Módulo 6

Nuno IJsselstijn de Gruil, nº28, 3ºGEI

Endangered Species
Choose 2 species and talk about them (where you can still find them / why are they endangered)

1) Tasmanian Devil - The Tasmanian devil is a carnivorous marsupial of the

family Dasyuridae. The size of a small dog, the Tasmanian devil became the largest
carnivorous marsupial in the world following the extinction of the thylacine in 1936. It
is related to quolls and distantly related to the thylacine. It is characterised by its
stocky and muscular build, black fur, pungent odour, extremely loud and disturbing
screech, keen sense of smell, and ferocity when feeding. The Tasmanian devil's large
head and neck allow it to generate among the strongest bites per unit body mass of
any extant mammal land predator, and it hunts prey and scavenges carrion as well as
eating household products if humans are living nearby.

Where can we find them? - It was once native to mainland Australia and is now found
in the wild only on the island state of Tasmania, including tiny east-coast Maria
Island where there is a conservation project with disease-free animals.

Why are they endangered? - Between 1996 and 2008, the population of Tasmanian
devils dropped some 60% due a contagious cancer known as Devil Facial Tumour
Disease. It continues to decimate populations of the species, which only occurs on the
Australian island of Tasmania. There may only be 10,000 wild individuals remaining.
Captive breeding of uninfected individuals has been instituted and efforts have been
made to develop a vaccine for the cancer, which is thought to have stemmed from
mutated cells from a single specimen.

2) Tiger - The tiger is the largest cat species, most recognizable for its pattern of dark
vertical stripes on reddish-orange fur with a lighter underside. The species is classified
in the genus Panthera with the lion, jaguar, leopard, and snow leopard. It is an apex
predator, primarily preying on ungulates such as deer and bovids. It is territorial and
generally a solitary but social predator, often requiring large contiguous areas
of habitat that support its prey requirements.

Where can we find them? - It really depends on the sub species of tiger and they come
in different sizes and different characteristics. The biggest, the Siberian tiger, lives in
the ice forests of Russia and Northern China. It has thick lightish fur to combat the cold
and is much bigger than most other sub-species. The Sumatran tiger is around half the
size, has a much darker shorter coat and lives in the dense steamy humid jungles of
Indonesia. Bengal tigers are very adaptable and are second in size with a very orange
coat. Indo-chinese and Malayan tigers are slightly smaller than Bengal tigers.

Why are they endangered? - If you want to know why tigers are endangered it comes
down to this: loss of habitat, trade in tiger parts, ancient folk lore and good old human
greed.