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Endangered
Twelve species of whales are
endangered. The gray whale has been saved from extinction
only by 50 years of protection. The one remaining species of
sea cow is still being hunted in Indonesia. In the
Mediterranean Sea, the monk seal population is now less than
1,000.
Gorillas and orangutans now
exist only in very small numbers as well. The population of
chimpanzees is also becoming less and less. Many small
animal species are also threatened because people are using them
as exotic pets.
Many animals have become
extinct because of human beings introducing animal predators
(animals that prey on other animals). One species of the
giant Galapagos tortoise has not produced offspring for the past
50 years. The reason for this is because the young are eaten
by black rats which arrived on the Galapagos Islands when humans
settled there.
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