These 10 Animals Are Sadly On The Brink Of Extinction

​The Kakapo is a ground-dwelling parrot native to New Zealand. Sadly, we may never see them, and not only because they spend a large portion of their time not in the air underground. There are only 140 of these adorable creatures left, many of them were killed off due to poaching but mainly to non-native animals like cats and dogs. When threatened, the Kakapo will freeze and blend into their surroundings. This tactic is great against predators that use sight for hunting, but less effective against those that rely on smell like cats and dogs.

​While many of the world's big cats are in some sort of danger of being wiped off the face of the Earth, there is none more so than the Amur Leopard. This beautiful creature is primarily found in Asia, where it is hunted for its bones, which are used in traditional medicine, and its coat which is renowned for its beauty. Currently, there are estimated to be less than 70 of these leopards left in the world.

They are both the smallest mammal of the ocean and, sadly, quite possibly the most endangered creature on the planet. In an estimate from July 2019, there are only around 9 of these animals left on the planet. They are mostly killed by poachers who are hunting for a completely different animal: the totoaba fish. The Vaquitas will get tangled in their nets where they are unable to swim to the surface and drown. While conservation efforts have been aimed at stopping this illegal practice, it continues to this day.

Much like their closest relative, the dodo bird, these pigeons are rapidly becoming extinct. Currently, these birds only live on Samoa, where their numbers have shrunk to somewhere between 70-380 left in the wild. Hunting was the primary reason this bird population was so decimated, and while it is illegal now these birds are sometimes shot on accident, or killed by poachers who don't care.