Two gibbon species declared extinct in the wild in China

Beijing, Sep 7 (Prensa Latina) An assessment report on the endangered status of primates in China was released, indicating that the white-handed gibbon and northern white-cheeked gibbon have not been seen in the wild in the past few decades, meeting the criteria for being declared extinct in the wild.

September 7, 2022
17:13

Among the 28 remaining primate species in China, 80% of them are threatened, with more than 15 species having populations of less than 3,000.

Almost all the primates inhabit scattered areas of the country, so the opportunities for inter-population breeding or genome communication are severely limited.

Human activities are the “fundamental cause” of the unprecedented biodiversity loss. Other factors include invasion by alien species, overexploitation of resources, environmental pollution and global climate change.

The extinction of other species such as Chinese paddlefish and dugongs has reminded people that more efforts must be made to protect endangered species, experts noted.

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