Endangered Animal Species in Portugal

COMENIUS PROJECT - NO HUMAN NO CRY: No More Destruction of the

Environment

Endangered Species

Common name: Cachalot

Scientific name: Physeter macrocephalus

Distribution/Location: Sperm Whales can be found in temperate and tropical oceans

and seas all over the world avoiding, therefore, cold waters. Coastal areas with

significant Sperm Whale populations include the Azores (Portuguese archipelago) and

the Caribbean island of Dominica.

Size: Mature males can reach between 18 to 20 meters and adult females about 12

meters.

Weight: The average weight of a male is about 45/50 tons and the female 20 tons.

Diet: The species feeds on squid, octopus and several types of fish.

Main characteristics: The Sperm Whale is the largest toothed whale. It is easily

recognized by its large rectangular head which corresponds to 1/3 of its length. It has a

wrinkled skin with a uniform dark grey colour.

Threats: The Sperm Whale is an endangered species due to the heavy hunting for their

spermaceti, blubber, and ambergris used in the manufacture of soap, candles, in

perfume and cosmetic industry and machine oil. Another threatening factor is the drift

nets, in which whales are stranded.

Since 1986, there has been a moratorium on hunting them.

Endangered Species

Common name: Iberian Wolf

Scientific name: Canis lupus signatu

Distribution/Location: The Iberian Wolf inhabits exclusively the Iberian Peninsula,

namely the forest and plains of northern Portugal and northwestern Spain.

Size: The Iberian Wolf is of medium size. It measures between 140 e 155 cm length.

Weight: Males can weigh between 30 and 40 Kg and females between 25 e 35 Kg.

Diet: The Iberian Wolf feeds on almost every animal of its habitat, adapting itself

perfectly to the environment it lives in.

Main characteristics: It has a thick coat, which helps the species to adapt to cold

environments, although it can fit in any type of climate. Its scientific name comes from

the white marks on the upper lips, the dark marks on the tail and a pair of dark marks

in its front legs. It usually hunts in groups.

Threats: The Iberian Wolf is in extinction due to its direct chase and to the

disappearance of its wild preys. They attack domestic animals when they cannot feed

on wild preys.

Endangered Species

Common name: European Otter

Scientific name: Lutra lutra.

Distribution/Location: This species can be found in several European regions,

inhabiting the Portuguese western coast.

Size: The mature European Otter is about 90 / 120 cm long. The female is shorter than

the male.

Weigh: This semi-aquatic mammal can weigh between 5 to 15 Kg.

Diet: The species feeds on mainly fish and crustaceans (when they are in the aquatic

environment) and birds and small rodents.

Main characteristics: The species is easily known for its long tail and short limbs. Its

fur is brownish becoming progressively lighter in the ventral zone.

Threats: The main threats to this species are the destruction of the aquatic habitats

and poaching. Accidental deaths such as drowning in fishing nets are also common.

Endangered Species

Common name: Atlantic cod

Scientific name: Gadus morhua (Linnaeus, 1758)

Distribution/Location: The Atlantic Cod inhabits waters up to 200 m deep, forming

large aggregations which spread out at sunrise and at sunset to look for food.

Size: It can grow to 2 meters in length.

Weigh: The Atlantic Cod can weigh 96 Kg.

Main characteristics: This species can be recognized by its brown to green colour with

spots on the dorsal side. During the reproductive season, males court females by

displaying their fins, accompanied by snoring sounds.

Threats: The cod fishery is one of the oldest and most important of the Atlantic.

However, due to overfishing this species is considered vulnerable. For this reason it is

subject to strict regulations aiming at securing its future.

Endangered Species

Common name: Golden Eagle

Scientific name: Aquila chrysaetos (Linnaeus, 1758)

Distribution/Location: In Portugal the Golden Eagle nests in the National Park of

Peneda-Gerês and along the international river banks of Tagus and Douro and its

streams.

Diet: It feeds on tarantulas, bats, birds, rabbits, moles, reptiles, hares and other

animals.

Size: It is between 66 to 100 cm long and their wings can reach 150 to 250 cm length.

Like all birds of prey, females are slightly bigger than females.

Weigh: Its weighs between 2,5 to 12 Kg.

Main Characteristics: This species is known by its dark brown, with lighter golden-

brown plumage on its head and neck. Its agility and speed allows it to capture large

and heavy preys.

Threats: Available habitat and food are the main limiting factors nowadays. Collisions

with power lines have become an increasingly significant cause of mortality.

Endangered Species

.

Common name: Azores wood pigeon

Scientific name: Columba palumbus azorica

Distribution/Location: It can be found in all kinds of woods, agricultural land, parks

and gardens. It is an endemic subspecies of the Common Wood Pigeon located in the Atlantic

Azores islands of Portugal.

Diet: The wood pigeon belongs to the granívora breed, feeding on various seeds and

grains, like cereals, acorns, pine nuts and buds of plants and bushes.

Size: 42 to 42 cm.

Weight: 450 to 520 g.

Main Characteristics: The Azores wood pigeon is pretty much alike to the mainland

wood pigeon. Its feathers are dark grey on top and pink on the bottom. It has got a

short thin orange to yellow bill.

Threats: The major causes for its population decline are habitat loss from forest

clearance, hunting and nest predation by other species. However, this species also has

a low rate of reproduction.

Endangered Species

Common name: Sado Bottlenose dolphin

Scientific name: Tursiops truncatus

Size: Males are larger than females. Mature Bottlenose Dolphins can be 3,90 cm long.

Weight: Males are also heavier than females. They are about 275 kg.

Distribution/Location: This species can be found in warm and temperate seas

worldwide. It also lives close to the shores and in Portugal it inhabits the waters of the

river Sado.

Diet: It feeds on small fish, catfish, mullet, eels, cephalopods and sometimes small

prawns.

Main Characteristics: Inshore and offshore Bottlenose Dolphins live in groups of 10-25

individuals. They can dive to 300 m deep and stay for about 15 minutes under water to

look for food. They have got a grey colour and a nose that looks like a bottle. Their

interaction with humans is subject of investigation.

Threats: This species is near extinction because of the polluted waters of the Sado

Estuary, caused by the sewage dumping.

Endangered Species

Common name: Insectivorous bat

Scientific name: Nyctalus noctula

Distribution/Location: The bat fits in almost any environment, except for the poles.

Size: It has several shapes and sizes which vary from 5 cm to 2 m.

Main Characteristics: It is the only mammal that can fly. The Insectivorous Bat

represents a quarter of the mammals of the world (about 1116 species).

Bats see well, but they also use echolocation, which is a system that helps them fly

and find their prey in the dark. They emit high-frequency sounds and analyse the

echoes reflected by the obstacles around them. They are so sensitive they can detect

and capture small insects while flying.

Threats: In Portugal there are at least 20 protected species of bats, which are often

trodden by wind towers. However, efforts have been made to protect this species,

indispensable for the balance of some ecosystems.

Endangered Species

Common name: Iberian Lynx

Scientific name: Lynx pardinus

Distribution/Location: The Iberian lynx selects habitats with Mediterranean

characteristics, such as woods and dense bushes. It inhabits mainly the southern

Iberian Peninsula.

Weight: The average weight of a male adult is about 12 kg while females reach about

9 Kg.

Diet: Its diet is based on the wild rabbit, which represents between 75-95% of the

biomass of its food spectrum. In times and regions of lower abundance, it feeds on

other preys such as rodents, deer, ducks and hares.

Main Characteristics: The Iberian lynx has got a reddish-brown coat covered with

black spots, tiny dots or stripes. It resembles other species of lynx, with a short tail, tufted

ears and a ruff of fur beneath the chin. It can live for 16 years. Females have their

breeding season mainly between January and February. The typical gestation period is

about two months. Cubs normally stay with their mother up to 8 months.

.

Threats: The Iberian Lynx is one of the most endangered feline. Its critical status is

mainly due to habitat loss, poisoning, road casualties, and poaching.

Endangered Species

Scientific name: Ciconia nigra

Common name: Black Stork

Distribution/Location: It inhabits lakes, rivers or wetlands surrounded by dense

forests. In Portugal the Black Stork can only be found in the innermost, inhospitable

and isolated regions. The international banks of the rivers Douro, Tagus and Guadiana

offer special conditions for nesting sites, mainly due to low human disturbance.

Size: This stork measures about 1m high, with 1.8 m length of one wing to another.

Weight: It weighs almost 3kg.

Diet: These birds feed mainly on fish.

Main Characteristics: The Black Stork is all black except for the white chest and the red

beak and legs. The mating season occurs in mid-March, soon after the migration. The

female can produce three to five eggs. The incubation period lasts from thirty-eight to

forty days and it is done by both parents. In the middle of the second month after the

hatching, the parents abandon the chicks. The Black Stork reaches adulthood at the

age of three.