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                                  What are Endangered Animals?

  Endangered animals are animals that are at risk of going extinct. This means that the population of certain animals is decreasing at a steady rate. Most endangered animals are killed by humans for there fur, shell, tusk etc. or are effected by the change in their environment. The two endangered animals that i chose to tell you about is the hawksbill turtle and the asian elephant.                                                  

Hawksbill Turtle

Asian Elephant

                                   

                                  The Hawksbill Turtle

   The hawksbill turtle has been roaming the earths oceans for over 100 million years. They belong to the family Cheloniidae. Hawksbill turtles are named after their narrow pointed beaks. They have a distinctive pattern of overlapping scales on their shell that form a serrated look on the edges. This makes the turtles shell highly valuable. People kill these amazing reptiles just so they can take their


shell and make it into things to sell in markets, such as jewellery and other ornaments. This is why
the Hawksbill turtle is endangered. This turtle comes from the tropical waters of the Atlantic, Pacific and Indian oceans. They stay in shallow waters so food and nesting grounds are close by. The hawksbill turtle mostly feeds on sponges that they extract from the cracks of the reef. They also feed on sea anemones and jellyfish. Hawksbill turtles are important because they maintain coral reefs and sea grass beds. If people don't stop killing the hawksbill turtle, it will soon be extinct.

                                                          The Asian Elephant

 

       The elephant is the largest land animal on Earth. Asian elephants are slightly smaller then their cousins, the African elephant and can be identified by their smaller rounded ears. This huge animal spends two thirds of the day eating things such as grasses, tree bark, roots, leaves and small stems. Their favourite foods are bananas, rice and surgarcane. Elephants have to be near water because they have to drink and wash themselves atleast once a day. Elephants use there trunks for smelling, breathing, trumpeting, drinking and grabbing things. On either side of their trunk they have tusks. Elephants use their tusks to dig for roots, water, to strip bark from trees and even fighting. Asain elephants live in the plains and forests of India and Sri Lanka. Elephants are extremely sociable
creatures and often stay in groups of 6-7. These elephants are endangered for many reasons. The male elephant is hunted and killed illigally for the ivory in their tusks. They are also captured to do heavy lifting, such as moving logs from one place to another. Environmental changes also contribute to the loss of asain elephants. If we don't stop killing and capturing Asain elephants they will become
extinct.