UPSC Articles
IUCN updates the Red list of species
Part of: GS Prelims and GS- III – Environment
Context International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) has updated the Red list of species at the World Conservation Congress in Marseille, France held on September 4, 2021.
Key updates:
- The 30% of the species (38,543) that it assessed (138,374) face the threat of extinction.
- Some 902 species are officially extinct.
- Some 80 species are extinct in the wild, 8,404 are critically endangered, 14,647 are endangered, 15,492 are vulnerable and 8,127 are near threatened.
- Four of the seven most commercially fished tuna species have shown signs of recovery.
- The world’s largest living lizard, the Komodo dragon (Varanus komodoensis), has been moved from vulnerable to endangered.
- The species is endemic to Indonesia and occurs only in the World Heritage-listed Komodo National Park and neighbouring Flores.
- 37% of the world’s shark and ray species were threatened with extinction.
About IUCN Red List of Threatened Species
- It was established in 1964, by the IUCN and has evolved to become the world’s most comprehensive information source on the global extinction risk status of animal, fungus and plant species.
- The IUCN Red List is a critical indicator of the health of the world’s biodiversity.
- It uses a set of quantitative criteria to evaluate the extinction risk of thousands of species.
- It provides information about range, population size, habitat and ecology, use and/or trade, threats, and conservation actions that will help inform necessary conservation decisions.
- It is used by government agencies, wildlife departments, conservation-related NGOs, natural resource planners, educational organisations, students, and the business community.
- The Index is available for five groups: birds, mammals, amphibians, corals and cycads.
