STATE OF THE RAINFOREST 2014
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are disappearing at a rate up to 1000 times faster than the natural
extinction rate,
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and nobody knows which species will be lost next.
In the deep cloud forests in the highlands of Ecuador, a hitherto
unknown mammal has managed to hide from researchers until
2013.
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The Olinguito (
Bassaricyon neblina
), which resembles a
mix between a cat and a teddy bear, is related to the raccoon. The
olinguito is a living proof that there is a lot we still do not know about
the inhabitants of the world’s tropical forests. Like many other known
and unknown species in the cloud forest, the olinguito is endangered
because its habitat is under pressure.
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Australia’s rainforests are also
represented on the list of the most threatened species of the world:
The newly discovered leaf tailed gecko (
Phyllurus gulbaru
), which has
a variegated pattern and with an extremely broad tail as part of its
‘camouflage uniform’ is critically endangered.
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Habitat destruction is the greatest threat to the great variation of
plants and animals in the rainforest, and the main reason why
so many species are on the brink of extinction. The Golden Toad,
however, suffered a different fate. It became world famous as the
first animal likely to have become extinct due to climate change.
Although researchers still debate lively whether climate change
actually caused the disappearance of this particular animal, it is
generally agreed that climate change poses a threat to biodiversity
and will lead to acceleration of the loss of species.
Wildlife on large rainforest islands like Madagascar and the
islands of Southeast Asia, together with the peripheral zones of
the world’s rainforests, is particularly vulnerable. The IUCNs “red
list” has listed 22,103 as threatened with extinction, based on
assessment of more than 73,000 species. According to a recent
update,
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over 90% of Madagascar’s lemurs are threatened with
extinction. The Brazilian
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– the mascot of the 2014 FIFA World
Cup – is in the category ‘Vulnerable’ as its population continues
to decline.
Among the rainforest countries in Africa, Madagascar clearly stands
out as having the highest number (873) of threatened species –
both ‘critically endangered’, ‘endangered’ and ‘vulnerable’ plants
and animals are included in this figure. Cameroon has as many as
636 species on this Red List,
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whilst its giant rainforest neighbour
DR Congo, has 322 registered. In Southeast Asia, the situation is
clearly most critical in Indonesia and Malaysia, each with over 1200
endangered species. In the Amazon, the small country of Ecuador
tops the list, with as many as 2292 of its plants and animals listed,
more than its giant Amazonian neighbour Brazil (934).
On the positive side, at least we now know more about endangered
species than before, and new technologies make it easier to monitor
populations and identify threats. This puts us in a better position to
take appropriate measures to halt the loss of biodiversity.
Important individuals
With so much diversity, does it really matter if a few species
disappears? The question of the importance of individual species
for the ecosystem is hotly debated among scientists. According
to a 2013 study
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of species-rich ecosystems, some species are
extremely important for ecosystem functions. A part of the study
examined tropical trees, more specifically the 662 species found
in French Guiana, Suriname and Guyana. It found that rare species
are far more important for the ecosystem than their numbers and
distribution would suggest. One example is a tree only recently
