scholarly journals Incorporating explicit geospatial data shows more species at risk of extinction than the current Red List

2016 ◽  
Vol 2 (11) ◽  
pp. e1601367 ◽  
Author(s):  
Natalia Ocampo-Peñuela ◽  
Clinton N. Jenkins ◽  
Varsha Vijay ◽  
Binbin V. Li ◽  
Stuart L. Pimm

The IUCN (International Union for Conservation of Nature) Red List classifies species according to their risk of extinction, informing global to local conservation decisions. Unfortunately, important geospatial data do not explicitly or efficiently enter this process. Rapid growth in the availability of remotely sensed observations provides fine-scale data on elevation and increasingly sophisticated characterizations of land cover and its changes. These data readily show that species are likely not present within many areas within the overall envelopes of their distributions. Additionally, global databases on protected areas inform how extensively ranges are protected. We selected 586 endemic and threatened forest bird species from six of the world’s most biodiverse and threatened places (Atlantic Forest of Brazil, Central America, Western Andes of Colombia, Madagascar, Sumatra, and Southeast Asia). The Red List deems 18% of these species to be threatened (15 critically endangered, 29 endangered, and 64 vulnerable). Inevitably, after refining ranges by elevation and forest cover, ranges shrink. Do they do so consistently? For example, refined ranges of critically endangered species might reduce by (say) 50% but so might the ranges of endangered, vulnerable, and nonthreatened species. Critically, this is not the case. We find that 43% of species fall below the range threshold where comparable species are deemed threatened. Some 210 bird species belong in a higher-threat category than the current Red List placement, including 189 species that are currently deemed nonthreatened. Incorporating readily available spatial data substantially increases the numbers of species that should be considered at risk and alters priority areas for conservation.

2021 ◽  
Vol 5 (1) ◽  
pp. 47-50
Author(s):  
Sanjaya Raj Tamang ◽  
Amrit Kumar Poudel ◽  
Pratik Pandeya

Jerdon's baza Aviceda jerdoni is one of the least studied raptor species in Nepal which is listed as a Critically Endangered species in the ‘Nepal's Red List of Birds’. This paper presents the records of this species during opportunistic surveys, conducted in 2018/2019 from Ilam and Jhapa districts of eastern Nepal. A total of 18 individuals were sighted during the study period with the first record of nest of the species in Nepal. The sightings were made between 70 m, the lowest global known range to 1048 m from mean sea level, and the highest altitudinal record for Nepal. Hunting and unintentional prey poisoning were identified as major threats for species in the study site.


2019 ◽  
Vol 15 (12) ◽  
pp. 20190633 ◽  
Author(s):  
Melanie J. Monroe ◽  
Stuart H. M. Butchart ◽  
Arne O. Mooers ◽  
Folmer Bokma

Population decline is a process, yet estimates of current extinction rates often consider just the final step of that process by counting numbers of species lost in historical times. This neglects the increased extinction risk that affects a large proportion of species, and consequently underestimates the effective extinction rate. Here, we model observed trajectories through IUCN Red List extinction risk categories for all bird species globally over 28 years, and estimate an overall effective extinction rate of 2.17 × 10 −4 /species/year. This is six times higher than the rate of outright extinction since 1500, as a consequence of the large number of species whose status is deteriorating. We very conservatively estimate that global conservation efforts have reduced the effective extinction rate by 40%, but mostly through preventing critically endangered species from going extinct rather than by preventing species at low risk from moving into higher-risk categories. Our findings suggest that extinction risk in birds is accumulating much more than previously appreciated, but would be even greater without conservation efforts.


Oryx ◽  
2014 ◽  
Vol 49 (2) ◽  
pp. 312-320 ◽  
Author(s):  
G. Serra ◽  
J. A. Lindsell ◽  
L. Peske ◽  
J. Fritz ◽  
C. G. R. Bowden ◽  
...  

AbstractThe poor survival rate of immature northern bald ibisesGeronticus eremitaduring their first years spent outside the natal site is driving the last known wild colony of the migratory eastern population to extinction. To inform emergency conservation action for this Critically Endangered species we investigated the distribution range and behaviour of immature birds in passage and wintering areas, and the threats to which they are subject. We integrated recent satellite telemetry data with visual observations spanning 130 years. We assessed threats across the range, using satellite tracking and field surveys. Our results show that during the years before they return to the natal site in Syria, immature northern bald ibises reside away from the recently identified adult wintering site in the central Ethiopian highlands. They occur mainly across the northernmost 70–80% of the adult migratory range. Historical records suggest that immature birds spend more time along the western Arabian Peninsula now than in the past. This range shift exposes them for longer periods to threats, such as hunting and electrocution on power lines, which are absent from the wintering site used by adult birds. We suggest that other threatened and declining bird species sharing the same flyway probably face the same threats during migration.


1992 ◽  
Vol 2 (4) ◽  
pp. 303-325 ◽  
Author(s):  
Guy C. L. Dutson ◽  
Tom D. Evans ◽  
Thomas M. Brooks ◽  
Desiderio C. Asane ◽  
Robert J. Timmins ◽  
...  

SummaryFour weeks of fieldwork in the forests of Mindoro, Philippines, in 1991 has elucidated the status of the six bird species endemic to the island. Of these, Ducula mindorensis and Otus mindorensis are high-altitude species with restricted ranges and in need of active conservation in the medium term. Three of the four lowland species, Gallicolumba platenae, Centropus steerü and Penelopides mindorensis are under immediate threat of extinction through forest clearance and fragmentation, while the fourth, Dicaeum retrocinctum, s i not under immediate threat but is certainly at risk of extinction in the long term. Whilst deforestation is an enormous problem across the entire Philippines, Mindoro is the smallest centre of endemism with the least forest cover after the Sulu Islands. Extinctions are believed inevitable within the next 10 years unless concerted action is urgently taken. The Halcon range must receive attention in order to conserve the montane species, but more urgent by far is the preservation of lowland forest remnants, concentrating on central-west Mindoro.


Phytotaxa ◽  
2015 ◽  
Vol 222 (3) ◽  
pp. 211 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jacques Fournel ◽  
Claire Micheneau ◽  
Claudia Baider

Angraecum jeannineanum, a new species endemic to Mauritius, is described and its ecology and conservation status are discussed. Angraecum jeannineanum differs from A. cadetii, which is the morphologically most closely related species, as follows: (i) leaves are smaller, thicker and darker green, (ii) inflorescences and flowers are thinner and smaller, (iii) flowers are more greenish and non-fleshy. Angraecum jeannineanum belongs to Angraecum section Hadrangis, endemic to the Mascarenes, which also includes A. bracteosum, A. cadetii and A. striatum. An updated key for the section is provided. The species should be considered as Critically Endangered (CR) according to the Red List Criteria of the International Union for the Conservation of Nature (IUCN). This assessment is based on the highly restricted species distribution, small population size, and habitat sustaining degradation by invasive alien plants and animals.


Bothalia ◽  
2018 ◽  
Vol 48 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
James Wakelin ◽  
Carl G. Oellermann ◽  
Amy-Leigh Wilson ◽  
Colleen T. Downs ◽  
Trevor Hill

Background: Habitat loss and fragmentation continue to threaten the survival of many species. One such species is the Blue Swallow Hirundo atrocaerulea, a critically endangered grassland specialist bird species endemic to sub-Saharan Africa.Objectives: Past research has shown a serious decline in range and abundance of this species, predominantly because of habitat transformation and fragmentation.Method: The influence of land cover on Blue Swallow habitat and foraging home range, in both natural and transformed habitats, was investigated by radio tracking adult birds.Results: Results showed that tracked birds spent over 80% of their forage time over grasslands and wetland habitats, and preferentially used these ecotones as forage zones. This is likely owing to an increase in insect mass and abundance in these habitats and ecotones. There was reduced selection and avoidance of transformed habitats such as agricultural land, and this is a concern as transformed land comprised 71% of the home range with only 29% of grassland and wetland mosaic remaining for the Blue Swallows to breed and forage in, highlighting the importance of ecotones as a key habitat requirement. The results indicate that management plans for the conservation of Blue Swallows must consider protecting and conserving natural habitats and maintaining mosaic of grassland and wetland components to maximise ecotones within conserved areas.Conclusion: To this end, the stewardship programme spearheaded by local conservation agencies, which aims to formally conserve privately owned patches of untransformed grassland and other natural habitats, may have a strong impact on the long-term persistence of Blue Swallow populations.


2019 ◽  
Vol 14 (4) ◽  
pp. 577-589
Author(s):  
Julian Andrés Rojas-Morales ◽  
Mateo Marín-Martínez ◽  
Juan Camilo Zuluaga-Isaza

Dendrophidion boshelli is a poorly known and endemic snake species from the Middle Magdalena river valley in Colombia. It was described in 1944 based on a single specimen from the municipality of Caparrapí, department of Cundinamarca. Since the original description, only three additional specimens have been established. As part of the results of a herpetological monitoring in the Miel I Hydroelectric project, department of Caldas-Colombia, three additional specimens of D. boshelli were found in 2014–2015. The specimens represent the second known population of the species. We presented morphological data and pholidosis; description of the coloration in life, and a description of the habitat. Recently, D. boshelli was included as a Critically Endangered (CR) species in the Red Book of Reptiles of Colombia, and the IUCN Redlist. For this reason, to promote the local conservation of this and other endemic and threatened species in the Miel I area, we suggested some actions at the local level, such as establishing a conservation area with legal status in the Middle Manso River basin, which is a tributary of the Miel I Hydroelectric project.


2018 ◽  
Vol 29 (4) ◽  
pp. 515-526
Author(s):  
SOPHEA CHHIN ◽  
NICHOLAS J. SOUTER ◽  
DUSIT NGOPRASERT ◽  
STEPHEN J. BROWNE ◽  
TOMMASO SAVINI

SummaryThirty-two percent of bird species in South-East Asia are likely to become extinct by the end of this century. However, due to a lack of data this number may be an underestimate. The Chestnut-headed Partridge Arborophila cambodiana found in south-west Cambodia’s Cardamom Mountain range is a largely unknown potentially at-risk species. We used line transects and camera traps to survey A. cambodiana in four protected areas in the Cardamom Mountains to estimate population densities. We also assessed their current distribution range and broad scale habitat changes from 1996 to 2016. We found A. cambodiana in evergreen and semi-evergreen forest at a density of 1.23 calling males/km2, and at altitudes above 400 m and where the slope was between 11 and 43o. From 1996 to 2016 A. cambodiana’s potential habitat decreased by 11%, whilst the total evergreen forest cover in the Cardamom Mountains decreased by 20%. A. cambodiana has a very restricted range within which the habitat has been fragmented. Compounded by human disturbance and development activities that negatively affect the species, we suggest a revision of its IUCN Red List status from ‘Least Concern’ to ‘Near Threatened’ as it partially meets a range of threatened Red List species criteria.


2011 ◽  
Vol 60 (1) ◽  
pp. 63-78
Author(s):  
Oto Nakládal

Results of beetles (Coleoptera) survey of Zástudánčí National Nature Reserve (Central Moravia) 2008 - part 1 During the beetles survey of Zástudánčí National Nature Reserve (Central Moravia), 3585 specimens belonging to 857 species from 64 families were recorded. Faunistic data of 23 of them (Haliplidae, Dytiscidae, Carabidae, Hydrophilidae, Histeridae, Hydraenidae, Ptiliidae, Leiodidae, Scydmaenidae, Silphidae, Staphylinidae, Lucanidae, Geotrupidae, Scarabaeidae, Buprestidae, Cerophytidae, Eucnemidae, Throscidae, Elateridae, Drilidae, Lycidae, Lampyridae, and Cantharidae) are presented. Presenting data represent 2191 specimens belonging to 456 species. Critically endangered species (according to Red list of theatened species in the Czech Republic - Invertebrates) Negastrius pulchellus and N. sabulicola (Elateridae) and Cerophytum elateroides (Cerophytidae) were recorded.


2021 ◽  
Vol 9 ◽  
Author(s):  
Pedro F. Develey ◽  
Benjamin T. Phalan

Bird species extinctions in the Atlantic Forest of Brazil have been predicted since the early 1990s, but it has become accepted wisdom that none have yet been documented. We revisit this question in light of updates to the global Red List, and conclude that between five and seven bird species have likely been driven to extinction in the wild in this biome in recent decades, plus a further two species that occurred elsewhere in Brazil. These extinctions were the result of habitat loss in combination with other threats. A further nine Atlantic Forest bird species are Critically Endangered, plus six from elsewhere in Brazil. We review growing efforts to help these species avoid extinction using a range of tools including multi-stakeholder planning, advocacy, habitat protection and restoration on public and private land, focussed research, and intensive population management, drawing on examples from the most threatened Atlantic Forest endemics. Conservation organisations, local communities, government agencies, zoos, international funders, universities and others are working together to prevent these species from disappearing. While the political environment in Brazil has rarely been more hostile to conservation, there are also some positive trends. Rates of deforestation in the Atlantic Forest have fallen, forest restoration and recovery is increasing, and an unprecedented number of ordinary people are taking an interest in birds and participating in citizen science. With dedication, collaboration, sufficient resources, and a focus on evidence-informed solutions, we are hopeful that many of the Critically Endangered species can be pulled back from the brink of extinction.


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