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When you’re a kid, you know the dinosaurs went extinct, but it seems weird that a creature alive today could suddenly be wiped off the earth tomorrow. I remember the first time I really realized what extinction meant when I went to the San Diego Zoo and saw a picture of the dodo bird on a sign talking about extinction. I was familiar with the bird from Alice and Wonderland and asked my mom if we could see it while we were at the zoo. When she explained to me that the bird didn’t exist any more, my heart sank.
Even today I am saddened whenever I learn about a species becoming extinct, but the worst part is when you know it was caused by human activity. Here are seven such animals that are no longer on earth thanks to mankind.
Also known as the Tasmanian tiger, this carnivore wasn’t related to dogs, tigers or hyenas, as many people believe. It was actually a marsupial, closer related to kangaroos and wallabies than any of those other animals. It was originally found in Australia and New Zealand, but its was essentially extinct in those areas long before Europeans discovered it. Even so, it thrived on the island of Tasmania until European settlers issued began fearing that the animals were eating their livestock. Like wolves, the Tasmanian tiger was often accused of slaughtering sheep in the fields. As a result, the Van Dieman’s Land Company issued a bounty on the creature, offering one pound per adult and ten shillings for each pup.
Scientists have still not been able to verify accusations of the animals eating livestock, but it would be too late to help the thylacines anyway, as the last known individual was captured in 1933 and died in a zoo in 1936. That’s her in the video. Sadly, she died two months before the Tasmanian government enacted a law dedicated to protecting the animals.
While it looks like a strange cross between a horse and a zebra, a quagga was actually a subspecies of a typical plains zebra with a brown rear end and a striped head. It was once found in great numbers in southern Africa until Europeans started hunting the animals for their meat and their hides. It is believed that the last wild quagga was shot in the late 1870s. A number were sent to zoos before that point though and the last captive individual was killed in 1883. At the time, people still believed these were the same as other zebra species, the individuals just had different markings. It wasn’t until after the subspecies was eradicated that people realized the animal had become extinct. Some historians have noted, the story is particularly sad because if the same thing happened in modern times, the breeding programs of zoos could help rebuild the population of the animal and release them back into the wild.
Interestingly, because the animal was so closely related to other subspecies of zebra, South African researchers have attempted a selective breeding program to create a new stock of the animals. The third and forth generation animals created through this project do look similar to the extinct creatures, but scientists debate whether or not looks are enough to declare these animals quaggas.
As a slow-swimming marine mammal that never completely submerged itself and was loaded with blubber, the Steller’s sea cow was doomed from the beginning. These massive herbivores were once abundant in the North Pacific, but aboriginal peoples hunted them until their population was limited to only the Commander Islands. Unfortunately for the sea cow, they were then discovered in 1751 by George Wilhelm Steller on an expedition led by Vitus Bering.
The Stellar sea cows were over 25 feet long. They were slow swimmers who couldn’t submerge themselves. There were only about 1,500 when Europeans first laid eyes on them and it wasn’t long before those remaining were hunted down for food, pelts and blubber, which could be used in oil lamps. Within 27 years of Steller’s discovery, the animals were extinct.
Read about four different sightings of wild kangaroos in the United States. Not surprisingly, some people believe that the mystery animals of North America are paranormal manifestations of some kind. But that might be jumping to conclusions.
Various theories have been put forward in an attempt to explain the bizarre phenomenon, but to date no satisfactory answers have been found. Some commentators suggest that kangaroos in the United States are the shy descendants of animals that, on some unknown occasion in the past, escaped from a circus or zoo. One rational explanation is that they are native marsupials not yet officially discovered or classified; however, the only evolutionary ancestors come from South, not North, America.
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If you don’t really know much about wombats, you aren’t alone. In fact, there’s not much information on them compared with other animals. Still, they’re darn cute and there’s no real reason for us to know more about kangaroos or koalas than wombats. With this in mind, here’s your chance to educate yourself in the wide world of wombat wonder.
Just So You Know, Wombats Aren’t Badgers
Image Via Timmy Toucan [Flickr]
But they used to be confused with them by early settlers. In fact, quite a few places named with the word ‘badger’ were actually supposed to be named for wombats. A few examples include Badger Creek, Victoria and Badger Corner Tasmania.
After a while they did start getting their due credit though. Wombat, New South Wales, asteroid 6827 Wombat and more are named (correctly) after the little marsupials.
They’re Totally Square
Or at least, their poops are. Their 14 day long digestion helps aid their survival in desert conditions by allowing them to digest every nutrient possible. Interestingly, this process allows them to create some of the most uniquely shaped feces in the animal kingdom –a perfect square.
They’re All Backwards
While most marsupials have a pouch that sits upwards, wombat’s pouches face down. The reason for this is the wombat’s need to dig extensive burrows. If they had pouches like kangaroos or koalas, their pouches and babies would be loaded with dirt -that would be a long 6 or 7 months of life for the poor babies living in the pouch.
Your Wombat Friends Are A Little Slow
Wombats aren’t keen on speed. They like to take shortcuts and have been known to bite their way through plants or farmer’s fences rather than walking around them –giving them the name “bulldozers of the bush.” When they need to get out of the way of predators though, it’s a whole different story. Scared wombats can run up to 25 miles per hour for a full minute and a half –about the same top speed of human runners.
Wombats Got Back
Image Via Timmy Toucan [Flickr]
No, I’m not talking Sir Mix-a-Lot style, of course, he still might like the furry critters. But wombats really do have a big, strong butt. In fact, it’s their main form of defense. In the wild, both dingoes and Tasmanian devils prey on the creatures. Most of a wombat’s behind is made of cartilage, making it hard for the predator to bite through when attacking from the rear.
Their other main defensive move is made by diving into a tunnel, waiting for the attacker to put their head in the hole and then thrusting up with their massive legs. This smashes the predator’s head on the roof of the tunnel.
They Were Huge Back In The Day
The Giant Wombat was a common species even when the earliest humans began to inhabit Australia. In fact, it’s believed that the aborigines actually helped cause the extinction of these giants through excessive hunting and habitat alteration. These giant wombats were the size of rhinoceroses and were the largest marsupials in the history of the world.
When Wombats Aren’t Cuddly, They’re Terribly Vicious
Image Via Feverblue [Flickr]
When held in captivity, the creatures can be made somewhat tame and even may allow park and zoo visitors to pet or hold them. On the downside, this lack of fear makes them more aggressive than their wild counterparts. As a result, a lot of people have been attacked, bit and knocked over by scared or angry wombats. One naturalist, Harry Frauca, was bitten in the leg while wearing rubber boots, trousers and thick wool socks. Despite all this protection, the wombat’s strong jaws and sharp teeth managed to leave him with a wound 2 centimeters deep.
They Adapt Well To Captivity
Image Via Shami Chatterjee [Flickr]
Other than the whole attacking people for no reason thing, they seem to love being in zoos and parks. In the wild, these guys only have a life expectancy of five years. However, as captive animals, they have been known to live past 25. That’s five times as long of a life! It’s surely partially due to a lack of predators, but they also live a lot more stress-free this way, which seems to have a big effect on the little guys. We should take a tip from them.
