Ranked: The Most Endangered Animals in the World

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June 29, 2024

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Visualized: The Most Endangered Animals in the World

This was originally posted on our Voronoi app. Download the app for free on iOS or Android and discover incredible data-driven charts from a variety of trusted sources.

In the last decade alone, more than 460 species have been declared extinct. Expanding human activity is largely to blame for this rapid biodiversity loss.

This graphic shows the most endangered animals by numbers found in the wild, per estimates from the World Wildlife Fund UK.

ℹ️ This endangered animals list does not include species that are functionally extinct: not seen in decades or whose populations are no longer viable. Ranked: Critically Endangered Animals

There are only about 75 Javan Rhinos left in the wild. Once found between the eastern edge of the Indian subcontinent all the way to Indonesia, their numbers have been steadily reduced by hunting and encoraching human settlements. Now they can be found only at the Ujung Kulon National Park in Java, Indonesia.

RankEndangered AnimalsEstimated Number
Left in the WildFound in 1🦏 Javan Rhino75Java, Indonesia 2🐆 Amur Leopard100China & Russia 3🐅 Sunda Island Tiger600Sumatra, Indonesia 4🦧 Tapanuli Orangutan800Sumatra, Indonesia 5🦍 Mountain Gorillas1,000DRC, Rwanda
& Uganda 6🐬 Yangtze Finless Porpoise1,000Yangtze River, China 7🦏 Black Rhinos5,630Kenya, Namibia,
South Africa
& Zimbabwe 8🦧 Sumatran Orangutan14,000Sumatra, Indonesia 9🐢 Hawksbill Turtles23,000Atlantic, Indian,
Pacific Oceans 10🐘 African Forest Elephant30,000*Congo Basin
Note: *Last estimate from 2013.

In fact, Indonesia’s rainforests, home to 17% of all birds, 12% of the world’s mammals, and 10% of all plants, have steadily decreased as the country’s population has surged.

As a result, the country has already seen many species go extinct. It also currently has four animals on the WWF’s 10 most endangered animals list.

Aside from the Javan Rhino, this includes: the Sunda Island Tiger, and the Tapanuli and Sumatran Orangutans.

The Sunda Island Tiger is the smallest of all tiger species. Its Javan and Balinese counterparts have already been driven to extinction by hunting and habitat loss.

The Tapanuli and Sumatran Orangutans are two of the three great ape species found in Asia.

Wildfire Area Burned by U.S. State in 2023

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June 8, 2024 Graphics/Design:

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Charted: Wildfire Area Burned by U.S. State in 2023

This was originally posted on our Voronoi app. Download the app for free on iOS or Android and discover incredible data-driven charts from a variety of trusted sources.

Wildfires have become a summer specter in North America, looming on the horizon as parts of the country warm and dry out.

We chart the total wildfire area burned in 2023 in the U.S., categorized by state, based on figures from the National Interagency Coordination Center.

Which U.S. States Saw the Most Area Burned by Wildfires?

Wildfires in California and Alaska together account for one-fourth of all land burned in the U.S. in 2023. Both states saw wildfire damage to more than 300,000 acres.

Zooming out, nearly half of the 2.7 million acres affected by wildfires in 2023 were concentrated in only five states.

RankStateAcres Burned (2023)% Of 2023
Acres Burned 1California332,72212% 2Alaska314,27612% 3New Mexico212,3788% 4Texas210,2648% 5Oregon202,0357% 6Arizona188,4837% 7Nebraska180,7337% 8Oklahoma162,4896% 9Washington151,3166% 10Montana123,1335% 11Florida99,6424% 12Idaho87,8013% 13North Carolina73,9533% 14Mississippi52,5082% 15West Virginia45,6792% 16Colorado41,9172% 17Louisiana22,1031% 18Alabama18,3351% 19Utah18,1091% 20New Jersey18,0331% 21Kansas17,9631% 22Tennessee15,3941% 23Virginia12,0850% 24Hawaii12,0590% 25Georgia10,3300% 26Pennsylvania9,6280% 27Missouri9,4990% 28Minnesota9,4160% 29Wyoming7,9340% 30Arkansas5,6590% 31Wisconsin4,8830% 32Maryland4,4860% 33Michigan4,2870% 34North Dakota4,1830% 35Ohio2,4690% 36Massachusetts1,4680% 37New York1,3830% 38Nevada1,3000% 39South Dakota9450% 40South Carolina5910% 41Rhode Island5820% 42Indiana5210% 43Maine3250% 44Connecticut2970% 45Illinois1110% 46Kentucky700% 47Vermont620% 48New Hampshire580% 49Iowa60% 50Delaware00% N/ATotal2,693,910N/A
Note: Figures rounded in the chart.

Due to hot, dry summers, Western states in particular see more wildfires. The New York Times notes that the American West has a Mediterranean climate where precipitation is concentrated around winter months. Thus the region’s hottest and driest months coincide.

As

Four Decades of U.S. Wildfires (1983–2024)

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June 3, 2024 Graphics/Design:

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Charted: Four Decades of U.S. Wildfires (1983–2024)

This was originally posted on our Voronoi app. Download the app for free on iOS or Android and discover incredible data-driven charts from a variety of trusted sources.

A complex interplay of factors are leading to North America’s long wildfire season: increasing summer temperatures, erratic precipitation patterns, changing land use, and ironically, fire suppression practices.

But what does the data say? We visualize the millions of acres burned by U.S. wildfires from 1983 to May 2024, per statistics from the National Interagency Fire Center.

2010 and 2015 Saw Record Land Burned by Wildfires

From glancing at the chart, it’s apparent that U.S. wildfires are burning significantly more acres on average in the 2010s than they did in the 1980s. Interestingly, the World Economic Forum points out that while the number of fires itself has fallen since 2005, the land burned has increased, indicating wildfire intensity has grown.

YearMillion Acres Burned 19831.3 19841.1 19852.9 19862.7 19872.4 19885.0 19891.8 19904.6 19913.0 19922.1 19931.8 19944.1 19951.8 19966.1 19972.9 19981.3 19995.7 20007.4 20013.6 20027.2 20034.0 2004*8.1 20058.7 20069.9 20079.3 20085.3 20095.9 20103.4 20118.7 20129.3 20134.3 20143.6 201510.1 20165.5 201710.0 20188.8 20194.7 202010.1 20217.1 20227.6 20232.7 2024**1.9
*Doesn’t include North Carolina data. **As of May 27, 2024.

In 2015, wildfires burned more than 10 million acres in the country, a first since these records began. Five years later saw a repeat, thanks to four Californian fires that together burned more than 2.3 million acres in the state.

For comparison, U.S. wildfires burned approximately 2.7 million acres in total in 2023, the lowest amount recorded since 1998. An unusually wet Californian summer helped

Ranked: Top 10 Deadliest Animals for Humans

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June 2, 2024 Graphics/Design:

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Ranked: Top 10 Deadliest Animals for Humans

This was originally posted on our Voronoi app. Download the app for free on iOS or Android and discover incredible data-driven charts from a variety of trusted sources.

While running into wild animals in a forest can seem like the worst situation for humans, there are plenty of other animals that are far deadlier than large predators.

We rank the top 10 deadliest animals by the number of people killed per year. Data for this visualization and article is sourced from BBC Science Focus.

Spreaders of Diseases are Deadliest for Humans

Mosquitoes, of course, are the reigning champions on the toll they take on humans. Every year they kill more than 700,000 people through a multitude of deadly diseases—dengue, yellow fever, and malaria.

By some estimates, mosquitoes are responsible for the deaths of half of all the humans that have ever lived.

RankAnimalHumans Killed Annually 1🦟 Mosquitoes*725,000 2👫 Humans**400,000 3🐍 Snakes138,000 4🐕 Dogs*59,000 5🐜 Assassin Bugs*10,000 6🦂 Scorpions3,300 7🐊 Crocodiles1,000 8🐘 Elephants600 9🦛 Hippos500 10🦁 Lions200
Note: *Spreads diseases. **Homicides only.

Meanwhile, humans are (almost) their own worst enemies. Every year, nearly 400,000 homicides take place, making humans the second-deadliest animal for other human beings. And this doesn’t account for all the human-caused accidents that result in fatalities.

At fourth place, dogs may be our best friends, but as a carrier of the deadly rabies virus, they end up fourth on the list of top 10 deadliest animals.

Rounding out the top five are assassin bugs, which spread the parasite that causes Chagas disease, a condition that can go untreated for years and can result in serious complications that make it life-threatening.

Large mammals, including lions, hippos, and elephants round out the top 10. Interestingly, bears kill around one person a year on average and wouldn’t be anywhere close to making this list of the deadliest animals.

The Rise in America’s Billion-Dollar Extreme Weather Disasters

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May 26, 2024 Graphics & Design The Rise in U.S. Billion-Dollar Extreme Weather Disasters

Since 1980, there have been 383 extreme weather or climate disasters where the damages reached at least $1 billion. In total, these disasters have cost more than $2.7 trillion.

Created in partnership with the National Public Utilities Council, this chart shows how these disasters have been increasing with each passing decade.

A Growing Concern

The U.S. National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) tracks each disaster and estimates the cost based on factors like physical damages and time losses such as business interruption. They adjust all costs by the Consumer Price Index to account for inflation.

DecadeTotal No. of EventsTotal Inflation-Adjusted Cost 1980s33$216B 1990s57$330B 2000s67$611B 2010s131$978B 2020s*95$568B

Both the number and cost of extreme weather disasters has grown over time. In fact, not even halfway through the 2020s the number of disasters is over 70% of those seen during the entire 2010s. 

Severe storms have been the most common, accounting for half of all billion-dollar disasters since 1980. In terms of costs, tropical cyclones have caused the lion’s share—more than 50% of the total. Hurricane Katrina, which made landfall in 2005, remains the most expensive single event with $199 billion in inflation-adjusted costs.

Electricity and Extreme Weather Disasters

With severe storms and other disasters rising, the electricity people rely on is significantly impacted. For instance, droughts have been associated with a decline in hydropower, which is an important source of U.S. renewable electricity generation. 

Disasters can also lead to significant costs for utility companies. Hawaii Electric faces $5 billion in potential damages claims for the 2023 wildfire, which is nearly eight times its insurance coverage. Lawsuits accuse the company of negligence in maintaining its infrastructure, such as failing to strengthen power poles to withstand high winds. 

Given that the utilities industry is facing the highest risk from extreme weather and climate disasters, some companies have begun to prepare for such events. This means taking steps like burying power lines, increasing insurance coverage, and upgrading infrastructure. 

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The Most Polluted Cities in the U.S.

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May 14, 2024 Graphics & Design The Most Polluted U.S. Cities in 2024

According to the World Health Organization, air pollution is responsible for 7 million deaths annually, and could cost the global economy between $18–25 trillion by 2060 in annual welfare costs, or roughly 4–6% of world GDP.

And with predictions that 7 in 10 people will make their homes in urban centers by mid-century, cities are fast becoming one of the frontlines in the global effort to clear the air.

In this visualization, we use 2024 data from the State of the Air report from the American Lung Association to show the most polluted cities in the United States.

What is Air Pollution?

Air pollution is a complex mixture of gases, particles, and liquid droplets and can have a variety of sources, including wildfires and cookstoves in rural areas, and road dust and diesel exhaust in cities. 

There are a few kinds of air pollution that are especially bad for human health, including ozone and carbon monoxide, but here we’re concerned with fine particulate matter that is smaller than 2.5 microns, or PM2.5 for short. 

The reason for the focus is because at that small size, particulate matter can penetrate the bloodstream and cause all manner of havoc, including cardiovascular disease, lung cancer, and chronic pulmonary disease. 

The American Lung Association has set an annual average guideline of 9 µg/m³ for PM2.5, however, the World Health Organization has set a much more stringent limit of 5 µg/m³.

The 21 Worst Polluted Cities in the U.S.

Here are the top 21 most polluted cities in the U.S., according to their annual average PM2.5 concentrations:

RankCity, StateAnnual average concentration, 2020-2022 (µg/m3) 1Bakersfield, CA18.8 2Visalia, CA18.4 3Fresno, CA17.5 4Eugene, OR14.7 5Bay Area, CA14.3 6Los Angeles, CA14.0 7Sacramento, CA13.8 8Medford, OR13.5 9Pheonix, AZ12.4 10Fairbanks, AK12.2 11Indianapolis, IN11.9 12Yakima, WA11.8 13Detroit, MI11.7 T14Chico, CA11.6 T14Spokane, WA11.6 15Houston, TX11.4 16El Centro, CA11.1 17Reno, NV11.0 18Pittsburgh, PA10.9 T19Kansas City, KS10.8 T19Las Vegas, NV10.8

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