Introducing the New Big 5
1 ELEPHANTS Global population: 447,500 (in the wild). Endangered
The largest living land mammals on Earth, elephants are intelligent and emotional, often working together to help teach and look after their young. There are an estimated 447,500 elephants left on the planet, including 415,000 African elephants (down from 1.2 million in the 1970s) and 30,000-35,000 Asian elephants.
For the first time, IUCN recently listed the African forest elephant as Critically Endangered and the African bush elephant as Endangered, following dramatic population declines over several decades. An estimated 55 African elephants per day are still being killed by poachers – one every 26 minutes – with habitat loss the other threat facing them.
The total number of Sumatran elephants is estimated to be around 1,400, with potentially only 10 years to save this subspecies.
2 POLAR BEARS Global population: 23,315 (in the wild). Vulnerable
The world’s largest carnivores, polar bears are technically marine mammals and cover vast ranges of more than 600,000 km2 across territories including Canada, Norway, Greenland and Russia.
Scientists estimate the global polar bear population is around 23,315. IUCN lists the polar bear as Vulnerable, with an estimated decline of 40 per cent in some polar bear populations, such as the Southern Beaufort Sea polar bear.
Sea ice loss from climate change is the greatest threat to the survival of polar bears, because they rely on the ice to hunt, travel, breed and raise their young.
Other threats include human-polar bear conflict, which has become a growing concern as the Arctic region warms and more polar bears spend more time ashore; industrial activity, including disturbance to dens caused by oil drilling, which reduces the cubs’ chances of survival; and pollution.
3 LIONS Global population: 20,000 (in the wild). Vulnerable
Lions are apex predators at the top of the food chain, and help to maintain a natural balance with prey species in an ecosystem. African lion numbers have declined by about half in the last 25 years; lions currently occupy just eight per cent of their historic range.
Recent estimates suggest there are around 20,000-25,000 lions remaining in the wild, though there could be fewer than 20,000.
Bushmeat hunting (which reduces lions’ prey), habitat loss and human-wildlife conflict are the main threats to lions, with expanding human populations, agriculture and development moving into lion habitats. The poaching of lions for body parts, for traditional practices in Africa or the Asian medicine market, has also emerged as a threat.
Outside of Africa, lions are only found in Gir National Park in India, where there are around 670.
4 TIGERS Global population: 3,900 (in the wild). Endangered
Tigers are listed globally as Endangered on IUCN’s Red List of Threatened Species. Of all the big cats, tigers are the closest to extinction. There are only around 3,900 left in the wild globally, but an estimated 20,000 tigers in captivity globally, many of them in TigerKingstyle zoos and ‘sanctuaries’ in the United States, or kept as pets.
The illegal wildlife trade in tiger bones, skins and other products used for traditional Chinese ‘medicine’ or decorations continues to fuel the rapid decline. Habitat destruction and fragmentation, and human-wildlife conflict, have also added to the crisis. Only seven per cent of the historical range of tigers is intact today.
In India, tiger numbers are stable, but wild tigers have been largely wiped out in Cambodia, Vietnam, Laos and China. The Malayan (150-200 left) and Sumatran (300-370) sub-species are listed as Critically Endangered.
5 GORILLAS Global population: 4,863 (in the wild). Endangered-Critically Endangered
The world’s largest primate, gorillas share more than 98 per cent of their DNA with humans. Gorillas are vital to the health of forest habitats, as their activities maintain plant growth and distribute seeds.
Mountain gorillas are found in just three countries: Rwanda, Uganda and the Democratic Republic of Congo. Their two ranges across these countries total less than 300 square miles, around one tenth the size of Yellowstone National Park in the US. Effective conservation work means that their populations are slowly recovering; they’ve been reclassified from Critically Endangered to Endangered. The last census of mountain gorillas put their number at 1,063.
Grauer’s gorillas, found only in the DRC, face a bleaker prospect. Listed as Critically Endangered, there are an estimated 3,800 Grauer’s gorillas remaining, a drop of 80 per cent in just two decades.
Gorilla populations are losing their habitat due to human encroachment, mining and climate change. They sometimes suffer accidental injury or death from snares left by poachers hunting for bushmeat.