Tag archives for Asia
Javan Rhinos Extinct in Mainland Asia
Posted by The last adult Javan rhino in Vietnam was killed last year, making the animal extinct on the Asian mainland. The rhino was probably killed by a poacher. Only about 50 Javan rhinos remain and live in a park in Indonesia.
Habitat loss and hunting caused the population of Javan rhinos to drop during the 20th century. The rhino was thought to be extinct on mainland Asia until a population of about 15 animals was discovered in 1988. With this recent death, conservationists are sure that there are no Javan rhinos left in Vietnam.
Learn more about the extinction of the last Javan rhino in Vietnam on National Geographic News.
Get the facts on the black rhinoceros in the Creature Feature.
Photograph courtesy WWF Greater Mekong
Posted by After we left Singapore we went to Myanmar which is untouched by the western world. It is so foreign that I will bet that 3/4 of the people reading this don’t even know that it is in Asia.
In Myanmar everything that the typical American kid thinks is a necessity is really something very rare. We take for granted things like clean water. Most people in Myanmar drink rain water that is not filtered which means there are lots of tiny bacteria that would make Americans sick but it doesn’t seem to affect the Burmese people.
Is that a snake? Not quite! It’s a newly-discovered species of legless lizard. This is the first legless lizard to be discovered in Southeast Asia, but there are about 200 species of legless lizards found around the world. Although they look like snakes, these animals have external ears like other lizards. Scientists think that snakes evolved from legless lizards.
This lizard is also blind and probably doesn’t need to see since they live underground. Legs and eyes “are simply a waste of energy when you’re working your way through underground tunnels,” says biologist Jenny Daltry of Fauna & Flora International.
Read more about the legless lizards on National Geographic News.
Get the facts on reptiles and other animals on National Geographic Kids.
Photograph courtesy Thy Neang et al, Zootaxa/Flora & Fauna International
Photograph courtesy Zeb Hogan
National Geographic Emerging Explorer Zeb Hogan found what might be the world’s largest freshwater giant stingray in Thailand this month! The giant river ray’s body was an incredible 6.6 feet (2 meters) wide by 6.9 feet (2.1) meters long.
Read the whole post »
Some creepy-looking and yet amazing new species have been found in the Greater Mekong River area in Southeast Asia! Among the most eerie creatures among the 1,068 finds are a pink millipede that can shoot cyanide, and what is probably the world’s largest spider–it boasts a legspan of up to 12 inches (30 centimeters). Check out pictures of these spectacular creatures on National Geographic News.
Want more wild Mekong river creatures? Visit the Megafishes gallery.
