PHOTOS: 23 Extinct Animals & Reason Why They Were

Pictured is the red handfish, a close relative of the now-extinct smooth handfish, which existed in abundance in the waters around Australia just 200 years ago. Named after the uncanny resemblance to human arms and hands, the smooth handfish—which was declared extinct in 2020—also featured a very punk-rock mohawk-like spike on its head (just like its cousin shown here.) Currently, there is only one known preserved specimen of the extinct smooth handfish in the entire world.

Cause of Extinction: Although a definitive cause of extinction is not known, scientists speculate that habitat loss and destructive fishing of other sea-life (like scallops) had a hand in their demise.

These little guys were officially declared extinct by the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) in 2015. Native to Bramble Cay, a small island near the northern side of the Great Barrier Reef, it’s reported that the rodents haven’t been spotted since way back in 2009. “Significantly, this probably represents the first recorded mammalian extinction due to anthropogenic climate change,” the Queensland state government said.

Cause of Extinction: Man-made climate change, which led to a loss of habitat and food.

Also known as “baiji,” the Yangtze River dolphin was last seen in 2002. Four years later, a group of researchers traversed 2,000 miles along the Yangtze River to see if they could find one but to no avail. According to the Whale and Dolphin Conservation group (WDC), the baiji is the first dolphin species to become extinct due to humans.

Cause of Extinction: Overfishing, pollution, loss of habitat, poaching, and boat traffic.

The last two living northern white rhinos in existence happen to both be female as the last male died in March of 2018. Sudan, the 45-year-old male, was under armed guard at Kenya’s Ol Pejeta Conservancy when he passed away from old age and an infection.

The two females are also unable to give birth, making the likelihood of introducing a new generation of the species highly unlikely. Scientists are working on using harvested sex cells and in-vitro fertilization to bring forth a lab-created northern white rhino.

Cause of Extinction: Poaching has decimated this population and loss of habitat also helped drive the rhino to the brink of extinction.

Thought to be extinct in the wild, the Spix Macaw currently exists in captivity with their numbers in the dismally low 60 to 80 range. The bird is also referred to as “Little Blue Macaw” because they’re known for their vibrant blue feathers.

Cause of Extinction: The Spix Macaw went extinct in the wild due to habitat destruction, illegal trapping, and trade.

The Thylacine, a carnivore also referred to as the Tasmanian tiger and Tasmanian wolf, was a (mostly) nocturnal marsupial that preyed on rodents and kangaroos.

Although Thylacines looked fierce, they were actually quite timid and, according to Live Science, “could be captured without a fight.” Reports of Thylacine sightings have been so frequent in the past century that it sparked an investigation as to the status of their existence.

Cause of Extinction: It is believed that Dingo populations threatened the Thylacine into extinction in addition to overhunting from humans.

Estimates say that the passenger pigeon population numbered in the millions—and possibly billions—when the first Europeans began settling in America. MentalFloss reports that Wisconsin was home to the largest known nesting site in the late 1800s.

Cause of Extinction: Humans hunted the pigeon and consumed it to the point of extinction with the last known bird dying in captivity in the Cincinnati Zoo in 1914.

The Quagga was native to South Africa and went extinct in the late 19th century. For a long time, the quagga was thought to be its own species before it was discovered that it was closely related to the Plains Zebra and was, in fact, a subspecies of the zebra. Quaggas quite literally looked like a mashup between two animals—a zebra in the front thanks to set of characteristic stripes, and a horse in the rear.

Scientists are trying to resurrect the quagga and have seen some success via reverse engineering by selectively breeding zebras (who carry quagga genes).

Cause of Extinction: Humans hunted the quagga to extinction.

The Pyrenean Ibex officially went extinct in 2000, before being “resurrected” nearly a decade later in 2009. Scientists used DNA taken from preserved epidermal samples to create a clone of a female Pyrenean Ibex, which was able to make it through gestation and even birth before dying shortly after of lung deformities.

Cause of Extinction: Extensive hunting during the 19th century.

The golden toad is not the only species to disappear in the past 40 years, but it just might be the brightest.

The small toad was last seen in 1989 in a Costa Rican rainforest before being declared extinct in 1994. It is believed that Chytridiomycosis, a fatal skin disease, decimated this toad population that was already vulnerable thanks to what Science is calling a “limited habitat and small population.”

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Cause of Extinction: Pollution, global warming, and chytrid skin infections led to the extinction of this species.

One of several subspecies of leopard, the Zanzibar leopard made its home on the Zanzibar archipelago of Tanzania. It’s still unclear whether this large cat is technically extinct—there are occasional unconfirmed sightings.

Cause of Extinction: The leopard went extinct thanks to the belief that these animals were kept by witches; for this reason, locals aggressively hunted them.

It didn’t help that the government was in on the campaign to exterminate the creatures. In the mid-90s, there was a short-lived conservation effort, but it was deemed too little, too late.

Update: In 2018, Animal Planet released footage of what it identified as a Zanzibar Leopard, but those claims have yet to be confirmed.

A native of Maui, Hawaii, the Po’ouli, or black-faced honeycreeper, was only discovered in the 1970s. The birds inhabited the southwestern slope of Haleakala volcano. But the population declined rapidly, and by 1997 there were only three known Po’ouli left.

Efforts to mate the remaining birds failed and the species was formally declared extinct seven years later.

Cause of Extinction: Habitat loss, along with disease, predators, and a decline in its food source—native tree snails—are all seen as reasons for the bird’s demise.

The stunning Madeiran Large White butterfly was found in the valleys of the Laurisilva forests on Portugal’s Madeira Islands. The butterfly’s closest relative, the Large White, is common across Europe, Africa, and Asia.

Cause of Extinction: Loss of habitat due to construction, as well as pollution from agricultural fertilizers are two major causes of the species’ decline. While it hasn’t been officially declared extinct, the butterfly hasn’t been seen for decades.

The Carolina parakeet was the only bird of its kind native to the eastern portion of the U.S. The last Carolina parakeet died at the Cincinnati Zoo in February of 1918 soon after his mate, Lady Jane, passed.

Cause of Extinction: The Smithsonian notes that while a specific reason doesn’t explain the parakeet’s extinction, it’s likely that deforestation and disease are what offed the brightly-colored birds. It also didn’t help that their feathers were coveted fashion fixtures for womens’ hats.

The majestic West African black rhino was declared extinct in 2006, after conservationists failed to find any in their last remaining habitat in Cameroon. The West African black rhino was one of four subspecies of rhinoceros.

The photo of the one pictured here was taken in 2017 while the rhino was under sedation for a routine horn trimming (this is a preventive measure to deter poachers.)

Cause of Extinction: Poachers hunted the rhino for its horn, which is believed by some in Yemen and China to possess aphrodisiacal powers, leading to their extinction.

The Tecopa pupfish, a native of the hot springs of the Mojave Desert, has the distinction of being the first animal declared extinct under the provisions of the Endangered Species Act of 1973. The pupfish’s decline was precipitated when its natural habitat was encroached upon by developers.

Cause of Extinction: The destruction of their natural habitat.

The Falkland Islands wolf went extinct in the late 1800s and was also known as the Antarctic wolf and the Falkland Islands fox.

These wolves were native to the Falklands off of Argentina and were quite isolated from the world until humans reached the islands and hunted them (kind of easily because the wolves were so friendly).

Scientists believe these wolves fed on penguins and other ground-nesting birds in addition to seal pups.

Cause of Extinction: Hunting.

Similar in appearance to the Sumatran tiger, the Javan tiger was native to the Indonesian island of Java. In the 1800s, they were so common they were considered pests by island natives, but as the island was developed, their population dwindled. By the 1950s, only 20 tigers remained.

Cause of Extinction: Loss of habitat and agricultural development led to severe population decline. Conservation efforts in the 1940s and 1950s were unsuccessful due to a lack of adequate land and planning.

Native to Round Island, a tiny island off the coast of Mauritius, the Round Island Burrowing Boa preferred to live on the topsoil layers of volcanic slopes. It was once found on several other islands around Mauritius, but its population had dwindled by the 1940s, and it could only be found on Round Island after 1949. It was last seen in 1975.

Cause of Extinction: The introduction of non-native species of rabbits and goats to the island destroyed vegetation and upset the boa’s habitat, leading to its eventual extinction.

The Pinta Island tortoise was around when Darwin visited the Galapagos in 1835. Sadly, a male named Lonesome George (pictured), was the last purebred of this subspecies and passed in 2015.

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Cause of Extinction: Goats that humans introduced to Pinta Island who destroyed their habitats, rats (also introduced by humans) who preyed on young tortoises, and humans killing the tortoises for their meat.