World Wildlife Day is celebrated every year on March 3, as proclaimed by the United Nations, to celebrate and raise awareness about the world's wild animals and plants. This year's theme is "Sustaining all life on Earth". Earth is home to countless species of flora and fauna but due to climate change, poaching and other factors, a lot of them are getting extinct.

According to an ANI report, at least three to four wildlife species have gone extinct due to desertification in India in 2019. A lot of other wildlife species in India also fell into the Critically Endangered category due to climate change.

In a report by ANI in September, 2019, it was stated that the Indian Cheetah, along with three other species is now extinct in India due to desertification. The numbers dropped down to 150 and eventually the species died out.

This intense desertification was caused due to the excessive use of pesticides and heavy industrialisation in agricultural areas. The report also showed how this desertification had a negative impact on the entire food chain.

The last Sumatran rhino in Malaysia passed away in November, 2019, making the extremely rare species locally extinct. The rhino was named Iman and she died due to cancer.

The death of Iman made the species critically endangered, with less than 80 Sumatran rhinos left all over the world, primarily in Indonesia. Currently, Sumatran rhinos are the smallest rhino species in the world.

Regards,

Jessica

Managing Editor

International journal of pure and applied zoology