Going, going, going extinct.. can we save the world?

All over the world we are loosing biodiversity. There are many species which are very close to extinction : the rafflesia flowers, the beluga whale, the giant panda, the grey wolf, the African elephant, the African black rhino and the gorilla.

The problem of endangered species is bad and it is getting worse. Scientists think we are losing twenty to thirty species of plants and animals everyday.

However, perhaps the most spectacular of all animals in danger of extinction is the magnificent tiger, the largest cat on the planet.

Tigers can be up to 4 meters long and over a meter high, weighing up to 225 kilos and they have beautiful orange fur with black or brown stripes. They hunt animals like wild pigs, deer, an buffalo and can eat as much as 40 kilos of met in one meal.

Fifty years ago there were between 25000 and 30000 tigers in Asia but this number has fallen to between 5000 and 7000. Since the 1980s, the conservation program “Operation Tiger” has tried to save the Indian tiger by establishing national parks or reserves. Unfortunately, the tiger’s body is in enormous demand for traditional Chinese medicine and illegal hunters can get up to $20000, for a dead tiger. Also their habitat is disappearing because poor farmers are cutting wood at reserves like Ranthambhore National Park in India.

People have suggested different ways to save biodiversity. We can establish nature reserves or national parks, like the Wolong Mountain Reserves, the last home of the giant panda. We can recycle rubbish and reduce damage to our environment. New technology may help us to reduce pollution. We can control hunting and the sale of animals skin and bodies.

In the future, one way to save endangered species and perhaps to bring back extinct animals maybe to clone them. Cloning is special way of copying the genes of living or dead animals to grow a new animal. This has already happened. In 1996 scientists cloned a sheep.

So, we have to save our biodiversity. If we cannot stop the hunting or protect its habitat, in the next few years many endangered species will disappear forever.