The Last of Their Kind: 10 Animal Species on the Brink of Extinction

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Countless animal species worldwide are on the brink of extinction. Many have already become so rare that they can barely maintain viable populations in the wild. Here we present ten species whose populations have dwindled to just a few individuals or that are already considered functionally extinct. These species illustrate the devastating consequences of habitat loss, poaching, and environmental degradation. Their survival depends on whether effective conservation measures can be implemented in time.

Asiatic cheetah

The Asiatic cheetah (Acinonyx jubatus venaticus) is one of the world’s most endangered big cats. This subspecies once inhabited large parts of Southwest and Central Asia—from the Arabian Peninsula through Iran to India. But intensive hunting, habitat loss, deaths in traffic accidents, and poaching caused the population to plummet. The Asiatic cheetah became extinct in India around 70 years ago.

Today, the species survives only in Iran. According to the Iranian Department of Environment, only 17 Asiatic cheetahs remain—eight males and nine females. They are confined to a few remote desert regions and are fighting for survival.

As the FAZ reported, India is now attempting to reintroduce cheetahs. In 2022 and 2023, a total of 20 cheetahs were brought to India from Namibia and South Africa. However, these are African cheetahs—closely related to the Asiatic subspecies, but genetically distinct. The goal is to establish a free-ranging population in selected protected areas. For the Asiatic cheetah itself, however, this measure comes too late—its survival depends entirely on the remaining animals in Iran.

Maratua shama

The Maratua shama (Copsychus barbouri) is a medium-sized songbird in the flycatcher family found exclusively on the Indonesian island of Maratua, northeast of Borneo. Because of extensive trapping for the illegal cage-bird trade, the Maratua shama is now considered functionally extinct on its native island—so few birds have survived there that they can no longer form a viable population. At most, a handful of individual birds remain scattered across the island.

The Maratua shama was formerly regarded as a subspecies of the white-crowned shama (C. stricklandii), but is now considered a distinct species with clear morphological and genetic differences.

As the ZGAP reported on Instagram, the ex situ population at the Prigen Conservation Breeding Ark (PCBA) in Indonesia is now the last hope for the species’ survival. Only targeted captive-breeding programs may be able to save the Maratua shama from extinction.

Hump-backed mahseer

The hump-backed mahseer (Tor remadevii) is a large freshwater fish from the carp family native to the Cauvery river system in southern India. It is considered one of the world’s largest mahseer species—individual fish once weighed more than 50 kilograms. Today, the species is on the brink of extinction.

The main causes are river development projects, sand and stone extraction, water pollution, and the removal of large volumes of water. Destructive fishing methods such as dynamite fishing and the use of poison pose additional threats. The introduction of the related species Tor khudree has placed further pressure on the population.

Long-term studies document the dramatic decline: between 2003 and 2012, catches in the Cauvery Wildlife Sanctuary fell by more than 90%. Only two fish have been caught there since 2012, and fishing has been discontinued. The species is now considered extinct in many stretches of river it once inhabited. The IUCN estimates a population decline of more than 90% within three generations. The only remaining cause for hope is isolated evidence of young fish in a few tributaries.

As the New Indian Express reported, conservation projects are currently underway to secure the species’ survival. Without strict conservation measures and river restoration, the hump-backed mahseer faces extinction.

Malayan tiger

The Malayan tiger (Panthera tigris jacksoni) is one of the world’s most endangered tiger subspecies. Around 3,000 animals once lived in the forests of the Malay Peninsula; estimates suggest that only around 150 wild animals remain today.

The main cause is organized poaching. According to a recent report by Panthera, ZSL, and Sunway University, Vietnamese poachers spend months roaming Malaysia’s forests and trapping tigers with wire snares. Their bones are especially sought after and processed into a gelatinous substance used in traditional Chinese medicine (TCM). Claws and teeth are also sold as amulets. The contraband is transported on Vietnamese fishing boats sailing under the Malaysian flag—a method that is difficult to monitor and inexpensive for the poachers.

Deforestation, diseases such as canine distemper and African swine fever, and dwindling prey populations pose further threats. Researchers warn that the Malayan tiger could soon become extinct without swift action. Conservation programs, tighter controls, and education in the poachers’ regions of origin are needed. Law enforcement alone is no longer enough.

Irrawaddy dolphin

The Irrawaddy dolphin (Orcaella brevirostris) lives in the coastal waters of South and Southeast Asia and in several major rivers, including the Mekong, Irrawaddy, and Mahakam. According to the IUCN, the species is classified as endangered, while some populations are already critically endangered.

The situation is particularly dire in the Mekong River, where estimates suggest that only around 80 animals survive. Populations are also declining rapidly in other regions. The main causes are bycatch in fishing nets, habitat loss, pollution, and the construction of dams that block the animals’ migration routes. Irrawaddy dolphins are often invisible to people—they live in murky water, avoid boats, and surface only briefly. This makes conservation measures difficult and keeps the threat they face largely out of sight.

According to The Travel, experts warn that the Irrawaddy dolphin could soon become extinct without conservation programs—just like the Chinese river dolphin, which has already been lost. To save the species, researchers are calling for more strictly protected areas, sustainable fishing practices, and an end to obstructing rivers with infrastructure.

Tonkin snub-nosed monkey

The Tonkin snub-nosed monkey (Rhinopithecus avunculus), also known as the Tonkin golden monkey, is one of the world’s most endangered primates and lives exclusively in northern Vietnam. For a long time, the species was known to inhabit two areas—the Quan Ba forest and the Khau Ca protected area. But a recent study (2024) brought bitter certainty: in April 2024, researchers found no trace of the monkeys in the Quan Ba forest, where they were last sighted in 2020. The population there is therefore considered extinct.

This leaves the Khau Ca protected area as their last refuge—with an estimated 200 animals. But the species is also under enormous pressure there: habitat loss due to deforestation and the expansion of cardamom cultivation, as well as poaching, threaten the last remaining animals. They are hunted for their meat and for body parts used in traditional medicine.

Particularly alarming is a genetic study (2016) of the population in Khau Ca that found no genetic variability whatsoever in the mitochondrial DNA. The animals are so closely related that their long-term viability is severely compromised. No breeding programs or zoo-based conservation initiatives currently exist. Without rapid, targeted action, the Tonkin snub-nosed monkey faces extinction.

Ploughshare tortoise

The ploughshare tortoise (Astrochelys yniphora), also known as the angonoka, is one of the world’s rarest tortoises. Its range is restricted to Baie de Baly National Park in northwestern Madagascar. As early as 2016, CITES estimated that only around 100 adults remained in the wild. The forecast suggested the species could become extinct in the wild by 2018. More recent figures are unavailable, underscoring the species’ precarious situation.

The international pet trade is the main threat. Tortoises are repeatedly captured and smuggled illegally—sometimes in numbers amounting to almost 10% of the global population. Demand remains high despite the highest level of protection under CITES Appendix I. Other threats include habitat loss due to slash-and-burn agriculture, bushfires, and farming, as well as predation by introduced bushpigs that eat eggs and juveniles. The low genetic diversity of the few remaining animals increases their vulnerability to disease and environmental changes.

The Durrell Wildlife Conservation Trust has operated an in-country breeding program since 1986. More than 200 captive-bred tortoises have now been released into the wild. Nevertheless, the species is classified as critically endangered by the IUCN.

Alagoas curassow

The Alagoas curassow (Mitu mitu) is a large, black-plumaged bird in the curassow family, endemic to Brazil’s Atlantic coastal forest. It has long been considered extinct in the wild—the last wild birds probably disappeared as early as the 1980s.

The main causes of its extinction in the wild were extensive deforestation of the Atlantic Forest, hunting, and habitat loss due to agriculture and human settlement. The Alagoas curassow once inhabited dense lowland forests along the coast of the Brazilian state of Alagoas—less than 5% of this original habitat remains today.

A few birds survived in captivity by chance after a small number of individuals were collected for breeding programs in the 1970s. Today, around 130 to 150 birds survive exclusively in human care, most of them at Brazilian breeding centers. The species is officially classified as extinct in the wild by the IUCN. Current efforts focus on conservation breeding and potential reintroduction projects, but these are severely hampered by the continued severe fragmentation of its habitat.

Madame Berthe’s mouse lemur

Madame Berthe’s mouse lemur (Microcebus berthae) is the world’s smallest known primate and lives exclusively in the Menabe region of western Madagascar. Its habitat is restricted to the last remnants of dry deciduous forest in Kirindy and Ambadira. It formerly inhabited other protected areas as well, but the species has already disappeared from many of them.

As early as 2005, the total population was estimated at no more than 8,000 adults. More recent research shows that populations fluctuate considerably and the species is now scarcely found in degraded habitats. In one section of the Kirindy forest, a subpopulation that had been monitored for more than 20 years even disappeared completely in 2019.

The main causes of the decline are deforestation, slash-and-burn clearing for corn and peanut fields, illegal logging, and charcoal production. The last forests in the Menabe region are shrinking rapidly—more than 4,000 hectares of forest were destroyed each year between 2017 and 2019. Although the rate of loss briefly declined, it rose sharply again in 2021.

If habitat destruction continues at this pace, Madame Berthe’s mouse lemur could become extinct within the next ten years. The IUCN has classified the species as critically endangered since 2019. Particularly concerning is that no animals are kept in human care—there is no breeding program.

Northern white rhinoceros

The northern white rhinoceros (Ceratotherium simum cottoni) is on the brink of extinction. The last two living females, Najin and Fatu, live under guard at the Ol Pejeta Conservancy in Kenya. Since the death of the last male, Sudan, in 2018, natural reproduction has been impossible.

The subspecies was once widespread across Central and East Africa, but decades of poaching for the illegal horn trade and habitat destruction caused its population to collapse. By the 1970s, fewer than 40 animals survived in Garamba National Park (DR Congo). Civil wars and poaching by armed groups ultimately caused the population to collapse. In 2009, the northern white rhinoceros was officially declared extinct in the wild.

Today, all hopes rest on modern reproductive technology: researchers have created 36 embryos using Fatu’s eggs and frozen sperm from deceased bulls. Southern white rhinos are to serve as surrogate mothers. The first embryo transfer attempt took place in 2023—an important step despite its failure. At the same time, scientists are working on stem cell technologies and the maturation of immature egg cells to broaden the genetic base. The greatest challenge remains the extremely narrow gene pool. Whether the species can be saved remains uncertain.

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