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Extinct Animals and Plants - JSON
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
[
{
"code": "001",
"slug": "dodo",
"name": "Dodo",
"scientificName": "Raphus cucullatus",
"type": "animal",
"extinctionYear": 1681,
"habitat": "Mauritius Island (Indian Ocean)",
"causes": [
"human_hunting",
"invasive_species",
"habitat_destruction"
],
"description": "An iconic extinct flightless bird."
},
{
"code": "002",
"slug": "thylacine",
"name": "Thylacine",
"scientificName": "Thylacinus cynocephalus",
"type": "animal",
"extinctionYear": 1936,
"habitat": "Tasmania Island (Australia)",
"causes": [
"human_hunting",
"habitat_destruction",
"disease"
],
"description": "An extinct marsupial with a wolf-like or tiger-like appearance."
},
{
"code": "003",
"slug": "japanese-wolf",
"name": "Japanese Wolf",
"scientificName": "Canis lupus hodophilax",
"type": "animal",
"extinctionYear": 1905,
"habitat": "Honshu, Shikoku, Kyushu (Japan)",
"causes": [
"disease",
"human_hunting",
"habitat_destruction"
],
"description": "A endemic wolf species that was widely distributed across the Japanese archipelago."
},
{
"code": "004",
"slug": "passenger-pigeon",
"name": "Passenger Pigeon",
"scientificName": "Ectopistes migratorius",
"type": "animal",
"extinctionYear": 1914,
"habitat": "North American continent",
"causes": [
"human_hunting",
"habitat_destruction"
],
"description": "A North American pigeon once said to have flown in billions."
},
{
"code": "005",
"slug": "stellers-sea-cow",
"name": "Steller's Sea Cow",
"scientificName": "Hydrodamalis gigas",
"type": "animal",
"extinctionYear": 1768,
"habitat": "Bering Sea and Kamchatka Peninsula region",
"causes": [
"human_hunting"
],
"description": "A large marine mammal that became extinct just 27 years after being discovered by humans."
},
{
"code": "006",
"slug": "great-auk",
"name": "Great Auk",
"scientificName": "Pinguinus impennis",
"type": "animal",
"extinctionYear": 1844,
"habitat": "North Atlantic Ocean",
"causes": [
"human_hunting"
],
"description": "A seabird extinct due to excessive hunting for feathers and food."
},
{
"code": "007",
"slug": "quagga",
"name": "Quagga",
"scientificName": "Equus quagga quagga",
"type": "animal",
"extinctionYear": 1883,
"habitat": "South Africa",
"causes": [
"human_hunting"
],
"description": "A type of zebra with stripes only on the front half of its body."
},
{
"code": "008",
"slug": "japanese-river-otter",
"name": "Japanese River Otter",
"scientificName": "Lutra lutra whiteleyi",
"type": "animal",
"extinctionYear": 2012,
"habitat": "Honshu, Shikoku, Kyushu (Japan)",
"causes": [
"human_hunting",
"habitat_destruction",
"pollution"
],
"description": "An endemic Japanese otter hunted to extinction for its beautiful fur."
},
{
"code": "009",
"slug": "caribbean-monk-seal",
"name": "Caribbean Monk Seal",
"scientificName": "Neomonachus tropicalis",
"type": "animal",
"extinctionYear": 1952,
"habitat": "Caribbean Sea and Gulf of Mexico",
"causes": [
"human_hunting",
"habitat_destruction"
],
"description": "The seal species discovered earliest by humans, extinct due to tourism development."
},
{
"code": "010",
"slug": "woolly-mammoth",
"name": "Woolly Mammoth",
"scientificName": "Mammuthus primigenius",
"type": "animal",
"extinctionYear": -2000,
"habitat": "Eurasian continent and North America",
"causes": [
"climate_change",
"human_hunting"
],
"description": "A large herbivore representing the Ice Age, extinct due to climate change and human hunting."
},
{
"code": "011",
"slug": "silphium",
"name": "Silphium",
"scientificName": "Ferula sp.",
"type": "plant",
"extinctionYear": -100,
"habitat": "Cyrenaica (modern-day Libya)",
"causes": [
"human_hunting",
"habitat_destruction"
],
"description": "An extinct plant valued in ancient Rome for medicine, food, and currency."
},
{
"code": "012",
"slug": "cyanea-eleeleensis",
"name": "Achyranthes atollensis",
"scientificName": "Achyranthes atollensis",
"type": "plant",
"extinctionYear": 1964,
"habitat": "Hawaiian Islands",
"causes": [
"habitat_destruction",
"invasive_species"
],
"description": "An extinct endemic plant of Hawaii."
},
{
"code": "013",
"slug": "koshigaya-hoshikusa",
"name": "Koshigaya Starwort",
"scientificName": "Stellaria koshigayensis",
"type": "plant",
"extinctionYear": 1994,
"habitat": "Ibaraki Prefecture (Japan)",
"causes": [
"habitat_destruction"
],
"description": "A wild extinct plant that inhabited only the sand marsh in Ibaraki Prefecture."
},
{
"code": "014",
"slug": "shibi-itachishida",
"name": "Shibi Cliff Fern",
"scientificName": "Woodsia shibiensis",
"type": "plant",
"extinctionYear": 1990,
"habitat": "Kagoshima Prefecture (Japan)",
"causes": [
"habitat_destruction"
],
"description": "A wild extinct fern that grew only at the foot of Mount Shibi in Kagoshima Prefecture."
},
{
"code": "015",
"slug": "gasha-moku",
"name": "Gasha Tree",
"scientificName": "Aphananthe aspera var. arguta",
"type": "plant",
"extinctionYear": 1980,
"habitat": "Chiba Prefecture and Northern Kyushu (Japan)",
"causes": [
"habitat_destruction"
],
"description": "A threatened plant whose habitat was destroyed by land reclamation of lakes and marshes."
}
]