LONDON, July 13 (UPI) -- Nearly 25 percent of the world's mammals are already at high risk for extinction, say researchers with The World Conservation Union.
The research, published Tuesday in the open-access journal PLoS Biology, reported many of the world's carnivores are at greater riskof extinction than previously thought.
A model based on the analysis of the mammalian order Carnivora could help focus conservation efforts by predicting which species face greatest risk. the researchers said.
The model predicts risk based on the density of local human populations, combined with various traits of different species of carnivores -- such as their population density, gestation length and habitat range.
Using the model and projected human population growth, the researchers predict many carnivore species -- most in Africa where the human population is growing faster than the global average - will be on the list of endangered species by 2030.
