UPSC Articles
Nearly extinct northern white rhino
Part of: GS Prelims –Environment and GS-III- Conservation
In news :
- Researchers had created the third embryo the nearly extinct northern white rhino, a remarkable success in an ongoing global mission to keep the species from going extinct.
From Prelims Point of view
The northern white rhinoceros
- The northern white rhinoceros, is one of two subspecies of the white rhinoceros (the other being the southern white rhinoceros).
- Found in several countries in East and Central Africa south of the Sahara,
- It is a grazer in grasslands and savanna woodlands.
- According to the latest International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) assessment from 2011, the subspecies is considered “Critically Endangered (Possibly Extinct in the Wild).
The International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN)
- IUCN is a membership union uniquely composed of both government and civil society organisations.
- Created in 1948, it is the global authority on the status of the natural world and the measures needed to safeguard it.
- It is headquartered in Switzerland.
- The IUCN Red List of Threatened Species, is the world’s most comprehensive inventory of the global conservation status of plant and animal species.
- It uses a set of quantitative criteria to evaluate the extinction risk of species. These criteria are relevant to most species and all regions of the world.
- The IUCN Red List Categories define the extinction risk of species assessed. Nine categories extend from NE (Not Evaluated) to EX (Extinct). Critically Endangered (CR), Endangered (EN) and Vulnerable (VU) species are considered to be threatened with extinction.
- It is recognized as the most authoritative guide to the status of biological diversity.
- It is also a key indicator for the SDGs and Aichi Targets.
