The African forest elephants are a critically endangers species with only 100,000 left. Unlike their savanna cousins who can reproduce quickly, forest elephants are unable to recover from population decreases quite as fast. With lesser numbers still present in other African nations (Cameroon, Central African Republic, Equatorial Guinea), as well as Côte d'Ivoire, Liberia, and Ghana in west Africa, Gabon and the Republic of Congo are their final strongholds. African forest elephants feed on leaves, grasses, seeds, fruit, and tree bark. They can live in family groups of up to 20. Forest elephants are essential for spreading many different tree species' seeds, especially those of huge trees with a high carbon content because fruit makes up the majority of their diet. As a result, they are known as the "mega-gardener of the forest." 

The gorgeous, spotted fur of the Amur leopard is a primary target of poaching. Around the leopards' homes in the woodlands, there are farms and settlements. Because of this, the forests are very open, which makes poaching an issue for both the leopards and their major prey species, such roe deer, sika deer, and hare, which the people kill for both food and profit. Unfortunately now, there is only a bit more then 84 of these graceful felines.

Today, black rhinos are critically endangered due to rising demand for rhino horn from Asian consumers, particularly in Vietnam and China, who use it in traditional medicines. A recent increase in poaching in South Africa threatens to undo our conservation success, which peaked in 2014 with the poaching of 1,215 rhinos. Poaching numbers are gradually declining—594 were poached in 2019—but poaching persists, with numbers remaining unsustainable.  If this continus then the 5,500 Black rhinos that remain will be lost as well

Bornean orangutan numbers have decreased by more than 50% over the past 60 years, and the habitat for the species has shrunk by at least 55%. In comparison to the Sumatran orangutan, the Bornean orangutan has a wider visage, a shorter beard, and is a little bit darker in color. Since the middle of the 20th century, human actions have caused a rapid decline in orangutan population and distribution. These include hunting, illegal and often unsustainable logging, mining, and the conversion of forests to farmland. Up to 8,000 orangutans may have perished in the Kalimantan forest fires of 1997–1998. Each young orangutan sells for several hundred dollars in urban markets, where they are in great demand as pets.

Scientists were unable to do in-depth research on the distribution and abundance of the Cross River gorilla until the last ten years or so. Due to their fear of people and the challenging terrain they reside in, many of these gorillas have been impossible for scientists to directly count. Instead, they calculated that just 200 to 300 of these gorillas remain in the wild using indirect markers like nest counts and estimated range sizes. Although the size of the head and teeth are somewhat different, this western gorilla subspecies resembles the more common western lowland gorilla. The Cross River gorillas reside in an area where many humans have encroached on their space by chopping down forests for farming.

The name "hawksbill" refers to the turtle's short, pointed beak. Moreover, their shells have an eye-catching design of overlapping scales that create a serrated edge. They are extremely costly and frequently marketed as "tortoiseshell" in markets due to their vivid and intricately patterned shells. The living ancestors of a group of reptiles that have inhabited our oceans for the past 100 million years are sea turtles. They play a crucial role in maintaining the health of seagrass beds and coral reefs, which is a crucial component of marine ecosystems. The loss of habitat, excessive egg harvesting, fishery-related mortality, pollution, and coastal development pose threats to hawksbill sea turtles, much like they do to other sea turtle species. Yet, the wildlife trade poses the greatest threat to them.

On Java, Indonesia's Ujung Kulon National Park, there are just about 60 Javan rhinos left, making them the most endangered of the five rhino species. In the past, northeast India and Southeast Asia were home to Javan rhinoceros. 2010 saw the poaching of the final Javan rhinoceros in Vietnam. Javan rhinos had a distribution that stretched from northeast India and the Sunderbans to mainland Southeast Asia and the island of Sumatra until the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries. The extinction of the entire species is possible if the Java population disappears.

In the two decades since its discovery, little has been learned about the fascinating saola, also known as the Asian unicorn. Since there are none in captivity, the existence of this uncommon creature is already gravely threatened. Scientists have only discovered Saola four times in the wild. During a joint survey by the Vietnam Ministry of Forestry and WWF in May 1992, the saola was found in north-central Vietnam. The researchers recognized it was something remarkable when they came upon a skull in a hunter's house with extraordinarily long, straight horns. One of the most stunning zoological discoveries of the 20th century, it was the first huge mammal discovered in more than 50 years. Chainsaws are used to clear trees, making for agriculture, plantations and infrastructure, saola are being squeezed into smaller spaces. Conservationists are concerned that this is allowing hunters easy access to the once untouched forest of the saola and may reduce genetic diversity in the future.

Sumatran elephants contribute to the preservation of a healthy forest ecosystem by eating a range of plants and dispersing seeds everywhere they go. Several other endangered species, such as the Sumatran rhino, tiger, and orangutan, as well as countless other species that gain from a healthy elephant population, coexist with them in the same lush forest habitat. In 2012, the Sumatran elephant's status was changed from "Endangered" to "Critically Endangered" due to the population's rapid decline, which was mostly caused by habitat loss and conflict with humans and other animals. Within the Asian elephant's habitat, Sumatra has one of the greatest rates of deforestation, which has led to the local extinction of elephants in many locations. There are currently only 2,400–2,800 wild Sumatran elephants remaining.

The Sumatran orangutan inhabits the tropical jungles amid the trees almost exclusively. Adult males rarely travel on the ground, and females hardly ever do. It is believed that Sumatran orangutans and their Bornean cousins have closer social bonds. North Sumatra's orangutan habitat is disappearing at an alarming rate, mostly as a result of fires, the conversion of forests into oil palm plantations, and other forms of agricultural development. High-quality forests are necessary for this species to exist. Forest fires are becoming common, and many of them are started on purpose to make room for crops. Large swaths of orangutan habitat are destroyed by fires, and thousands of these sluggish apes are believed to have perished as a result of not being able to escape the flames.  Of the nine existing populations of Sumatran orangutans, only seven have prospects of long-term viability, each with an estimated 250 or more individuals. Only three populations contain more than 1,000 orangutans. 

Sumatran rhinoceroses are the smallest rhinoceroses on the planet and the only Asian rhinoceroses with two horns. They have long hair and are related to extinct woolly rhinos more closely than any other rhino species alive today. Calves are born with a dense covering that develops into a reddish-brown covering as they grow older, before becoming sparse, bristly, and almost black in older animals. Sumatran rhinos compete with Javan rhinos for the unenviable title of most threatened rhino species. While Sumatran rhinos outnumber Javan rhinos in terms of population size, they face greater threats from habitat loss and fragmentation. The remaining animals live in small, fragmented non-viable populations, and with few breeding opportunities, their population declines. Only two captive females have given birth in the last 15 years

Sunda tigers have thick black stripes on their orange coats that help to identify them. On the island of Sumatra, the last of the Sunda island tigers—numbering less than 400 now, according to estimates—are clinging on for dear life. This lovely animal may go extinct, much like its Javan and Balinese brethren, due to accelerating deforestation and excessive poaching.

The vaquita, the world's rarest marine mammal, is on the verge of extinction. The rapid decline of the vaquita in Mexico, where only about ten individuals remain, exemplifies the plight of cetaceans in general—whales, dolphins, and porpoises. This tiny porpoise wasn't discovered until 1958, and we're now on the verge of extinction, more than 50 years later. In Mexico's Gulf of California marine protected areas, vaquita are frequently caught and drowned in gillnets used by illegal fishing operations. The population has been steadily declining in recent years.

Due to their significantly smaller size, brown-grey coats, and reddish chests, western lowland gorillas are distinct from other gorilla subspecies. Moreover, they have smaller ears, larger skulls, and more noticeable forehead ridges. Despite their stature, western lowland gorillas are becoming less common. In the previous 20 to 25 years, poaching and sickness have caused gorilla populations to decline by more than 60%. It would take 75 years for the population of western lowland gorillas to repopulate, according to experts, even if all dangers were eliminated. Central Africa is home to both gorillas and the deadly Ebola virus. Massive chimpanzee and gorilla population declines have been brought on by Ebola in the primates' native habitat. According to some scientists, it has killed nearly one-third of the  wild gorilla population, mostly western lowland gorillas.

The Baiji dolphin and the Yangtze finless porpoise are two different species of dolphin that historically lived in the Yangtze River, which is the longest river in Asia. However in 2006, it was determined that the Baiji dolphin was effectively extinct. This was the first time in recorded history that human activities had killed off an entire dolphin species. Its near cousin, the Yangtze finless porpoise, is distinguished by its cheeky smile and gorilla-like intellect. For finless porpoises to survive, there must be an abundance of food. The extinction of the Baiji dolphin was mostly caused by the depletion of its food source. The reduction in the food supply for finless porpoises is primarily due to overfishing, but other causes include pollution and ship movement.