Recently, scientists have revealed a new method to monitor the endangered wildlife. This is an AI system that can count the elephants from space with a manual effort. The AI system is a combination of satellite cameras with a convolutional neural network (CNN). The cameras are provided to capture African elephants moving through forests and grasslands.
Initially, the images captured by the satellites seemed to be grey blobs in a forest of green splotches. However, on a closer examination, these blobs showed to be the endangered elephants wandering through the trees. This discovery could allow up to 5,000 sq. km of elephant habitat to be surveyed.
A new colony of Penguins found
Apart from these endangered elephants, other species that have been spotted via space are penguins. The scientists used the American Landsat spacecraft for searching the images for possible penguin activity when great patches of their poo, or guano, showed up in pictures taken from space. However, Landsat did not return high-resolution pictures. Ultimately, the scientists had to keep a follow-up with much sharper pictures for confirmation.
The 10 most endangered species in the world are listed as below:
1. Javan rhinoceros:
Javan rhinos were once the most widespread Asian rhinos but now are critically endangered. These were one of the world’s rarest large mammals. There are between 58 and 68 in the wild, with none living in captivity. They were found in Ujung Kulon National Park on the south-western tip of Java, Indonesia. Whereas, the other population was found in Vietnam which was later wiped out in 2010.
2. Vaquita:
The vaquita is the rarest endangered marine mammal in the world. They are found solely in the northern part of the Gulf of California, Mexico. They inhabit shallow water, generally, lagoons no deeper than 30m and are comparatively easier to spot. Unfortunately, the future looks bleak for this small porpoise, with just 10 left in the wild.
3. Mountain gorillas:
30 years ago, experts feared mountain gorillas were soon to be extinct. But as there had been tremendous efforts for the conservation of these gorillas, they have been listed as ‘endangered’ instead of ‘critically endangered’. Since 1981, the gorilla population has almost doubled and today, around 1,063 mountain gorillas are considered to exist in the wild.
4. Tigers:
The number of tigers to exist today is around 3,900 in the wild. Earlier 100,000 tigers were estimated to exist in the world. India is the best country to see tigers in the wild, but you can also spot tigers in Bangladesh, China, Sumatra, Siberia, and Nepal.
5. Asian elephants:
The population of Asian elephants has decreased drastically since 1986. There are fewer than 50,000 Asian elephants remaining in the wild. However, scientists have recently spotted a pack of Asian elephants.
6. Orangutans:
Since 2000, the orangutan has been considered critically endangered. Naturally living on the Indonesian island of Sumatra, there are about 14,000 Sumatran orangutans left.
7. Leatherback sea turtles:
Because of vulnerability, only a few young turtles can make it to adulthood. The number of female sea turtles nesting annually is between 26,000 and 43,000 which is a drastic decline since 1980. Suriname, French Guiana, Grand Anse beach in Saint Lucia, Turtle Beach in Tobago, Guyana’s Shell Beach, and Gabon are known to be the primes nesting spots for the female seas turtles.
8. Snow leopards:
The snow leopards are known to be found in 12 countries in Central Asia and China, Bhutan, Nepal, India are some of them. The population of the snow leopards is estimated to be between 4,080 to 6,590.
9. Irrawaddy dolphins:
As of 2020, the Irrawaddy dolphins are classified as critically endangered. Nearly less than 100 are estimated to have survived. These are expected to be found in the Ayeyarwady River in Myanmar (Burma), the Mahakam River in Indonesian Borneo, and the Mekong.
10. Atlantic bluefin tuna:
Over the last 40 years, Bluefin tuna numbers have plummeted at a shocking rate. According to reports, there has been a 2% decrease in the eastern Atlantic and an 82% decrease in the west.
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