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Sundarbans Mangrove Forest

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The Sundarbans Mangrove forest is located in the southwestern part of Bangladesh and the southeastern part of India. The forest is located in the delta region of the Meghna, Brahmaputra, and Padma river basins. The Sundarban forest is the largest mangrove forest in the world and is a hotspot for biodiversity. The Sundarbans also are a critical habitat for endangered species such as the Bengal tiger, river terrapin, and the Irrawaddy dolphin. ( World Wildlife Foundation ) The Sundarbans have an extreme level of species richness with more than 300 species of plants and over 500 species of animals, around 260 of those being species of birds. Out of this wide variety of species, there are a handful that are severely endangered and are only able to survive in the habitat of the Sundarbans Mangrove forest. The forest also provides protection to the coastline of Bangladesh and India, with the dense mangrove roots being able to stabilize the coastline ( National Geographic ). There are many lo
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Coastal California Redwoods

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  The California coastal redwoods (Sequoia sempervirens) are evergreen trees with a bright red-brown color and green pine needles, mostly located on the upper portion of the tree. These trees typically grow from 200 to 300 feet tall, with the tallest on record being 380 feet tall ( The Smithsonian ). These trees grow a large network of lateral roots, which support the tree's almost completely vertical growth. Currently, the population of coastal redwoods stands at around 5% of what their population used to be. At their height in the early 19th century, it is estimated that there were around 2 million redwoods. However, in 2024 that number has shrunk to around 150,000 redwoods ( Save The Redwoods ). Coastal redwoods play a critical role in their ecosystem and, if taken away, all other organisms in their habitat would be greatly affected and most likely suffer. This is because coastal redwoods provide a habitat to a multitude of species including insects, fungi, birds, and even mamma
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Yangtze Finless Porpoise

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  The Yangtze finless porpoise is a freshwater porpoise native to the Yangtze River in China. They are known for their high intelligence and extremely playful nature. Unlike many other porpoises, the Yangtze finless porpoise lacks a dorsal fin and has an extremely sleek appearance with a round head.  Unfortunately, only around 1000 Yangtze finless porpoises are left in the world ( WWF ). In the Yangtze River, these finless porpoises are apex predators and are crucial to maintaining the balance of aquatic life along the Yangtze River. They are a keystone species and if they are to go extinct then the balance of the food web would be disrupted and the ecosystem would start to collapse. There are a multitude of reasons that have led to the decline of the Yangtze finless porpoises. Some of the most prevalent reasons include habitat degradation, pollution, overfishing, and boat traffic. If Yangtze finless porpoises were to go extinct completely the balance of the entire Yangtze River ecosys
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  Hello, my name is Claudia Celsor, I am a rising high school senior taking this course through CCP and plan to major in architecture. My favorite animal is a seal, specifically the harp or spotted seal. I have always been interested in wildlife conservation and plan to go into architecture to help reduce the amount of emissions that are created when constructing a building.
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