The Chinese Giant Salamander
Image credit: Petr Hamerník
The Chinese giant salamander is a critically endangered species and is considered one of the world’s most threatened amphibians. This is due to habitat loss and degradation, as well as over-exploitation for traditional Chinese medicine and food. In recent years, there has been a decline in the wild population, and the species is now estimated to be at a very low level.
On the other hand, 2.6 million Chinese giant salamanders were kept in farms in 2011 in Shaanxi alone, far surpassing the entire countrywide wild population estimated at less than 50,000 individuals. And the fact that farms have struggled to produce second-generation captive-bred offspring further dwindles their numbers in the wild.
The Chinese giant salamander is a critically endangered species and is considered one of the world’s most threatened amphibians. This is due to habitat loss and degradation, as well as over-exploitation for traditional Chinese medicine and food. In recent years, there has been a decline in the wild population, and the species is now estimated to be at a very low level.
On the other hand, 2.6 million Chinese giant salamanders were kept in farms in 2011 in Shaanxi alone, far surpassing the entire countrywide wild population estimated at less than 50,000 individuals. And the fact that farms have struggled to produce second-generation captive-bred offspring further dwindles their numbers in the wild.
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17 August 2023
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