Scientists identify extinction hotspots
Researchers have identified regions in the world where there is a high risk of extinction to some animals.
Lands where wildlife seems safe today, such as northern Canada and Alaska to tropical Asian islands, may pose some of the greatest extinction dangers in the future.
In particular peril, are animals with a relatively small geographic range and those that have a large body mass and reproduce slowly.
Scientists published their findings in Monday’s online edition of Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences.
Researchers identified regions where they felt there was a high “latent extinction risk” for non-marine mammals, often areas that have had little human impact so far.
Latent risk is low in parts of the world already heavily populated by people, where species likely to succumb to the pressure have already done so.
Marcel Cardillo of the Imperial College in London, the groups team leader, said: “Latent risk can be thought of as a measure of the potential for a species to decline rapidly towards extinction, given exposure to levels of human impact” that have been felt elsewhere.
Potential extinction
The area with the most potentially endangered species, 284, is Sumatra and peninsular Malaysia, the report said.
Next, with 224 species, is Borneo, followed by New Guinea, 205 species, western Java, 131 species and Sulawesi, 130 species.
Other areas of high threat are Maluku, Indonesia, 99 species; Northern Canada and Alaska, 96 species; Melanesian Islands, 96 species; Nusa Tenggara, Indonesia, 86 species; East Indian highlands, 70 species.
Also Eastern Canadian forests, 57 species; Tasmania and Bass Strait, 49 species; Siberian tundra, 35 species; Patagonian Coast of South America, 26 species; Andaman and Nicobar Islands, 20 species.
Plus the Lesser Antilles, 16 species; Indian Ocean islands, 10 species; Greenland, 9 species; Bahamas, 8 species and Southern Polynesia, 3 species.