Tiger (Panthera tigris) - Two subspecies have become extinct since the publication of the partwork, the Caspian and the Javan, with surviving subspecies ranging from IUCN Extinct in the Wild to IUCN Endangered.

Cheetah (Acinonyx jubatus) - IUCN Vulnerable. The Asiatic Cheetah is IUCN Critically Endangered, with less than 100 left in the wild.

Snow Leopard (Uncia uncia) - Total population estimated at 6,590 individuals. IUCN Endangered.

Walrus (Odobenus rosmarus) - IUCN Least Concern

Mediterranean monk seal (Monachus monachus) - Roughly 450 individuals in the wild. IUCN Critically Endangered.

12-08-2012

Giant armadillo (Priodontes maximus) - IUCN Vulnerable.

Parma wallaby (Macropus parma) - Has made a rapid recovery from presumed extinction. IUCN Near Threatened.

Bridled nail-tail wallaby (Onychogalea fraenata) - Presumed extinct at the time of publication, until a small population was rediscovered. 500 individuals estimated to be living in the wild. IUCN Endangered.

Numbat (Myrmecobius fasciatus) - Population in decline, not higher than 1000 individuals. IUCN Endangered.

Scaly-tailed possum (Wyulda squamicaudata) - IUCN Data Deficient.

Thylacine (Thylacinus cynocephalus) - IUCN Extinct

Cuban Solenodon (Solenodon cubanus) - IUCN Endangered.

Indri (Indri indri) - IUCN Endangered

Black lemur (Eulemur macaco) - IUCN Vulnerable

Lion-tailed Macaque (Macaca silenus) - At time of publication, the world population was estimated at 500. Population is now approximately 3000 individuals. IUCN Endangered

Aye-aye (Daubentonia madagascariensis) - Presumed extinct in the wild at time of publication. Wild population now estimated in the low thousands. IUCN Near Threatened.

Bornean orangutan (Pongo pygmaeus) - Roughly 54,000 individuals in the wild. IUCN Endangered.

Mountain gorilla (Gorilla beringei beringei) - Estimated world population of 790. IUCN Critically Endangered.

Kaibab Squirrel (Sciurus aberti kaibabensis) - IUCN Least Concern

Fin Whale (Balaenoptera physalus) - IUCN Endangered

Humpback whale (Megaptera novaeangliae) - Population of at least 80,000. IUCN Least Concern.

Blue Whale (Balaenoptera musculus) - IUCN Endangered.

Bowhead whale (Balaena mysticetus) - IUCN Least Concern.

12-08-2012

Giant eland (Taurotragus derbianus) - IUCN Least Concern

Przewalski's horse (Equus ferus przewalskii) - IUCN Endangered

African Wild Ass (Equus africanus) - IUCN Critically Endangered

Hartmann's mountain zebra (Equus zebra hartmannae) - IUCN Vulnerable

Mountain tapir (Tapirus pinchaque) - IUCN Endangered

Indian rhinoceros (Rhinoceros unicornis) - IUCN Vulnerable

Vicuña (Vicugna vicugna) - At time of publication, the world population was 6000. This has now increased to 350,000. IUCN Least Concern.

European bison (Bison bonasus) - IUCN Vulnerable.

Javan Banteng (Bos javanicus javanicus) - IUCN Endangered.

Wild Yak (Bos grunniens mutus) - IUCN Vulnerable

Arabian oryx (Oryx leucoryx) - IUCN Vulnerable

Markhor (Capra falconeri) - IUCN Endangered

Père David's deer (Elaphurus davidianus) - IUCN Extinct in the Wild.

Tuatara (Sphenodon punctatus) - IUCN Least Concern

Galápagos giant tortoise (Chelonoidis nigra) - IUCN Vulnerable

Gharial (Gavialis gangeticus) - IUCN Critically Endangered.

Galapagos Land Iguana (Conolophus subcristatus) - IUCN Vulnerable

Komodo Dragon (Varanus komodoensis) - IUCN Vulnerable

Olm (Proteus anguinus) - IUCN Vulnerable

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Pinnated Grouse (Tympanuchus cupido) - IUCN Vulnerable

Waldrapp (Geronticus eremita) - 500 birds remaining. IUCN Critically Endangered.

Crested Ibis (Nipponia nippon) - IUCN Endangered.

Hawaiian Goose, (Branta sandvicensis) - IUCN Vulnerable

Trumpeter Swan (Cygnus buccinator) - IUCN Least Concern

Steller's Albatross (Phoebastria albatrus) - IUCN Vulnerable

Californian Condor (Gymnogyps californianus) - IUCN Critically Endangered

Seychelles Kestrel (Falco araea) - IUCN Vulnerable

Mauritius Kestrel (Falco punctatus) - IUCN Vulnerable

Bald Eagle (Haliaeetus leucocephalus) - IUCN Least Concern

Elliot's Pheasant (Syrmaticus ellioti) - IUCN Near Threatened

Mikado Pheasant (Syrmaticus mikado) - IUCN Near Threatened

White-eared Pheasant (Crossoptilon crossoptilon) - IUCN Near Threatened

Seychelles Scops Owl (Otus insularis) - IUCN Endangered

Seychelles Paradise-flycatcher (Terpsiphone corvina) - IUCN Critically Endangered

Audouin's Gull (Ichthyaetus audouinii) - IUCN Near Threatened

Ivory-billed Woodpecker (Campephilus principalis) - IUCN Critically Endangered / Extinct

Whooping Crane (Grus americana) - IUCN Endangered

Kākā (Nestor meridionalis) - IUCN Endangered

Scarlet-chested Parrot (Neophema splendida) - IUCN Least Concern

Kakapo (Strigops habroptila) - Population has increased in past decade to a current total of 126. IUCN Critically Endangered

Flightless Cormorant (Phalacrocorax harrisi) - IUCN Vulnerable.