With overwhelming politics and the COVID-19 pandemic taking over our lives, there are happenings in the world that we are unaware of. It can’t just be me, but in elementary school I was greatly aware of the endangered and extinct animals of the world. This was a topic that we briefly focused on in school, but long enough to know their relevance and importance. Now, the animal kingdom is changing, and we have been blind for way too long.

Last year there were 16,118 species (both plants and animals) endangered, threatened by extinction. This year there are 16,306 species threatened by extinction. There are now 188 more species  on the brink of extinction just in one year, and the list is growing. Just looking through the endangered species list is appalling. Scrolling through the mammals, then the birds, reptiles, amphibians, fish; the list is never ending. The continuous page of species puts into perspective the enormous amount of animals struggling to survive. 

There are a multitude of animals in critical cognition on the verge of being extinct. Some of these animals include the javan rhinoceros, vaquita, and tigers. The javan rhinoceros have no more than 67 currently living in the wild today, and they are the most threatened large mammal species in the world. There is only one population of these rhinos living in Java, Indonesia; as all the other populations have died. The vaquita is an interesting mammal, and the most endangered marine mammal in the world. I’ve never heard of this creature before, and there’s a good chance you haven’t either. There are no more than ten vaquitas left in the world, meaning they will sadly become extinct sooner than later. Then on the other hand, tigers are most likely a well known endangered animal. There are only around 3,800 tigers in the wild, with double that in captivity. Their environment is being overrun by humans and they are constantly being poached. 

Thousands of species are dwindling from the wild due to poaching, pollution, taking land and resources; all caused by humans. We need to open our eyes to the world around us. Yes, 2020 has been detrimental physically and mentally for many of us, but the world is struggling in more ways than we could ever imagine.