INI

Extinct Animals and Plants - INI

Extinct animals and plants are species that once existed on Earth but have disappeared from the wild due to factors such as human activities, climate change, and habitat destruction. According to the IUCN Red List, they are defined as 'Extinct (EX),' and hundreds of species have been classified into this category over the past several centuries. Notable extinct animals include the dodo, thylacine (Tasmanian tiger), and Japanese wolf. Their extinction was primarily caused by environmental destruction, overhunting, and the introduction of invasive species by humans. Learning about extinct species provides important lessons for protecting current biodiversity.

extinction animals plants biodiversity conservation IUCN Red List

[item.dodo]
code=001
slug=dodo
name=Dodo
description=An iconic extinct flightless bird.
causes=["human_hunting","invasive_species","habitat_destruction"]
extinctionYear=1681
habitat=Mauritius Island (Indian Ocean)
scientificName=Raphus cucullatus
type=animal

[item.thylacine]
code=002
slug=thylacine
name=Thylacine
description=An extinct marsupial with a wolf-like or tiger-like appearance.
causes=["human_hunting","habitat_destruction","disease"]
extinctionYear=1936
habitat=Tasmania Island (Australia)
scientificName=Thylacinus cynocephalus
type=animal

[item.japanese-wolf]
code=003
slug=japanese-wolf
name=Japanese Wolf
description=A endemic wolf species that was widely distributed across the Japanese archipelago.
causes=["disease","human_hunting","habitat_destruction"]
extinctionYear=1905
habitat=Honshu, Shikoku, Kyushu (Japan)
scientificName=Canis lupus hodophilax
type=animal

[item.passenger-pigeon]
code=004
slug=passenger-pigeon
name=Passenger Pigeon
description=A North American pigeon once said to have flown in billions.
causes=["human_hunting","habitat_destruction"]
extinctionYear=1914
habitat=North American continent
scientificName=Ectopistes migratorius
type=animal

[item.stellers-sea-cow]
code=005
slug=stellers-sea-cow
name=Steller's Sea Cow
description=A large marine mammal that became extinct just 27 years after being discovered by humans.
causes=["human_hunting"]
extinctionYear=1768
habitat=Bering Sea and Kamchatka Peninsula region
scientificName=Hydrodamalis gigas
type=animal

[item.great-auk]
code=006
slug=great-auk
name=Great Auk
description=A seabird extinct due to excessive hunting for feathers and food.
causes=["human_hunting"]
extinctionYear=1844
habitat=North Atlantic Ocean
scientificName=Pinguinus impennis
type=animal

[item.quagga]
code=007
slug=quagga
name=Quagga
description=A type of zebra with stripes only on the front half of its body.
causes=["human_hunting"]
extinctionYear=1883
habitat=South Africa
scientificName=Equus quagga quagga
type=animal

[item.japanese-river-otter]
code=008
slug=japanese-river-otter
name=Japanese River Otter
description=An endemic Japanese otter hunted to extinction for its beautiful fur.
causes=["human_hunting","habitat_destruction","pollution"]
extinctionYear=2012
habitat=Honshu, Shikoku, Kyushu (Japan)
scientificName=Lutra lutra whiteleyi
type=animal

[item.caribbean-monk-seal]
code=009
slug=caribbean-monk-seal
name=Caribbean Monk Seal
description=The seal species discovered earliest by humans, extinct due to tourism development.
causes=["human_hunting","habitat_destruction"]
extinctionYear=1952
habitat=Caribbean Sea and Gulf of Mexico
scientificName=Neomonachus tropicalis
type=animal

[item.woolly-mammoth]
code=010
slug=woolly-mammoth
name=Woolly Mammoth
description=A large herbivore representing the Ice Age, extinct due to climate change and human hunting.
causes=["climate_change","human_hunting"]
extinctionYear=-2000
habitat=Eurasian continent and North America
scientificName=Mammuthus primigenius
type=animal

[item.silphium]
code=011
slug=silphium
name=Silphium
description=An extinct plant valued in ancient Rome for medicine, food, and currency.
causes=["human_hunting","habitat_destruction"]
extinctionYear=-100
habitat=Cyrenaica (modern-day Libya)
scientificName=Ferula sp.
type=plant

[item.cyanea-eleeleensis]
code=012
slug=cyanea-eleeleensis
name=Achyranthes atollensis
description=An extinct endemic plant of Hawaii.
causes=["habitat_destruction","invasive_species"]
extinctionYear=1964
habitat=Hawaiian Islands
scientificName=Achyranthes atollensis
type=plant

[item.koshigaya-hoshikusa]
code=013
slug=koshigaya-hoshikusa
name=Koshigaya Starwort
description=A wild extinct plant that inhabited only the sand marsh in Ibaraki Prefecture.
causes=["habitat_destruction"]
extinctionYear=1994
habitat=Ibaraki Prefecture (Japan)
scientificName=Stellaria koshigayensis
type=plant

[item.shibi-itachishida]
code=014
slug=shibi-itachishida
name=Shibi Cliff Fern
description=A wild extinct fern that grew only at the foot of Mount Shibi in Kagoshima Prefecture.
causes=["habitat_destruction"]
extinctionYear=1990
habitat=Kagoshima Prefecture (Japan)
scientificName=Woodsia shibiensis
type=plant

[item.gasha-moku]
code=015
slug=gasha-moku
name=Gasha Tree
description=A threatened plant whose habitat was destroyed by land reclamation of lakes and marshes.
causes=["habitat_destruction"]
extinctionYear=1980
habitat=Chiba Prefecture and Northern Kyushu (Japan)
scientificName=Aphananthe aspera var. arguta
type=plant