There are many threats to wildlife in our modern world. While not all those threats are of human creation, the pressures we have created are taking a remarkable toll on many species. Habitat destruction (the clearing and changing of land for development or other uses) and habitat fragmentation (the dividing of land into sections separated by altered landscape) have a significant impact on wildlife, particularly for terrestrial species such as mammals, reptiles, and amphibians. For example, slow-moving turtles are especially vulnerable to road traffic, as their natural inclination when threatened is to withdraw into their shell, which makes them unable to avoid a collision and appear more like debris in the road.
This lesson is part of Certified Herpetological Guide. Enrollment is self-paced, with no deadline to finish (about 50 hours).
