'Vulnerable' to extinction: What giraffes are up against

The giraffe is now on the official list of animals and plants that could face extinction in the future.

The majestic animal, which is the tallest land animal in the world, is only found in Africa. In the past 30 years, its numbers have plummeted by nearly 40%, prompting scientists to add it to the list of threatened and endangered animals, according to the International Union for the Conservation of Nature (IUCN).

On Wednesday, the IUCN listed giraffes as "vulnerable of extinction."

And the road to preventing giraffes from becoming extinct will take a lot of effort from local governments and non-government organizations, according to David Banks, regional Director for the Africa Region with the Nature Conservancy. 

Giraffes face 'silent extinction' as population shrinks nearly 40%

Here's a look at what giraffes are up against:

Habitat loss and fragmentation 

The biggest problem that giraffes, and scores of other species face, is habitat loss, Banks said.

Areas that were once wild are increasingly being turned into farmland or used for mining and development, Banks said. Sprawl and development cause giraffes' habitat to be increasingly broken up or fragmented.

"Habitat and wild areas are being lost and the places that giraffes need to roam," Banks said. "They need a lot of space and that space in Africa is shrinking rapidly, so the homes for giraffes are being lost and that makes it really hard in the recovery process."

Colby Loucks, World Wildlife Fund’s senior director for wildlife conservation, said many of the threats to giraffes are common to all African wildlife.

Loucks said the decrease in giraffe populations is similar to an overall decline in populations of land animals across the board.

Loucks points to the World Wildlife Fund's Living Planet Report, which is released every two years, and shows a 38% decline in terrestrial populations or land animals over the last 40 years.

“I think we are going to see this trend continue unless we take steps to secure the habitat for wildlife such as lions, pangolins ... giraffes," he said. "This kind of story is being echoed in many other wildlife around Africa and around the world."

Africa's population boom 

Over the next thirty years, Africa's population is expected to expand rapidly. And more people, means more habitat loss and fragmentation.

"More than half of global population growth between now and 2050 is expected to occur in Africa," according to a 2015 United Nations report. "Of the additional 2.4 billion people projected to be added to the global population between 2015 and 2050, 1.3 billion will be added in Africa."

Banks says an increase in population could lead to an increase in poaching stemming from poverty and hunger, but there is hope if local governments start planning for the population boom now.

"If you can save some of the last big wild areas in Africa that are important to giraffes and elephants, the [human] population will eventually plateau and start to decline, so if we can save the big places now we can get through that bottle neck, and the future beyond that plateau is a very hopeful one for people and wildlife," Banks said.

Declining populations

There are nine subspecies of giraffe, according to the IUCN. The population has declined from around 163,000 in 1985 to just 97,562 in 2015, according to the organization.

"The populations of Giraffes are scattered and fragmented with different growth trajectories and threats, but the species trend reveals an overall large decline in numbers across their range in Africa," according to the IUCN red list entry.

According to the listing, three of the subspecies have increasing populations, five have decreasing populations and one is stable.

Silver lining

While the giraffe was added to the list, there are some signs that conservation efforts are working. Banks and Loucks both point to Giant Pandas, which were taken off the endangered list and listed as "vulnerable," following decades of conservation efforts.

"Pandas, grizzly bears, wolves -- all those are positive signs and they have things in common where people have dedicated resources to rebuilding the populations, and protecting habitat for their survival," Banks said. "Giraffes are an iconic species, and the national mammal of Tanzania and Africans really want to see these species continue because they are so important to Africa's economy.

Banks notes that many were taken by surprised when giraffes were put on the list, and he hopes it stands as a wakeup call for people in Africa and around the world.

Loucks said that Americans tend to romanticize Africa as a country rich with wildlife roaming over vast savannas and the desire to protect that space may help raise money for conservation efforts.

"I think a lot of people around the world treasure that, and want to make sure their kids have that opportunity to see that for themselves in person or via the web and giraffes use the same space as many of these other charismatic species," he said.

Follow Mary Bowerman on Twitter: @MaryBowerman