The Brink of Extinction: The Most Endangered Animals in the World

Kathleen Corrigan | November 9, 2018

Sumatran Elephant

Like the orangutan, Sumatran elephants found in the tropical forests of Borneo and Sumatra are a casualty of the palm oil industry as expanding agriculture has greatly reduced their habitat and in turn, their population. Scientists upgraded their extinction status to critical in 2012 when it was found that half of the population of Sumatran elephants had been lost in a single generation.

Sumatran elephants play an important role in maintaining the delicate balance of the tropical forest ecosystem; not only do the elephants eat plants and redistribute the seeds through their excrement, but their existence affects a number of other threatened species including the Sumatran rhino, tiger, and orangutan. Scientists warn that urgent action is necessary in order to save the 2,800 remaining elephants and their fellow forest dwellers.

ANDREYGUDKOV / Getty Images

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