European hamsters are now critically endangered, conservationists warn

European hamsters are now critically endangered
AFP via Getty Images
Emily Lawford10 July 2020

European hamsters are now critically endangered, conservationists have warned.

Without preventative action, the hamsters, a different species from the household pet variety, could become extinct within 30 years if action to save them is not taken, the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN)’s Red List of Threatened Species has said.

The species used to be common across Europe, but its population has seriously declined everywhere, leaving it one step away from extinction.

The IUCN’s latest update also said a third of Madagascar’s lemurs are now critically endangered – and almost all species are under threat.

According to the Red List’s update, 13 species have seen their conservation status worsen, including Madame Berthe’s mouse lemur, the smallest primate in the world, which is now critically endangered, due to losing much of its forest home because of slash-and-burn agriculture and logging for charcoal and wood fuel.

More than half of all primate species in the rest of Africa are now under threat, including all 17 species of red colobus monkey, which face threats of hunting for bushmeat and loss of habitat.

IUCN acting director-general Dr Grethel Aguilar said: “This IUCN Red List update exposes the true scale of threats faced by primates across Africa. It also shows that Homo sapiens needs to drastically change its relationship to other primates, and to nature as a whole.”

“At the heart of this crisis is a dire need for alternative, sustainable livelihoods to replace the current reliance on deforestation and unsustainable use of wildlife,” she continued.

“These findings really bring home the urgent need for an ambitious post-2020 biodiversity framework that drives effective conservation action.”

Just over 120,000 species have now been assessed for the IUCN’s list. Of these, more than 32,000 have been put into the three categories which mean they are threatened with extinction: critically endangered, endangered, and vulnerable.

These species include the caterpillar fungus, the world’s most expensive fungus, which is highly valued in traditional Chinese medicine. Due to over-harvesting, has now been listed as vulnerable to extinction.

Shutterstock / Monkeyoum

The North Atlantic right whale also progressed from endangered to critically endangered. It is estimated that there are now fewer than 250 such whales left alive, as they risk entanglement with fishing gear and being hit by vessels. They also are threatened by lower reproduction rates, as climate change has pushed whales to areas where they are more likely to be harmed by human activity.

The European hamster is also affected by lower reproduction rates. Research shows that mothers give birth to only five or six pups a year, compared with more than 20 in the 20th century.

Experts have named the expansion of monoculture crops, industrial development, global warming and light pollution as possible causes for this decline. The IUCN said hamster has vanished from three-quarters of its original habitat in Alsace, France, at least a third of its range in Germany, and three-quarters of its habitat in Eastern Europe.

Dr Mikhail Rusin, an author of the new Red List assessment, said: “While conservation measures including hamster-friendly field management and reintroductions have slowed down the population decline in some areas, they have failed to reverse the trend.

“In addition to these measures, more research into the various possible drivers of the European hamster’s disappearance is urgently needed to save it from extinction.”

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