Extinct Animals In The Last 100 Years

In the last century, humans have driven numerous species to extinction at an alarming rate. If you’re short on time, here’s a quick answer: over 500 animal species have gone extinct in the past 100 years due to human activities like overhunting, habitat loss, and climate change.

In this comprehensive article, we will take a closer look at some of the most iconic extinct species from the past century, why they went extinct, and what their disappearance means for the future of life on Earth.

Passenger Pigeon

Once the Most Abundant Bird in North America

The passenger pigeon was once the most abundant bird in North America, with an estimated population of 3 to 5 billion in the early 19th century. These birds formed massive flocks that darkened the skies as they migrated across the continent.

John James Audubon, a famous naturalist, described a flock passing overhead for 3 days straight, estimated to contain over 1 billion birds. Sadly, due to overhunting and rapid habitat loss, the passenger pigeon went extinct in the early 1900s.

Overhunting and Habitat Loss Lead to Extinction

The primary factors that led to the demise of the passenger pigeon were overhunting by humans and dramatic habitat loss. Passenger pigeons were seen as an abundant food source, resulting in mass slaughter of the birds.

Millions were shot, trapped, or netted by commercial hunters to be sold as cheap meat in cities. The birds were also seen as agricultural pests, leading farmers to shoot them by the thousands. At the same time, the birds’ forest habitats were being rapidly cleared for timber and agriculture.

This destroyed their nesting sites and food sources.

By the late 1800s, passenger pigeon populations were declining at a staggering rate. Flocks numbering in the hundreds of millions earlier in the century were reduced to the tens of thousands by 1890. Conservationists warned that the species was in peril, but their calls went largely unheeded until it was too late.

The last known wild passenger pigeon was shot by a boy in Ohio in 1900. The last captive bird, named Martha, died in the Cincinnati Zoo in 1914. In less than 100 years, a species that once accounted for an estimated 3 to 5 billion birds was wiped off the face of the Earth.

Thylacine

The Tasmanian Tiger

The thylacine, also known as the Tasmanian tiger or Tasmanian wolf, was the largest known carnivorous marsupial of modern times. It was native to continental Australia, Tasmania and New Guinea until its tragic extinction in the 20th century.

Despite its common names, the thylacine was not related to tigers or wolves. It evolved to fill a similar ecological niche in Australia to the wolves of the Northern Hemisphere, becoming an apex predator.

However, the arrival of dingoes, introduced by Indigenous Australians thousands of years ago, led to thylacine populations declining on mainland Australia. By the time European settlers arrived in the 1800s, the animal was restricted to Tasmania.

The thylacine had the basic appearance of a medium to large-sized dog, except for its abdominal pouch similar to a kangaroo’s, and dark transverse stripes that radiated from the top of its back, reminiscent of a tiger. It typically had sandy brown fur, powerful jaws and a large head.

Despite being hunted extensively by European settlers who believed it to be a threat to livestock, the thylacine was actually shy and reclusive. Its diet consisted mainly of wallabies, possums, birds and small animals.

Unfortunately, the combination of excessive hunting, disease, habitat destruction and introduction of foreign species such as dogs eventually led to the thylacine’s tragic extinction.

Bounties and Disease Contributed to Its Demise

When European settlers arrived in Australia in the early 1800s, they viewed the thylacine as a pest and a threat to their livestock. Extensive hunting ensued, encouraged by bounties implemented by the Tasmanian government from 1888 onwards.

It is estimated over 2,000 thylacines were killed from 1830 to 1909 for bounty schemes alone. The thylacine was fully protected by international law in 1936, but by then it was sadly too late as this fascinating marsupial was already on the brink of extinction.

Disease, habitat loss and the introduction of foreign species also contributed to the thylacine’s demise. Canine diseases like distemper were spread to the vulnerable native populations. Over 80% of the thylacine’s home range became farmland occupied by humans and their livestock.

Competing with invasive dingoes and domestic dogs exacerbated the negative effects. Despite reported thylacine sightings continuing to this day, the last known living thylacine died in captivity in 1936 at the Hobart Zoo in Tasmania.

Ensuring biodiversity is maintained and protecting vulnerable native species are crucial lessons learned from the sad and preventable extinction of the thylacine.

Caribbean Monk Seal

Hunting and Coastal Development Cause Extinction

The Caribbean monk seal, endearingly called the sea wolf, was the only seal native to the Caribbean Sea and the Gulf of Mexico. Tragically, this docile creature was declared extinct in 2008 after aggressive hunting and loss of habitat caused its demise over the course of the 20th century.

As coastal areas became more populated, disturbance and development encroached on the monk seal’s habitat. Pups were extremely vulnerable, as they were weaned at just 4 weeks old. Mother seals struggled to find safe birthing spots on increasingly crowded beaches.

Seal hunting became a popular activity, viewed as great fun and good business. Hunters cashed in on monk seal skin, meat and oil. By the 1950s, the population rapidly dwindled. Conservationists raised alarm, but efforts came too late.

The last confirmed sighting was in 1952 near the western coast of Mexico’s Yucatán Peninsula.

The Only Seal Native to the Caribbean

The Caribbean monk seal was well-adapted to its subtropical environment. These true seals likely migrated from the Mediterranean Sea to the Caribbean during the last ice age. While they lost the thick blubber of Arctic seals, their skin was specially adapted to the warm climate.

These agile swimmers feasted on a variety of reef fish and octopus. Adult seals could reach nearly 8 feet in length and weighed 400-600 pounds. Their brown or dark gray coats helped them camouflage on rocky beaches.

While other earless “true” seal species live in cold environments, the Caribbean monk seal thrived on warm, bright beaches across the Caribbean islands and the Gulf of Mexico for thousands of years before human activity intervened.

Fun Fact: The Caribbean monk seal was named after Spanish monks who originally discovered a colony near their religious retreats. This docile creature did not fear human contact in centuries past.

To learn more about extinct marine mammals, visit the NOAA Fisheries Caribbean Monk Seal page.

Baiji River Dolphin

Nicknamed ‘Goddess of the Yangtze’

The Baiji river dolphin, with its charming and friendly appearance, was nicknamed the ‘Goddess of the Yangtze’ by the Chinese people. These gentle mammals inhabited the middle and lower stretches of the Yangtze River for over 20 million years.

However, in recent decades, their population declined catastrophically due to human activity, and they are now likely extinct in the wild.

Pollution and Ship Traffic Made this Dolphin Functionally Extinct

Several studies in the 1990s estimated that only a few dozen Baiji river dolphins were left. The main threats were heavy ship traffic, which disrupted their communication and breeding, illegal fishing, which caused entanglement in nets, and massive water pollution from factories and agriculture runoff.

Despite protection efforts, no confirmed sightings have occurred since 2004. In 2006, an extensive six-week search found no evidence that any still survived. This functionally extinct status is an enormous tragedy.

According to the baiji.org conservation website, if any remnants of the species do somehow still exist, there may now be too few left to recover. The Baiji serves as a stark wake-up call about the immense threats endangered species face from human activity.

Many conservationists hope more can be done for other threatened Yangtze species before it is too late. But the goddess of the Yangtze is now likely gone forever.

Consequences of Losing Species

Ecosystem Effects and Lost Genetic Diversity

The extinction of species can have devastating effects on ecosystems. As species are lost, the web of life unravels, often in ways we cannot predict. For example, the extinction of large herbivores and predators has radically changed landscapes as vegetation patterns shift.

The loss of bee species around the world is reducing pollination, directly threatening agricultural crops and wild plants that depend on pollinators. According to one report, about 75% of the world’s food crops rely at least in part on pollination by animals.

Each species often plays multiple ecological roles, so its loss reverberates throughout the system. As species disappear, we also lose their genetic diversity and adaptations. This reduces the pool of traits that may help species adapt to changes and stressors like climate change in the future.

It’s impossible to quantify the value of undiscovered medicines, foods, biofuels and other products hidden within the structures of extinct plants and animals. Who knows what cures to diseases may have been lost as species vanished before we could study them?

Preventing Future Extinctions

While many extinctions are natural processes, scientists estimate the current species extinction rate is between 1,000 and 10,000 times higher than normal due to human activities like habitat destruction, overhunting, climate change and pollution.

This biodiversity crisis threatens food webs and ecosystems vital to human survival and prosperity. For example, according to the UN’s IPBES global assessment report on biodiversity and ecosystem services, about 1 million animal and plant species are now threatened with extinction.

Thankfully, it’s not too late to take action. Protecting habitats, ending overexploitation, controlling invasive species and addressing climate change can help save species from extinction. While we will not save all species, targeted conservation efforts have had many successes.

For instance, collaborative conservation programs brought the southern sea otter back from just a few dozen individuals in the early 1900s to over 3,000 today. Such programs show that with prompt action and public support, many species can still recover despite past declines.

Conclusion

The increasing rate of species extinction in the Anthropocene epoch should serve as a wake-up call. Each lost species means lost biodiversity and increasingly fragile ecosystems.

While we cannot bring back extinct animals, we can prevent future losses by protecting habitats, controlling invasive species and pollution, and supporting conservation efforts globally.