Another leap towards the Barometer of Life
10 November 2011 | International news release
The latest update of The IUCN Red List of Threatened
Species™ illustrates the efforts undertaken by IUCN (International Union
for Conservation of Nature) and its partners to expand the number and
diversity of species assessed, improving the quality of information in
order to obtain a better picture of the state of biodiversity. With now
more than 61,900 species reviewed, another big step forward has been
made toward developing the IUCN Red List into a true ‘Barometer of
Life,’ as called for by leading experts in the magazine Science in 2010.
“This update offers both good and bad news on the status of many species around the world,” says
Jane Smart, Director, IUCN Global Species Programme.
“We have the knowledge that conservation works if executed in a timely
manner, yet, without strong political will in combination with targeted
efforts and resources, the wonders of nature and the services it
provides can be lost forever.”
Despite the action of conservation programmes, 25% of mammals are at
risk of extinction. For example, the reassessments of several Rhinoceros
species show that the subspecies of the Black Rhino in western Africa,
the
Western Black Rhino (
Diceros bicornis longipes) has officially been declared Extinct. The subspecies of the White Rhino in central Africa, the Northern
White Rhino (
Ceratotherium simum cottoni) is currently teetering on the brink of extinction and has been listed as Possibly Extinct in the Wild. The
Javan Rhino (
Rhinoceros sondaicus) is also making its last stand,
as the subspecies Rhinoceros sondaicus annamiticus
is probably Extinct, following the poaching of what is thought to be
the last animal in Viet Nam in 2010. Although this is not the end of the
Javan Rhino, it does reduce the species to a single, tiny, declining
population on Java. A lack of political support and will power for
conservation efforts in many rhino habitats, international organized
crime groups targeting rhinos and increasing illegal demand for rhino
horns and commercial poaching are the main threats faced by rhinos.
“Human beings are stewards of the earth and we are responsible for protecting the species that share our environment,” says
Simon Stuart, Chair of the IUCN Species Survival Commission.
“In the case of both the Western Black Rhino and the Northern White
Rhino the situation could have had very different results if the
suggested conservation measures had been implemented. These measures
must be strengthened now, specifically managing habitats in order to
improve breeding performance, preventing other rhinos from fading into
extinction.”
Several conservation successes have already been achieved including the Southern
White Rhino subspecies (
Ceratotherium simum simum),
which has increased from a population of less than 100 at the end of
the 19th century, to an estimated wild population of over 20,000. The
Przewalski’s Horse (
Equus ferus) is another success story,
improving its status from Critically Endangered to Endangered.
Originally, it was listed as Extinct in the Wild in 1996, but thanks to a
captive breeding programme and a successful reintroduction programme,
the population is now estimated at more than 300.
Reptiles make up a significant component of biodiversity,
particularly in dryland habitats and on islands around the world. In
recent years, many more reptile species have been assessed including
most of those found in Madagascar. The current Red List reveals that an
alarming 40% of Madagascar’s terrestrial reptiles are threatened.
The 22
Madagascan species currently identified as Critically Endangered, which
include chameleons, geckoes, skinks and snakes, are now a conservation
challenge. This new information helps inform biodiversity planning and
allows for an evaluation of the protection that protected areas in
Madagascar offer reptiles. Encouragingly, there are new conservation
areas being designated in Madagascar that will help conserve a
significant proportion of Critically Endangered species, such as
Tarzan’s Chameleon (
Calumma tarzan), the Bizarre-nosed Chameleon (
Calumma hafahafa) and the Limbless Skink (
Paracontias fasika).
Because of their IUCN Red List status, species which have traditionally
been overlooked in conservation efforts, such as the Endangered geckos
Paroedura masobe and
Uroplatus pietschmanni will now be featured more prominently in future plans.
Plants are an essential resource for human well-being and are a
critical component for wildlife habitats, yet they are still
underrepresented on the IUCN Red List. Current work underway to increase
knowledge includes a review of all Conifers. The results so far uncover
some disturbing trends. The Chinese Water Fir (
Glyptostrobus pensilis),
for example, which was formerly widespread throughout China and Viet
Nam has moved from Endangered to Critically Endangered. The main cause
of decline is the loss of habitat to expanding intensive agriculture and
in China there appear to be no wild plants remaining. The largest group
of recently discovered Chinese Water Fir in LAO PDR was killed through
flooding for a newly constructed hydro scheme and very few, if any, of
the trees in Viet Nam produce viable seeds, meaning that this species is
rapidly moving towards becoming Extinct in the Wild. Another example,
Taxus contorta,
which is used to produce Taxol, a chemotherapy drug, has moved from
Vulnerable to Endangered due to over-exploitation for medicinal use and
over-collection for fuel wood and fodder. Many other tropical plant
species are also at risk. The majority of endemic flowering plants in
the granitic Seychelles islands have been assessed and current studies
show that of the 79 endemic species, 77% are at risk of extinction. Most
of these are new assessments but one species, the infamous Coco de Mer (
Lodoicea maldivica)
has been uplisted from Vulnerable to Endangered. Known for its supposed
aphrodisiac properties, the Coco de Mer faces threats from fires and
illegal harvesting of its kernels. Presently, all collection and sale of
its seed is highly regulated, but there is thought to be a significant
black market trade in the kernels.
The IUCN Red List keeps apace with scientific discoveries—for
example, until recently only one species of Manta Ray was known, but new
comparisons of field observations now reveal that there are actually
two species of ‘manta’: the Reef Manta Ray (
Manta alfredi) and the Giant Manta Ray (
Manta birostris),
both of which are now classified as Vulnerable. The Giant Manta Ray is
the largest living ray, which can grow to more than seven meters across.
Manta Ray products have a high value in international trade markets and
targeted fisheries hunt them for their valuable gill rakers used in
traditional Chinese medicine. Monitoring and regulation of the
exploitation and trade of both manta ray species is urgently needed, as
well as protection of key habitats.
The results of the assessments of all species of scombrids (tunas,
bonitos, mackerels and Spanish mackerels) and billfishes (swordfish and
marlins) were published recently in the magazine Science. The detailed
results now on the IUCN Red List show that the situation is particularly
serious for tunas.
Five of the eight species of tuna are in the
threatened or Near Threatened categories. These include: Southern
Bluefin (
Thunnus maccoyii), Critically Endangered; Atlantic Bluefin (
T. thynnus), Endangered; Bigeye (
T. obesus), Vulnerable; Yellowfin (
T. albacares), Near Threatened; and Albacore (
T. alalunga),
Near Threatened. This information will be invaluable in helping
governments make decisions which will safeguard the future of these
species, many of which are of extremely high economic value.
The assessment for the Sockeye Salmon (
Oncorhynchus nerka),
an iconic salmon species found in the North Pacific, was recently
reviewed. Whilst the species’ global status remains the same, Least
Concern, the assessment at the subpopulation scale shows elevated
threats to the species in its North America habitats, with 31% of the
assessed subpopulations threatened, underscoring the need for continued
conservation action.
Amphibians form a vital role in ecosystems, are indicators of
environmental health, and are literally ‘hopping pharmacies’ being used
in the search for new medicines. As one of the most threatened groups,
amphibians are closely monitored by IUCN and 26 recently discovered
Amphibians have been added to the IUCN Red List. The Blessed
Poison Frog
(
Ranitomeya benedicta) is currently listed as Vulnerable and the Summers’
Poison Frog (
Ranitomeya summersi) is Endangered. Both are threatened by habitat loss and harvesting for the international pet trade.
“The IUCN Red List is critical as an indicator of the health of
biodiversity, in identifying conservation needs and informing necessary
changes in policy and legislation to drive conservation forward,” says
Jean-Christophe Vié, Deputy Director of IUCN’s Global Species Programme.
“The world is full of marvelous species that are rapidly moving towards
becoming things of myth and legend if conservation efforts are not more
successfully implemented—if we do not act now, future generations may
not know what a Chinese Water Fir or a Bizarre-nosed Chameleon look
like.”
Quotes from IUCN Red List partner organizations
“Red list assessments are essential for guiding conservation action.
Botanic gardens around the world use the IUCN Red List to prioritize
which species to study, grow, conserve and restore in the wild,” says
Dr Sara Oldfield, Secretary General of Botanic Gardens Conservation International. “The latest update shows that we need to act urgently.”
“Protected areas are essential for conservation of Madagascar’s many reptiles and other threatened endemic species,” says
Russell Mittermeier, Conservation International President and Vice President of IUCN.
“Indeed without them, few of these unique creatures would survive. We
are still far from understanding the full diversity of Madagascar’s
fauna and flora since species new to science are being discovered every
year.”
"There are 380,000 species of plants named and described, with about
2,000 being added to the list every year. At Kew we estimate one in five
of these are likely to be under threat of extinction right now, before
we even factor in the impacts of climate change,” says
Dr Tim Entwisle, Director, Conservation, Living Collections and Estates, the Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew.
“The Red Listing process highlights the state of knowledge for some of
the critical groups like conifers and is the first step towards
understanding and dealing with one of the biggest problems we have to
face in the 21st Century - species extinction. For plants we are
calibrating the Barometer of Life; for their relatives, the fungi and
algae, we still have little sense of what is out there and what we are
losing."
“Each update of the IUCN Red List brings both encouraging and
discouraging news. First it demonstrates that concentrated conservation
actions, backed by solid natural and social science and local
engagement, will result in successful efforts to conserve threatened
species,” says
Thomas E. Lacher, Jr., Professor of Wildlife and Fisheries Sciences, Texas A&M University.
“However it also demonstrates that there is much still to accomplish,
with worsening conditions for many species, including those only
recently described.”
“It is clear to me that society now has the capability to reverse species declines,” says
Prof Jonathan Baillie, Director of Conservation Programmes at ZSL. “Fundamentally, it is our values that need to change if we are to avert the looming extinction crisis.”
“Expanding both the number and diversity of species assessed on the
IUCN Red List is imperative if we are to conserve the natural world.”
says
Richard Edwards, Chief Executive of Wildscreen,
who are working with the IUCN to help raise the public profile of the
world’s threatened species, through the power of wildlife and
environmental imagery. “We need to address our disconnection from the
natural world, and will only succeed in rescuing species from the brink
of extinction, if we successfully communicate their plight,
significance, value and importance.”
For more information or interviews please contact:
Maggie Roth, IUCN Media Relations, t +41 22 999 0115, m +41 79 104 2460, e
maggie.roth@iucn.org
Lynne Labanne, IUCN Species Programme Communications Officer, IUCN, t +41 22 999 0153, m +41 79 527 7221, e
lynne.labanne@iucn.org
Camellia Williams, IUCN Species Programme Communications, IUCN, t +41 22 999 0154, e
camellia.williams@iucn.org
