A List of Critically Endangered Species

Critically endangered species are those that are facing an extremely high risk of extinction in the wild. The International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) classifies species into various categories based on their risk of extinction, and ‘Critically Endangered’ is one of the most severe categories. These species are typically experiencing rapid population declines, have very limited geographical ranges or have very small populations.

Teach Starter has created a set of 64 fact cards featuring animals that the Union for Conservation of Nature has categorised as critically endangered. Each card includes the following information about the critically endangered animal:

• Name
• Scientific name
• Location, including map reference
• Habitat
• Category
• Weight
• Population numbers
• Main threats
• Interesting facts

These cards download as either a full-colour or black-and-white PDF.

Multiple Uses for These Critically Endangered Species Task Cards

These versatile task cards can be used in multiple ways in your classroom to enhance your lessons on conservation and species survival. Here are a few ideas from our experienced teacher team:

1. Learning Stations – Set up different stations around the classroom, each featuring a different critically endangered animal. Students can rotate between stations, spending time reading the cards and engaging with related activities such as drawing the animal, writing facts or answering questions.
2. Research Projects – Assign each student or group of students a specific animal from the task cards. Students can use the information on the cards as a starting point to conduct further research. They can then present their findings to the class through posters, presentations or reports.
3. Conservation Campaigns – Have students create a conservation campaign based on the animal they learned about. This can include making posters, writing letters to local officials or creating a social media campaign to raise awareness about the species and the importance of conservation.

Download to Explore Critically Endangered Species

Click on the Download button to access your preferred file format.

We suggest printing the resource on thick card to enhance its durability and longevity.

More Biodiversity Teaching Resources for Your Classroom

Keen to explore more teacher-created resources to use when exploring biodiversity and conservation in your classroom? Click below to explore some suggestions from our teacher team!

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Human Impact on the Environment-Research Project

Uncover how humans positively and negatively impact the different biomes around the world with a guided research project.

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What Would Happen If...? Environmental Impact Task Cards

Predict and identify the effects of environmental change on plants and animals with a set of printable science task cards.

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Critically Endangered Species Map

Use this endangered species world map when exploring animals that have been placed on the Critically Endangered list.