Have you ever seen a giraffe in a zoo, safari, social media, or any other place and thought that they were no where near extinction? Well, biologists from the International Union for the Conservation of Nature ( IUCN ), have recently discovered that giraffes are now rarer than elephants. This is a huge problem especially since not that many people know because of the fact that they are undergoing a “silent extinction.” Since only a few people know about this, it’s hard to help them survive.

According to the article, “Giraffes Facing Extinction After Devastating Decline, Experts Warn,” by Damian Carrington, giraffes are already extinct in 7 countries. Studies have shown that giraffes went from being categorized as “least concern” to now “vulnerable” in December 2016. According to Julian Fennessy, co  chair of the specialty group of biologists that put the giraffe on the IUCN Red-List, giraffes’ population has drastically decreased from 157,000 giraffes in 1985 to about 97,500 giraffes today. Some analysis taken by biologist have even shown that by 2020 most wild creatures would decrease by two-thirds.

Most giraffes are dying as the population in Africa increases. Deforestation, habitat loss, farming, illegal hunting, the impact of civil wars, and diseases are the main causes for the decrease in giraffes’ population. Fennessy says, “The natural world is in the midst of mass extinction as wild places are being destroyed.”

Although there are a lot of problems with giraffes, there are still chances of saving them from extinction. A few species who were thought to be extinct have been rediscovered such as a Madagascan fish which was last seen in the 1960’s, as well  as the Seychelles white-eyed bird after conservation efforts. Biologists have also said that the giant panda’s population is improving.  After rediscovering animals that were thought to be extinct, biologists still have a chance to save the giraffe from extinction.

Giraffes are very close to extinction and we need to save them. Not only do we need to save giraffes, but other species as well such as bees, the Eastern Gorillas, the whale shark, and other endangered animals. If we have a clean, non-polluted environment we can save these beautiful creatures from going extinct so that years from now people will know what a giraffe is and how they look like.