PARIS, Sept 12, 2007 (AFP) - Gorillas, China's baiji dolphin, Asian vultures and Pacific corals on Wednesday joined the list of species hurtling to oblivion as the World Conservation Union (IUCN) warned of a fast-track 'global extinction crisis.'

In an update of its famous Red List of biodiversity, the Swiss-based IUCN said it had identified 41,415 species at threat.

Of this, 16,306 species -- equivalent to 39 percent of the total -- are in danger of extinction, 188 more than last year.

PARIS, Sept 12, 2007 (AFP) - Nearly 200 species have been added to the catalogue of Earth's imperilled wildlife, the World Conservation Union (IUCN) said on Wednesday, warning that nearly 40 percent of its biodiversity list was in danger of extinction.

Species that have moved towards oblivion include the Yangtze river dolphin, now officially described as 'critically endangered (possibly extinct)', as well as Africa's lowland gorillas, Asian vultures, Pacific corals and numerous North American reptiles.

PARIS, Aug 22, 2007 (AFP) - Sightings by marine scientists of dolphins in the north Atlantic's Bay of Biscay have dropped off by 80 percent compared to the same period in 2006, a wildlife conservation group said Wednesday.

The alarming drop in numbers of the Bay's three most common species of dolphin -- the striped, bottlenose and common -- can be attributed to one or both of two causes, Clive Martin, senior wildlife officer for the Biscay Dolphin Research Programme, told AFP.

GATESHEAD, England, Aug 2, 2007 (AFP) - Its broad wings outstretched, the red kite glides down to bring food to its nesting chicks, hidden behind a thick green curtain of foliage.

In this corner of northeastern England, it is a sight some thought they might never see.

Thanks to one of Britain's most successful conservation projects, the russet-bodied bird of prey is once more sweeping over the town of Gateshead, where kites are also breeding for the first time in more than 170 years.