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PROX 30 MONK SEAL FEWER THAN 600
In ancient times the seals, found between Greece and Turkey, were hunted for their skins, which were made into shoes, tents and clothing. Their fat was used for oil All surviving birds exist in captivity. The last known one in the wild, in its native northern Brazil, disappeared in 2000. In 1987 three wild birds were captured for trade. Then a male bird was found in 1990 and paired with a female bird in captivity. Seven weeks after her release, she hit a power line and died. In the 2011 animated movie Rio, Blu and Jewel are Spix’s macaws. Estimated to be as few as 40 or as many as 60 on the Western tip of the Indonesian island of Java. Poachers killed the last member of another population in Vietnam in lamps and candles. More recently, the effect of two world wars, the industrial revolution, commercial fishing and tourism contributed to their decline. They live on one small mountain on the northern tip of the island of Madagascar, off East Africa. Researchers have reported there may even be fewer than 20 of the animals left in the wild. They are tiny creatures, weighing less than 2lb, and have large eyes to give them better vision at night. 2011. The species was hunted for its horn, used in Asian folk medicine. The rhino is now protected but may not have a big enough breeding population to survive.