9 fascinating facts about endangered species

Endangered animals are those which are at risk of becoming extinct in the near future. This may be due to habitat loss, poaching, pollution, invasive species or climate change – it’s normally due to combination of factors. 

Here are 9 amazing facts about some of our favourite endangered animal friends at our projects around the world:

1. A turtle’s sex is determined by egg temperature 

Sea turtles lay their eggs in nests on beaches. If the eggs become warmer than 28-29 degrees Celsius then the turtle will hatch as a female, cooler eggs will hatch into male turtles. Some nests are all the same sex, whilst in other nests the eggs closer to the top of the nest are warmed by the sun so are female and the cooler eggs at the bottom of the nest are male. 

Climate change and an increase of microplastics (tiny pieces of plastic in the sand) are leading to the sand temperatures increasing and more female turtles hatching worldwide. 

2. Elephants are scared of bees

Although elephants have thick skin (2.5cm!), if they are stung around sensitive areas by their eyes, mouth and trunk, this causes them pain. This fear of bees has been harnessed to help to keep elephants safe - special beehive fences have been created around farms to stop elephants from entering and damaging farms. an innovative way to reduce human-elephant conflict. 

3. Gibbons are not monkeys 

Although they look like monkeys, gibbons are part of the ape family and are classified as lesser apes. Monkeys have tails but gibbons are tailless and they sit upright like other apes. They rarely touch the ground and are fantastic acrobats – they can swing through the forest at a speedy 35 mph and can cross gaps of more than 10 metres between the trees!  

4. Butterflies taste with their feet

Butterflies do have taste buds on their proboscis and their antennae, but most of the taste buds are actually found on their feet! A female butterfly uses her feet to taste different leaves to find the ideal one to lay her eggs. Butterflies use their feet to taste their liquid food before sucking it up with their long straw-like tube which is called a proboscis. 

5. Whale sharks can live for up to 130 years

Whale sharks are gentle giants and are sharks, not whales. They are the world largest fish often reaching over 12 metres long (with males growing up to 16 metres) and can live for up to 130 years. 

6. Elephants have 6 sets of teeth

Elephants are born with all 6 sets of teeth (4 molars per set) which they use to grind their food. As the teeth wear out, they are replaced with new teeth from behind at the back of their jaw (new teeth don't grow down like us!). Each set of teeth lasts around 10 years. Some of our old rescued elephants in Thailand are on their last set of teeth!

7. Tiger urine smells like popcorn

Tiger urine smells like buttered popcorn and they use their urine to mark their territory. If you can smell this it might be time to make a swift exit!

8. African wild dogs have a territory 1.5 times as big as London

African wild dogs (which are also known as painted dog or Cape hunting dogs) are very social and live in packs of up to 20 individuals. Wild dog packs have an impressive 80% hunt success rate due to their high levels of group communication. The dog packs have huge territories, up to 900 square miles, 1.5 times the size of Greater London! 

9. Elephants walk on their tip toes

Although elephants are huge (with African elephants growing between 2.5 to 4 metres tall), they are very quiet when walking. This is because they actually walk on their tip toes. Elephants’ feet are angled with a large pad of fat and connective tissue which is a great shock absorber and distributes their weight. This allows elephants to walk carefully and quietly over uneven terrain and swampy group. 

Want to read more? 

If you want to learn more about incredible endangered animals you can read Greenpeace’s article on How well do you know these endangered species and the WWF's relatable facts about endangered species.  

How can you help? 

Currently there are sadly more than 41,000 species world wide which are threatened with extinction – 28% of all assessed species (IUCN RED list). 

At Pod Volunteer we are passionate about helping to protect endangered animals and you can help by joining our volunteer projects around the world.

• Sea turtles in Greece and Costa Rica
• Rescued gibbons in Thailand 
• African elephants in Namibia and South Africa
• Asians elephants in Cambodia and Thailand
• Butterflies in Costa Rica and Sri Lanka
• Rescued tigers in Thailand
• African wild dogs in South Africa  

And our marine conservation volunteers in Thailand or Belize may spot whale sharks whilst diving!