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00:00 Today, we're bringing you the 7 animals that have gone extinct in the last decade.
00:06 Welcome to another episode of Forever Green.
00:09 And if you're wondering what beautiful creatures we've lost in the last 10 years, you'll
00:13 want to stick around for number 1, because this tiny animal caused a worldwide uproar.
00:19 We lost a lot of important species over the last 10 years.
00:22 The decade started with the tragic loss of one of the world's largest turtle species,
00:26 and ended with the extinction of a helpless Hawaiian tree snail that shook the world.
00:31 Along the road, we also said goodbye to one of the largest, most ancient freshwater fish
00:36 in the world, and one of Africa's most iconic animals.
00:40 So without further ado, here are 7 of the most recent animal species that have gone
00:44 forever.
00:47 Number 7, Pinta Island Tortoise.
00:51 On 24th June 2012, yet another shelled animal named Lonesome George quietly passed away
00:57 on the Galapagos Islands.
01:00 However, this majestic exemplar was quite large than his little snail friend.
01:08 George was over 100 years old, and his passing marked the extinction of one of the world's
01:13 largest species of land turtles, the Pintas.
01:17 Tragic as it was, this species' extinction was long expected.
01:21 George was the last living Pinta turtle discovered by conservationists back in 1972, who provided
01:27 him with a stay during his remaining, and admittedly very long, years of life.
01:32 They did attempt to mate George with other turtle species to produce some kind of Pinta
01:36 hybrids, but to no avail.
01:39 It was the arrival of explorers and whalers to the remote Pacific Islands in the early
01:42 19th century, which led to the extinction.
01:49 Number 6, West African Black Rhinoceros.
01:53 At the start of the 20th century, the black rhinoceros population roaming across the African
01:58 continent numbered a healthy million.
02:01 But 60 years later marked the beginning of a long and unending slaughter of these massive
02:06 herbivores.
02:07 Between 1960 and 1995, upwards of 98% of these magnificent horned creatures were butchered
02:14 by snake oil salesmen, who were keen on including their horns as special ingredients for the
02:20 lucrative trade in hoax medicines for the Far East.
02:24 Not only were these medicines a complete scam, but they drove the West African black rhino
02:29 to the brink of extinction.
02:31 Speak of a lose-lose.
02:32 By 1997, there were less than a dozen of these rhinos left, and the last known wild specimen
02:40 was spotted in northern Cameroon.
02:42 However, in 2006, an intensive survey failed to locate any of these rhinos, leading us
02:49 to believe that it was extinct in the wild.
02:52 After a lack of sightings for another five years, the extinction of these majestic giants
02:56 was officialized on November 10, 2011 by the IUCN.
03:02 Number 5.
03:03 Hawaiian Akeola The Hawaiian Islands are among the most prominent
03:08 examples of species decline at the hands of human activities.
03:12 Epitomized by the decline of a symbolic family of birds called the Hawaiian Akeolai, more
03:18 commonly known as the honeycreepers, these colorful birds use their spectacular bills
03:25 to probe through tree bark in search of insects.
03:28 Also using it to collect nectar from flowers, their highly specialized feeding behaviors
03:32 made them strongly dependent on Hawaii's incredibly diverse plant population for nutrition.
03:38 However, habitat degradation destroyed their food sources, and avian malaria drove these
03:43 little birds to altitudes where mosquitoes can't thrive.
03:48 The appearance of other more invasive bird species further contributed to the demise
03:52 of these symbolic birds.
03:54 Due to habitat loss, disease, and deforestation, these Hawaiian icon birds hadn't been seen
04:00 in several years, so the IUCN declared them officially extinct in 2016.
04:07 If you thought these guys were a sad story, wait until you hear of the Hawaiian tree snail
04:12 at number 1.
04:16 Number 4.
04:17 Chinese Paddlefish The mega-river ecosystem of the Yangtze River
04:22 was once home to diverse aquatic megafauna, but is increasingly affected by human pollutions
04:27 which have resulted in continuous loss of biodiversity and several extinctions, including
04:34 the Chinese Paddlefish.
04:37 Reaching up to 23 feet in length and weighing up to 1,100 pounds, the Chinese Paddlefish
04:42 was one of the largest freshwater fish in the world.
04:46 The Paddlefish is estimated to have existed for over 50 million years and at 25 tons per
04:52 year was still abundantly being fished by humans in the late 70s.
04:56 However, a 2018 basin-wide capture survey of the Yangtze River contained 332 fish species
05:04 without a single specimen of Paddlefish amongst them.
05:08 Likely as a result of overfishing and habitat fragmentation, the IUCN still lists it as
05:14 critically endangered, but a paper published in 2019 declared it extinct after several
05:19 surveys failed to locate the once abundant species of long-snouted fish.
05:25 Number 3.
05:26 Aloltra Grebe The Aloltra Grebe was a medium-sized bird
05:31 native to Lake Alutra and surrounding areas of Madagascar.
05:35 Due to their tiny wings, these duck-like birds were believed to be incapable of flying long
05:40 distances.
05:41 So they lived a sedentary lifestyle on the lake and surrounding ponds.
05:46 Adults were only 10 inches long and because they rarely ventured far from their marshy
05:50 environment, they were highly vulnerable to environmental poaching or being snared in
05:54 fishers' nets.
05:57 Predatory fish introduced by humans also hunted these poor little ducklings to the point of
06:01 disappearing.
06:04 After they hadn't been sighted for years, the Aloltra Grebe species was officially declared
06:08 extinct in 2010 by the IUCN.
06:11 The Aloltra Grebe is another example of how our human actions can have pretty unforeseen
06:15 consequences.
06:19 Number 2.
06:20 Bramble Cay Melamies Last seen in 2009, these rodents, native
06:26 to the Australian island of Bramble Cay, started disappearing when rising levels and storm
06:32 surges began to destroy the island's natural vegetation that the species relied on for
06:36 food.
06:38 Some reports claim that Bramble Cay Melamies were the first mammals to go extinct as a
06:43 direct result of human-induced climate change.
06:46 These little rodents lived happily on their isle in Australia's Great Barrier Reef until
06:50 they began showing signs of decline in 1983.
06:55 After a survey of the island in 2014, conservationists couldn't find a single melamie.
07:01 So they set out to conduct a more thorough search and capture any remaining mice to start
07:06 a captive breeding program.
07:08 However, by the time they arrived in 2015, they couldn't find a single melamie.
07:15 So the IUCN declared them officially extinct in 2016.
07:22 Before we reveal number 1, be sure to check out other amazing videos on our channel and
07:27 give us a like if you enjoyed this video so far.
07:32 Number 1.
07:33 Hawaiian Tree Snail
07:36 Yet another high-profile extinction of the beautiful islands of Hawaii was the Akatonella
07:41 apex vulva.
07:44 Commonly known as the Hawaiian Tree Snail, the last of these snails known as Lonesome
07:48 George died in captivity on New Year's Day in 2019.
07:53 Once widespread and admired for their beauty, Hawaiian Tree Snails were almost completely
07:58 wiped out decades ago by the ambitious local jewelry industry, who collected and strung
08:04 together their shells into traditional necklaces.
08:07 However, in 1997, a small population was rediscovered in a couple of trees along a hiking path on
08:14 A'u.
08:16 The last 10 of these snails were recovered to a breeding facility where they reproduced,
08:21 giving birth to a few baby snails, including George.
08:24 Unfortunately, some kind of pathogen led to an early death for his siblings, leaving George
08:29 to live lonesomely for another 14 years.
08:33 Due to his tiny and helpless nature, George's disappearance probably generated the most
08:38 media attention of any lost species in 2019.
08:42 Loss of these majestic creatures serves as a lesson that we are not alone on this planet
08:47 and that our actions can have pretty unforeseen consequences.
08:50 Of course, all animals are equal, but which of these guys are you going to miss the most?
08:56 Let us know in the comments below.
08:57 Oh, and if you found this video enlightening, you're going to love our video given on
09:02 the screen.
09:03 If you haven't yet, don't forget to like the video and subscribe to Forever Green
09:07 for more incredible animal videos.
09:09 See you in the next one!
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