You like animals, right?  I thought so.   Well, I’ve got good news and bad news on that front.   The good news is, animals still exist.   The bad news is, maybe not for very long.   A new report from the International Union for Conservation of Nature (I.U.C.N.) tells us that 1 in 4 mammals are threatened with extinction, and 1 in 3 amphibians are either threatened with extinction or already extinct.

The causes of the extinction threat are things we’ve heard before - habitat loss, hunting, and climate change.   And though there have been modest improvements here and there in revitalizing species, Jan Schipper, the director of global mammal assessment (actual job title) for the I.U.C.N. has this to say

Although 5 percent of mammals are recovering, what we observe are rates of habitat loss and hunting in Southeast Asia, Central Africa and Central and South America that are so serious that the overall rate of decline has steadily increased during the past decade, Mr. Schipper said.

So five percent up, 25 percent down.   Not exactly great progress. The New York Times, in reporting this story, does end its article on a high note, telling us that the African Elephant is doing well.   Great.   That’s one.   You can takepart by finding out how you can get involved with the International Union for Conservation of Nature, and see if we can’t get that 25 percent number a little lower.