Endangered Species

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Should we try to save endangered species?
	Yes
	No

Mountain gorillas, blue whales, komodo dragons and some types of bears are dying off. And its not just animals who live in far-off countries who are in danger; there are 14 types of bats in Britain, and they are all endangered, too.

What does it mean when we say that an animal is endangered? It means that the number of animals in a particular species is shrinking and that the species could completely die out (become extinct). When a species becomes extinct, that animal cannot be found anywhere on the planet. Dinosaurs are extinct, for example. How do animals become extinct?

They lose their habitat, which means that theres nowhere for them to live. For example, many animals make their homes in the rain forests that are being cut down. Once all the trees are gone, there will be nowhere for these animals to live, so they will die.
Some animals, like chimpanzees, are becoming extinct because people kill them to eat them. Chimps have also been taken from the wild to be used for tests and killed in laboratories.
Animals are taken from the wild and sent to circuses and zoos, leaving fewer animals in nature to carry on the species.
Some people shoot tigers, lions and other animals for fun. This is called big game hunting, and if enough animals are killed this way, some animals could become extinct.
Elephants are taken from the wild and forced to drag heavy machines to help people cut down forests. This is called logging.
Bears are taken from the wild and used for bear-baiting, a sport in which dogs are forced to fight a chained bear.
If they arent very careful, tourists can harm animals, too. Turtles lay their eggs on sandy beaches in countries such as Greece, but they cant do this when tourists are on the beach. Speedboats also kill large numbers of turtles.

Talk About: Topics to Chat About!
1. Think about ways that people can help endangered animals. Is there anything you can do?
2. Do you care whether or not an animal becomes extinct? Why or why not?
3. If a species is not considered endangered, should we still protect that species?
4. How would you feel if there were no more tigers, or bears, or elephants in the wild?