page_title: Wildlife of Brazil
section_title: Threats to wildlife
hierarchical_section_title: Wildlife of Brazil / Threats to wildlife
context_page_description: The wildlife of Brazil comprises all naturally occurring animals, plants, and fungi in the South American country. Home to 60% of the Amazon Rainforest, which accounts for approximately one-tenth of all
  species in the world, Brazil is considered to have the greatest biodiversity of any country on the planet. It has the most known species of plants, freshwater fish, and mammals. It also ranks third on the list of countries with the most bird species and second with the most reptile species. The number of fungal species is unknown but is large. Approximately two-thirds of all species worldwide are found in tropical areas, often coinciding with developing countries such as Brazil. Brazil is second only to Indonesia as the country with the most endemic species.
context_section_description: More than one-fifth of the Amazon Rainforest in Brazil has been completely destroyed, and more than 70 mammals are endangered. The threat of extinction comes from several sources, including deforestation and poaching. Extinction is even more problematic in the Atlantic Forest, where nearly 93% of the forest has been cleared. Of the 202 endangered animals in Brazil, 171 are in the Atlantic Forest.
  Currently, 15.8 million acres of tropical ecosystem have been completely eliminated to farm sugarcane for ethanol production.  And additional 4.5 million acres is planned to be planted during the next four years.  70-85% of Brazil's transportation energy is derived from ethanol, or various mixtures of ethanol and petroleum-based fuels.  Only about 15-20% comes from imported petroleum.  This massive national biofuel program has been devastating to tropical wildlife diversity, and to the global climate/environment.  Article 1
  With its acquisition of BioEnergia, BP (British Petroleum) is planning to further expand Brazil's ethanol program. BP - BioEnergia
caption: "At bottom right and bottom center, deforestation and cultivation are evident by the regular, rectangular shapes that delineate plots."[24]
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