{"id":992,"date":"2026-07-10T11:38:21","date_gmt":"2026-07-10T11:38:21","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/movingandmortgagehub.com\/?p=992"},"modified":"2026-07-10T11:38:21","modified_gmt":"2026-07-10T11:38:21","slug":"natures-ingenious-survival-strategies-are-no-match-for-human-destruction","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/movingandmortgagehub.com\/?p=992","title":{"rendered":"Nature\u2019s Ingenious Survival Strategies Are No Match for Human Destruction"},"content":{"rendered":"
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This story was originally published b<\/em>y\u00a0the<\/em>\u00a0Guardian\u00a0and\u00a0is reproduced here as part of the\u00a0<\/em>Climate Desk\u00a0collaboration.<\/em><\/p>

Read more Graham Platner Says He\u2019s Out. Now What?<\/a><\/p>\n

Life has coloni<\/span>z<\/span>ed<\/span> every corner of the planet by evolving ingenious survival strategies, but these are increasingly being overwhelmed by destructive human activities, this year\u2019s red list of endangered species has revealed.<\/p>\n

Many snails, limpets and clams have adapted to life at crushing depths in the oceans on hydrothermal vents where water temperatures can reach 450 degrees C (842 F). But an assessment for the red list found that two-thirds of the hundreds of mollusk species found only on deep sea vents were at risk of extinction because of\u00a0deep-sea mining.<\/p>\n

Mining for diamonds has put another extraordinary creature at risk of disappearing\u2014the desert rain frog. Most frogs rely on water for survival but the bulbous desert rain frog has evolved to need almost none. It hides from the southern African sun by burying itself deep in the sand, coming out only at night to hunt insects.<\/p>\n

However, dwindling species can be saved, the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN), which produces the\u00a0red list, said. The new list shows the numbat, a stripy, termite-eating marsupial from Australia, has come back from the brink thanks to protection from feral cats and foxes.<\/p>\n

\u201cLife on Earth has adapted to survive in the most hostile and unusual habitats [but] as pressures on biodiversity mount across the planet, even the creatures with the most ingenious survival strategies are under threat,\u201d said Dr Grethel Aguilar, the IUCN director general. \u201cBut there is a clear path out of the biodiversity crisis: Nature conservation works. By protecting the astounding range of biodiversity on this planet, we can preserve a welcoming environment for humans and wildlife alike.\u201d<\/p>\n

An IUCN update in April declared emperor penguins officially in danger of extinction owing to the\u00a0mass drowning of chicks\u00a0as sea ice is melted by the climate crisis.<\/p>\n

More than 200 species of mollusk are known to live only on hydrothermal vents, where water heated by volcanic rocks jets out from the seabed. Many have been discovered only in the last decade but already face extinction.<\/p>\n

The exploration and extraction of deep-sea minerals throws up sediments that smother the animals. One snail,\u00a0Lirapex felix,\u00a0<\/em>is classed as critically endangered because of mining activity in the Indian Ocean.<\/p>\n

However, more than 30 vent species are not in danger, as they live in marine protected areas where mining is not allowed. These include an ornately shelled snail,\u00a0Provanna exquisita<\/em>, that lives only in the Mariana Arc of Fire national wildlife refuge in the Pacific Ocean.<\/p>

Read more Cuba May Be in Shambles, but Miami\u2019s New Museum Keeps the Bay of Pigs Alive<\/a><\/p>\n

\u201cThis global assessment reveals that [vent] mollusks are one of the most highly threatened of all animal groups,\u201d said Prof Julia Sigwart at Senckenberg Nature Research, the IUCN red list partner that coordinated the assessment. \u201cIt provides important information as the International Seabed Authority meets in Jamaica this month.\u201d The IUCN\u00a0voted for a moratorium on deep-sea mining\u00a0in 2021.<\/p>\n

The desert rain frog is classed as vulnerable owing to diamond mining and energy infrastructure expansion into its range along the west coast of\u00a0South Africa\u00a0and Namibia. There is further pressure on the frog because of rising demand from the exotic pet trade following a viral video of the species squeaking its distress call.<\/p>\n

The good news on the numbat comes after decades of conservation work, which has helped numbers rebound from a low of just 300 in the late 1970s to between 2,000 and 3,000 today. The numbat has moved from endangered to near threatened on the red list.<\/p>\n

The impact of feral cats and\u00a0red foxes\u00a0has been reduced by baiting and predator-proof fencing, as well as captive breeding at Perth zoo and translocations from healthy groups. As a result, at least five more self-sustaining populations have been established. However, the species occupies only 0.04 percent of its original range across southern Australia, meaning continuing conservation work is essential, experts said.<\/p>\n

Another five Australian marsupials have been confirmed as extinct on the red list, with no sightings for at least 60 years. The crest-tailed, southern, northern, and little mulgaras were rat-sized carnivores, while the little bettong was a rabbit-sized jumping marsupial. They are likely to have fallen prey to feral cats and foxes. More than 40 modern mammal extinctions have been recorded in Australia.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe [numbat] assessment shows that long-term conservation effort works; without it, invasive cats and foxes will continue to drive Australia\u2019s small marsupials and native rodents to extinction,\u201d said Prof John Woinarski, co-chair of the IUCN species survival commission group on Australasian marsupials and monotremes.<\/p>\n

\u201cContinued management is vital not only to maintain the numbat\u2019s unique evolutionary line as the last surviving member of the\u00a0Myrmecobiidae<\/em>\u00a0family, but also to support its role in maintaining a healthy ecosystem, as digging for the termites it eats increases rain penetration into the soil, helping protect woodlands,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n

The IUCN red list includes 175,909 species of which 49,505 are threatened with extinction, although many species have yet to be formally assessed.<\/p>

Read more Administration\u2019s Fuzzy Math Will Undermine Energy Efficiency Savings<\/a><\/p>\n<\/article>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Mining threatens to wipe out deep sea creatures, an adorable desert frog, and more.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":990,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[3],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-992","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-politics"],"yoast_head":"\nNature\u2019s Ingenious Survival Strategies Are No Match for Human Destruction - Moving and Mortgage Hub<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/movingandmortgagehub.com\/?p=992\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Nature\u2019s Ingenious Survival Strategies Are No Match for Human Destruction - Moving and Mortgage Hub\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"Mining threatens to wipe out deep sea creatures, an adorable desert frog, and more.\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/movingandmortgagehub.com\/?p=992\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"Moving and Mortgage Hub\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:published_time\" content=\"2026-07-10T11:38:21+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:image\" content=\"https:\/\/movingandmortgagehub.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/3da1aaea9e261aa40ce6b050cb31c3e7-1024x575.webp\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:width\" content=\"1024\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:height\" content=\"575\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:type\" content=\"image\/webp\" \/>\n<meta name=\"author\" content=\"admin\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:label1\" content=\"Written by\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data1\" content=\"admin\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:label2\" content=\"Est. reading time\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data2\" content=\"4 minutes\" \/>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\"@context\":\"https:\\\/\\\/schema.org\",\"@graph\":[{\"@type\":\"Article\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/movingandmortgagehub.com\\\/?p=992#article\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/movingandmortgagehub.com\\\/?p=992\"},\"author\":{\"name\":\"admin\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/movingandmortgagehub.com\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/person\\\/6b7c79bcfd888d98f34c5413df7e81a2\"},\"headline\":\"Nature\u2019s Ingenious Survival Strategies Are No Match for Human Destruction\",\"datePublished\":\"2026-07-10T11:38:21+00:00\",\"mainEntityOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/movingandmortgagehub.com\\\/?p=992\"},\"wordCount\":882,\"commentCount\":0,\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/movingandmortgagehub.com\\\/?p=992#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/movingandmortgagehub.com\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2026\\\/07\\\/37876de4e987eaad687dfe8225fe256b.webp\",\"articleSection\":[\"Politics\"],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"CommentAction\",\"name\":\"Comment\",\"target\":[\"https:\\\/\\\/movingandmortgagehub.com\\\/?p=992#respond\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"WebPage\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/movingandmortgagehub.com\\\/?p=992\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/movingandmortgagehub.com\\\/?p=992\",\"name\":\"Nature\u2019s Ingenious Survival Strategies Are No Match for Human Destruction - 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