Animals rarely venture into human territory mostly because they know they could be harmed. However, humans have no qualms about encroaching upon animal territory, hunting them for flesh and fur and destroying their habitats, driving many species to the brink of extinction.
Some animals confine themselves to their surroundings. Some of them are so rare, that to come across them in their natural habitat wildlife photographers have to set up camera traps to capture their images.
The Amur Leopard, though comparatively smaller in size, is just as magnificent as the Bengal Tiger or any other feline. They are found in the mountainous areas of Russia, China and Korea, and have been categorised as critically endangered because of poaching and exploitation of their habitat.
The pale blue face of the Golden Snub-Nosed Monkey, surrounded by a mass of flaming reddish brown hair is a sight to see. It has a thick coat of hair, which helps it survive the cold mountain temperatures. This primate is listed by the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) as an endangered species as its survival is threatened by habitat loss.
A member of the weasel family, the Pine Marten sure knows how to sneak around. The pine marten is one of the most elusive wildlife species, though they have been known to be distributed widely in Europe and North America. It was only in the late 2000s that one, living or dead, was found since the 1970s. Its conservation status is under ‘least concern’ in the IUCN Red List, but its habitat is being threatened by human encroachment and deforestation.
Another animal that is hard to come by in the wild easily is the Sumatran rhino. It is quite big in size, but it’s the smallest in the rhino family. Believed to have been widely distributed in the forests along Malay Peninsula, Borneo and Indonesia, this rhino species is in critical danger of losing its home.
The number of animals inching closer to extinction is increasing, and before you know it, it will be a rarity to see them even in zoos.
