Extremely Endangered Species
These species are so rare that getting
photographs of them is a miracle in itself.
Solenodon
Solenodon
The strange solenodon is a mammal found
primarily in Cuba and Hispanola. Sure, it looks
cute and manageable enough, sort of like an oversized hedgehog. Too bad the solenodon injects
rattlesnake-like venom through its teeth, the only
mammal to do so. Easily annoyed, the solenodon
bites at the drop of a banana leaf. Still, being both
a carrion feeder and insectivore, it is a vital
species in its ecosystem. It was thought to be
extinct until scientists found a few still alive in
2003. It is in grave danger of extinction.
Solenodon
• Kingdom
• Phylum
• Class
• Order
• Family
• Genus
• Species
Animalia
Chordata (has a backbone)
Mammalia (mammary glands)
Soricomorpha (shrew-type)
Solenodontidae
Solenodon
Solenodon cubanus
Kakapo
Kakapo
This is not only the rarest, but the strangest parrot in the
world. Imagine a rather portly nocturnal bird that never
flies, preferring to hike through hilly forest for miles every
night. It weighs in as the heaviest parrot in the world at 8
pounds. Imagine this and you have the very real (but
virtually extinct) kakapo. A resident of New Zealand,
which is home to a number of rare birds, there are only 62
kakapos remaining on earth.
Kakapo
• Kingdom
• Phylum
• Class
• Order
• Family
• Genus
• Species
Animalia
Chordata (has a backbone)
Aves (feathers, no teeth, most fly)
Psittaciformes
Psittacidae
Strigops
Strigops habroptila
Kiwi
Kiwi
Everyone knows the beloved endangered kiwi is a flightless bird. As
if to make up for its winged impotence, the kiwi is actually a violent,
temperamental little bird. The only bird with whiskers is also
distinctly dog-like in its ability to sniff out food and threats. In fact, it
has the most highly developed sense of smell of any bird, lifting its
nose (beak) into the breeze to determine its surroundings, just like a
dog would. That’s probably because kiwis are also the only bird to
have prominent nostrils. Contrary to popular belief, the kiwi does
have wings, but they are tiny and difficult to detect under the loose,
fluffy, hair-like feathers. The kiwi has many other unusual
characteristics: the eggs are relatively huge, being one-fifth the bird’s
weight; kiwi pairs mate for life – as long as 30 years – but tend to
have feisty relationships; the females are larger and more dominant
than the males. In fact, daddy kiwis incubate the young while mom
hunts – for an unheard-of 80 days, no less. Did you know that kiwis
are the smallest ratites on earth? Other ratites include ostrich and
emu.
• Kingdom
Animalia
• Phylum
Chordata (has a backbone)
• Class
Aves (feathers, no teeth, most fly)
• Order
Struthioniformes
• Family
Apterygidae
• Genus
Apteryx
• Species
Apteryx australis
Kiwi
Bumblebee Bat
Bumblebee Bat
Winning the cutest…bat…ever…award is the
Bumblebee bat, which at its largest measures
1 inch! These tiny mammals hover like
hummingbirds and like all bats prefer caves
and love feasting on insects. They can easily
perch on the tip of your thumb. This tiny bat
dwells in Thailand and is considered one of the
12 most endangered species. There are fewer
than 200 remaining.
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Kingdom
Phylum
Class
Order
Family
Genus
Species
Bumblebee Bat
Animalia
Chordata (has a backbone)
Mammalia (mammary glands)
Chiroptera (winged mammals)
Craseonycteridae
Craseonycteris
Craseonycteris thonglongyai
Aye Aye
Aye Aye
Sharing something in common with bats, aye ayes
are the only primates of the mammal world to rely on
echolocation for hunting. It lives in spherical nests
with a small hole for entry and exit. It uses its long,
slender middle finger to tap on trees in order to find
tasty insects – and it uses this same finger to scoop
them out. Perhaps it is due to its unusually-large eyes
and ears that this unique, sensitive primate is
believed to be a demon or a bad luck omen. A native
of Madagascar, it is often killed at first notice by the
island’s superstitious residents.
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Kingdom
Phylum
Class
Order
Family
Genus
Species
Animalia
Chordata (has a backbone)
Mammalia (mammary glands)
Primates
Daubentoniidae
Daubentonia
Daubentonia madagascariensis
Aye Aye
Aye Aye
Echidna
Echidna
The echidna is one of two egg-laying mammals in the
world (the other is the famous duck-billed platypus).
Though it looks a big hedgehog-like, this spiky creature is
shy and non-confrontational. The echidna has a long,
moist snout and an even longer tongue which it uses to
feast on termites. It has no teeth, so it has to “chew”
termites by crushing them between its tongue and mouth
cavity. There are actually 4 species of echidna, and along
with the platypus, they are the only monotremes.
Echidna
• Kingdom
• Phylum
• Class
• Order
• Family
• Genus
• Species
Animalia
Chordata (has a backbone)
Mammalia (mammary glands)
Monotremata
Tachyglossidae
Tachyglossus
Tachyglossus aculeatus
Yellow-Eyed
Penguin
Yellow-Eyed
Penguin
The yellow-eyed penguin, also native to New
Zealand, is the rarest and strangest penguin in the
world. It can dive to an astounding depth of 400 feet,
likes to feed 20 miles from shore, and prefers to nest
in the forest rather than on the beach. Penguin
families tend to keep to themselves rather than
congregate as most penguins do. Because of
shoreline deforestation, these unusual-looking
penguins are at great risk.
Yellow-Eyed
Penguin
• Kingdom
• Phylum
• Class
• Order
• Family
• Genus
• Species
Animalia
Chordata (has a backbone)
Aves (feathers, no teeth, most fly)
Sphenisciformes
Spheniscidae
Megadyptes
Megadyptes antipodes
Purple Frog
Purple Frog
The purple frog is really purple. But its brilliant hue is
not the strange thing about it. The purple frog spends
much of the year living 13 feet below ground. Also
called the pignose for its snubbed nose, this western
Indian-dwelling frog was only discovered in 2003, in
Kerala. Locals had known about the purple frog for
years, but scientists were skeptical. Part of the
reason purple frogs were difficult to find was simply
due to the fact that they only come up for air for two
weeks during monsoon season in order to mate.
Purple Frog
• Kingdom
• Phylum
• Class
• Order
• Family
• Genus
• Species
Animalia
Chordata (has a backbone)
Amphibia
Anura (frogs and toads)
Nasikabatrachidae
Nasikabatrachus
Nasikabatrachus sahyadrensis
Duck-billed Platypus
Duck-billed Platypus
It’s venomous. It’s got a duck’s bill, and otter’s feet
and a mammal’s body. Oh, and it lays eggs. No
wonder Western naturalists were confused by the
platypus when it was first introduced. The platypus,
along with the echidna, is a monotreme (egg-laying
mammal). It’s native to Australia and Tasmania
where it was hunted to near-extinction during the
1800s for its fur, but has been protected since the
turn of the 20th century. Though officially a protected
species, the platypus is at risk because of poaching.
Duck-billed Platypus
• Kingdom
• Phylum
• Class
• Order
• Family
• Genus
• Species
Animalia
Chordata (has a backbone)
Mammalia (mammary glands)
Monotremata
Ornithorhynchidae
Ornithorhynchus
Ornithorhynchus anatinus
Monito Del Monte
Monito Del Monte
The “little mountain monkey” of South America is not
a monkey, but rather a marsupial, thought to have
arrived from Australia long ago. It’s tiny – only about
5″ full grown. They are nocturnal and carnivorous,
and famous (well, among scientists) for their unusual
tail, which can store enough fat to make this little
pipsqueak double in size. This allows them to go for
long periods without food. Sadly, the always-prepared
Monito Del Monte is in danger of extinction.
Monito Del Monte
• Kingdom
• Phylum
• Class
• Order
• Family
• Genus
• Species
Animalia
Chordata (has a backbone)
Mammalia (mammary glands)
Microbiotheria
Microbiotheriidae
Dromiciops
Dromiciops gliroides
Spring Hare
Spring Hare
The bizarre spring hare had taxonomists scratching
their heads for years. It’s been classified with jerboas
(jumping rodents), squirrels and even porcupines. It’s
now classified on its own, and it resembles both a
kangaroo and hare. It has specialized short limbs with
claws for digging as well as flexible ear flaps that can
be used to seal off the ear canal to protect against the
elements and debris. It’s also got a funny resting
position that looks a lot like the yoga Dolphin post: it
stretches its long hind legs forward and then rests its
head and arms directly on the ground
Spring Hare
• Kingdom
• Phylum
• Class
• Order
• Family
• Genus
• Species
Animalia
Chordata (has a backbone)
Mammalia (mammary glands)
Anomaluromorpha
Pedetidae
Pedetes
Pedetes capensis
Sloth
Sloth
The sloth belongs to the edentate family, which also includes
anteaters, armadillos, and echidnas. Most edentates are either
threatened or endangered species. There are a number of
unusual facts about the sloth. All sloths have three toes, but
“two-toed” sloths only have 2 claws. Sloths often hunt in
packs. They can actually move quickly and will slash with their
large claws – the slow-moving behavior is to avoid predators
like hawks. They actually hang most of their lives. Sloths
typically have over 600 species of bacteria, plants and animals
living on them at any given time, and will often feed on
themselves when they are hungry. (Algae is the main snack.)
Famously, these unusual creatures can rotate their heads 270
degrees. Lore has it that sloths adore beer and are able to
“hold their liquor” amazingly well.
Sloth
• Kingdom
• Phylum
• Class
• Order
• Family
• Genus
• Species
Animalia
Chordata (has a backbone)
Mammalia (mammary glands)
Pilosa
Bradypodidae
Bradypus
Bradypus tridactylus
Baby sloth
On the following slide is…
Arguably the most rare/endagered
species on our planet today!
Sumatran Rabbit
Sumatran Rabbit
That’s not really its name; it doesn’t have one. Meet
the rarest rabbit in the world, which has only been
seen twice in the last century at least. Locals didn’t
even know it existed. The “Sumatran rabbit” is
thought to be nearly extinct.
(Note: there are very few available images of this
incredibly rare animal, and most are grainy at best).
Sumatran Rabbit
• Kingdom
• Phylum
• Class
• Order
• Family
• Genus
• Species
Animalia
Chordata (has a backbone)
Mammalia (mammary glands)
Lagomorpha
Leporidae
Nesolagus
Nesolagus netscheri
Very Endangered & Rare
Species!
• http://webecoist.com/2008/08/24/strangestendangered-species-and-animals/
• http://animaldiversity.ummz.umich.edu/
• http://www.arkive.org/