The 2009 update of the IUCN Red List of Threatened Species shows that 17,291 species out of the 47,677 assessed species are threatened with extinction, the International Union for the Conservation of Nature said today.

Threatened with extinction are:

• 21 percent of all known mammals
• 30 percent of all known amphibians
• 12 percent of all known birds
• 28 percent of assessed reptiles
• 37 percent of assessed freshwater fishes
• 70 percent of assessed plants
• 35 percent of assessed invertebrates

"The scientific evidence of a serious extinction crisis is mounting," said Jane Smart, director of IUCN's Biodiversity Conservation Group, in a news statement accompanying the 2009 Red List.

This gorgeted puffleg (Eriocnemis isabellae) entered the IUCN Red List in 2009 as Critically Endangered. The species is known from southwest Colombia, where it occurs in a tiny area of the Serraníadel Pinche. The global population is not known but is presumably very small given that the area of suitable habitat available for this species is thought to be less than 2,500 acres, and it is suspected to be decreasing as elfin forest habitat is converted for agriculture and illegal coca plantations. The primary threat to this bird is the shifting of the agricultural border towards remaining primary forests, causing a loss of vegetation cover, contamination of watersheds and soil degradation. Illegal coca cultivation is a major threat due to the lack of governmental presence, with 8.3 percent of potentially suitable habitat reportedly damaged annually by coca cultivation.

Photo © Alex Cortes. Photo supplied by BirdLife International.

"It's time for governments to start getting serious about saving species and make sure it's high on their agendas for next year, as we're rapidly running out of time."

"January sees the launch of the International Year of Biodiversity," Jane Smart added in today's statement. "The latest analysis of the IUCN Red List shows the 2010 target to reduce biodiversity loss will not be met.

"It's time for governments to start getting serious about saving species and make sure it's high on their agendas for next year, as we're rapidly running out of time."

Tip of the iceberg

"This year's IUCN Red List makes for sobering reading," said Craig Hilton-Taylor, manager of the IUCN Red List Unit. "These results are just the tip of the iceberg. We have only managed to assess 47,663 species so far; there are many more millions out there which could be under serious threat. We do, however, know from experience that conservation action works so let's not wait until it's too late and start saving our species now."

Rabb's fringe-limbed treefrog (Ecnomiohyla rabborum) entered the IUCN Red List as Critically Endangered in 2009.

It is known only from central Panama, where it occurs in tropical forest canopy. In 2006, the chytrid fungus was reported in the area where this species is known to occur. Since then, only one individual has been heard calling. There is also some ongoing forest clearing within the species' range for the development of luxury holiday homes, although this potential threat has not yet reached critical levels. This treefrog is one of several species collected for captive breeding efforts, however so far attempts at captive breeding have not produced positive results.

Photo © Brad Wilson

Switzerland-based IUCN is a global environment organization that works on biodiversity, climate change, energy, human livelihoods and greening the world economy by supporting research, managing field projects, and bringing governments, NGOs, the United Nations and corporations together to develop policy, laws and best practice.

The IUCN Red List of Threatened Species is a comprehensive information source on the global conservation status of plant and animal species. It is based on an objective system for assessing the risk of extinction of a species should no conservation action be taken. Species are assigned to one of eight categories of threat based on whether they meet criteria linked to population trend, population size and structure and geographic range. Species listed as Critically Endangered, Endangered or Vulnerable are collectively described as "Threatened."

The Popondetta blue-eye (Pseudomugil connieae) occurs in three river systems within Papua New Guinea. Human population growth is the main threat to this fish, with increased urbanization and agriculture, which are potential sources of water pollution, resulting in reduced habitat quality within these river systems. This fish is also a much sought after species in the aquarium trade, which poses another potential threat to the population. The species entered the IUCN Red List as Vulnerable in 2009.

Photo © Gerald Allen

Highlights from today's IUCN statement:

Mammals

Of the world's 5,490 mammals, 79 are Extinct or Extinct in the Wild, with 188 Critically Endangered, 449 Endangered and 505 Vulnerable.

The eastern voalavo (Voalavo antsahabensis) appears on the IUCN Red List for the first time in the Endangered category. This rodent, endemic to Madagascar, is confined to montane tropical forest and is under threat from slash-and-burn farming.

Reptiles

There are now 1,677 reptiles on the IUCN Red List, with 293 added this year. In total, 469 are threatened with extinction and 22 are already Extinct or Extinct in the Wild.

The 165 endemic Philippine species new to the IUCN Red List include the Panay monitor lizard (Varanus mabitang), which is Endangered. This highly-specialized monitor lizard is threatened by habitat loss due to agriculture and logging and is hunted by humans for food.

The rare Panay monitor lizard occurs in large trees in primary lowland tropical moist forest. The species is a highly specialized frugivorous monitor lizard (it feeds on fruit). The loss and degradation of lowland forest habitat through conversion of land for agricultural use and logging operations is a threat to this lizard. The species is also hunted by humans for food and overhunting is a serious threat to the remaining population.

Photo © Tim Laman 

The sail-fin water lizard (Hydrosaurus pustulatus) enters in the Vulnerable category and is also threatened by habitat loss. Hatchlings are heavily collected both for the pet trade and for local consumption.

"The world's reptiles are undoubtedly suffering, but the picture may be much worse than it currently looks," says Simon Stuart, chair of IUCN's Species Survival Commission. "We need an assessment of all reptiles to understand the severity of the situation, but we don't have the U.S.$2-3 million to carry it out."

Amphibians

The IUCN Red List shows that 1,895 of the planet's 6,285 amphibians are in danger of extinction, making them the most threatened group of species known to date. Of these, 39 are already Extinct or Extinct in the Wild, 484 are Critically Endangered, 754 are Endangered and 657 are Vulnerable.

The Kihansi spray toad (Nectophrynoides asperginis) was formally declared Extinct in the Wild in the IUCN Red List in 2009. This amphibian was known only from the Kihansi Falls in Tanzania, where it was formerly abundant. However, after 2003 the population dramatically declined, and in January 2004 only three toads could be found, with just two males heard calling. There have been no records since then, despite surveys. The decline of this species was caused by the construction of a dam upstream of the falls in 2000 for the Lower Kihansi Hydropower Project. This removed 90 percent of the water flow, which hugely reduced the volume of spray and altered the vegetation. In 2003, the fungal disease chytridiomycosis was confirmed in dead Kihansi spray toads, and this disease was probably responsible for the final population crash.

Photo © Tim Herman

The fungus also affected the Rabb's fringe-limbed treefrog, which enters the Red List as Critically Endangered. (See photo and description higher on this page.)

Plants

Of the 12,151 plants on the IUCN Red List, 8,500 are threatened with extinction, with 114 already Extinct or Extinct in the Wild.

The Queen of the Andes (Puya raimondii) has been reassessed and remains in the Endangered category. Found in the Andes of Peru and Bolivia, it only produces seeds once in 80 years before dying. Climate change may already be impairing its ability to flower and cattle roam freely among many colonies, trampling or eating young plants. Other threats include young plants being eaten or trampled by livestock, fires, and removal of pith from trunks.

Photo © Antonio Lambe (Acción Ambiental)

 

Toussaintia patriciae is an Endangered shrub species native to Tanzania. It is known from less than 30 trees in the Udzwunga Mountains National Park and West Kilombero Nature Reserve, and occurs in very low numbers where found, though it is cryptic when not flowering and may be more common that is currently known. It is considered relatively secure at present, as the population is present in protected areas and occurs above the altitude to which firewood collectors are allowed to operate. However, this species could become more threatened very quickly if the impacts of human activities, especially wood collection, were to increase.

Photo © Quentin Luke

 

Invertebrates

There are now 7,615 invertebrates on the IUCN Red List this year, 2,639 of which are threatened with extinction. Scientists added 1,360 dragonflies and damselflies, bringing the total to 1,989, of which 261 are threatened.

The giant jewel (Chlorocypha centripunctata) is known from the Obudu Plateau, Nigeria and from Mount Kupe and the Bakossi Mountains Cameroon. The species occurs in and around rain forest streams above 700-meter altitude. Habitat loss through selective logging and forest destruction for agricultural expansion is the main threat to this species. The species entered the IUCN Red List as Vulnerable in 2009.

 

Photo © Kai Schütte

 

Molluscs

Scientists also added 94 molluscs, bringing the total number assessed to 2,306, of which 1,036 are threatened.

All seven freshwater snails from Lake Dianchi in Yunnan Province, China, are new to the IUCN Red List and all are threatened. These join 13 freshwater fishes from the same area, 12 of which are threatened. The main threats are pollution, introduced fish species and overharvesting.

Freshwater Fishes

There are now 3,120 freshwater fishes on the IUCN Red List, up 510 species from last year. Although there is still a long way to go before the status all the world's freshwater fishes is known, 1,147 of those assessed so far are threatened with extinction.

The giant pangasius (Pangasius sanitwongsei) is a Critically Endangered fish found in the Chao Phraya and Mekong river basins in Cambodia, China, Laos, Thailand and Vietnam. It inhabits the bottom and midwaters of large rivers surrounded by rain forest, and uses deep pools as refuges in the dry season. Overfishing for food, and to a lesser extent the aquarium trade, is the principle threat facing this species. Local fisherman have reported dramatic declines in sightings and catch, and a population decline of more than 99 percent over the past 30-45 years is inferred.

Photo © Chavalit Vidthayanon

The brown mudfish (Neochanna apoda), found only in New Zealand, has been moved from Near Threatened to Vulnerable as it has disappeared from many areas in its range. Approximately 85-90 percent of New Zealand's wetlands have been lost or degraded through drainage schemes, irrigation and land development.

The status of the Australian grayling (Prototroctes maraena), a freshwater fish, has improved as a result of conservation efforts. Now classed as Near Threatened as opposed to Vulnerable, the population has recovered thanks to fish ladders which have been constructed over dams to allow migration, enhanced riverside vegetation and the education of fishermen, who now face heavy penalties if found with this species

"Creatures living in freshwater have long been neglected."

"Creatures living in freshwater have long been neglected. This year we have again added a large number of them to the IUCN Red List and are confirming the high levels of threat to many freshwater animals and plants. This reflects the state of our precious water resources. There is now an urgency to pursue our effort but most importantly to start using this information to move towards a wise use of water resources," said Jean-Christophe Vié, deputy head of the IUCN Species Programme.

Downlisted bird species

The Mauritius fody (Foudia rubra) was downlisted from Critically Endangered to Endangered because its extremely small population has been stable since the early 1990s and is now increasing following an island translocation. The species is restricted to southwest Mauritius, and suffered rapid population declines between 1975 and 1993. However, since 1993 the population has been stable, and there is evidence that dispersing juveniles are now setting up new breeding territories, expanding the range of the species. Historically, clearance of upland forest, particularly for plantations in the 1970s, catastrophically affected this species. Introduced predators (e.g. black rat (Rattus rattus) and crab-eating macaque (Macaca fascicularis)) caused almost total breeding failure in most areas, and nest predation is still the major threat to the species.

Photo © Lucy Garrett (Rare Birds Yearbook). Photo supplied by BirdLife International.

Global figures for 2009 IUCN Red List of Threatened Species:
Total species assessed = 47,677
Total Extinct or Extinct in the Wild = 875 (2%) [Extinct = 809; Extinct in the Wild = 66].
Total threatened = 17,291 (36%) [Critically Endangered = 3,325; Endangered = 4,891; Vulnerable = 9,075].
Total Near Threatened = 3,650 (8%).
Total Lower Risk/conservation dependent = 281 (<1%) [this is an old category that is gradually being phased out of the Red List]
Total Data Deficient = 6,557 (14%)
Total Least Concern = 19,023 (40%)

Global figures for 2008 IUCN Red List of Threatened Species:
Total assessed = 44,838
Total Extinct or Extinct in the Wild = 869 (2%) [Extinct = 804 ; Extinct in the Wild = 65]
Total threatened = 16,928 (38%) [Critically Endangered = 3,246; Endangered = 4,770; Vulnerable = 8,912]
Total Near Threatened = 3,513 (8%)
Total Lower Risk/conservation dependent = 283 (<1%) [this is an old category that is gradually being phased out of the Red List]
Total Data Deficient = 5,570 (12%)
Total Least Concern = 17,675 (39%)

Not all species on the IUCN Red List are threatened. There are now more species on the IUCN Red List. This means that the overall percentage of threatened species has gone down by two percent. This is not because the status of the world's biodiversity is improving, IUCN noted, but because we have assessed more species.

"In the past, Red List assessments often focused on species that were already thought to be threatened, but as the Red List grows to include more complete assessments across entire groups, we are beginning to have a better idea of the relative proportion of species which are threatened against those which are not threatened."

This satellite image of Novaya Zemlya, an archipelago in Russia's Arctic, launches a new ad hoc series on this blog I will call Earth from Space.

Look out for regular updates for unusual, beautiful, educational, newsworthy images released by public and commercial space agencies. I will be looking particularly for images that highlight the special geographic features of our planet.

Today's NASA Earth Observatory image of Novaya Zemlya gives us an opportunity to view not only a magnificent view but also the terrain that Russia recently proclaimed as a national park, a 3.7 million-acre zone that includes the northern part of Novaya Zemlya and some adjacent marine areas. The park will provide a much-needed sanctuary for polar bears and other Arctic species.

Novaya Zemlya consists of two major islands, Severny in the north and Yuzhny in the south, separated by a narrow strait, Matochkin Shar.

An extension of the Ural Mountains, this mountainous archipelago has an average altitude of roughly 1,000 meters (3,280 feet) above sea level, and glaciers cover much of the northern island, according to the original NASA caption.

In the latter half of the twentieth century, Novaya Zemlya was used as a nuclear test site.

The Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS) on NASA's Terra satellite captured this true-color image of Novaya Zemlya on July 27, 2009. (This image focuses primarily on the northern island. See an image for the entire archipelago on NASA's Web site.)

The sparsely vegetated land appears in shades of beige and icy white, NASA says. "Hints of turquoise along the northwestern coast likely result from sediments running off the island, or getting churned up by currents from the ocean floor, A narrow band of sea ice hugs the southeastern coast, and smaller pieces of sea ice float off the northern island's northeastern tip."

Before the turn of the twentieth century, Arctic sea ice used to linger along the coast of Novaya Zemlya's larger island each July. After the turn of the century, however, increased summertime melt made open ocean more common, NASA says.

NASA image by Jeff Schmaltz, MODIS Rapid Response Team, Goddard Space Flight Center. Original NASA caption by Michon Scott based on interpretation by Walt Meier, National Snow and Ice Data Center.

Photo of wolverine courtesy National Parks Service

A wolverine that Wildlife Conservation Society researchers have been tracking since early April has crossed into northern Colorado--the first known incidence of a wolverine in the state since 1919, the New York-based conservation charity said this week.

"The wolverine, a young male labeled M56, [that] was captured near Grand Teton National Park ... traveled approximately 500 miles during April and May, successfully navigating significant man-made features, including Interstate 80--the heavily trafficked route across Wyoming that links Chicago, Salt Lake City and San Francisco," WCS said.

Researchers placed a radio-tracking collar on the wolverine as part of an ongoing study to understand the wide-ranging, little-known animals.

Wolverines are the largest land-dwelling members of the weasel family. They live in arctic habitats in Alaska and Canada, and range south into the lower 48 states only high in mountains where near-arctic conditions exist.

"A growing body of research is showing that wolverines need large areas to survive and that the young often disperse long distances between mountain ranges to find a territory and mates," WCS said in a statement.

"Even though adult wolverines average about 30 pounds, a home range is often as large as a grizzly bear's.

"The size of a wolverine's territory, as much as 500 square miles for some adult males, limits the number of individuals that a given area can support. Adults tend to inhabit areas above timberline where there are snow-covered avalanche chutes and freezing temperatures much of the year."

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Among the most popular books published by the National Geographic Society are its books about birds.

The Society's latest book in its bird series is "Complete Birds of the World." (National Geographic Books, April 2009, ISBN: 978-1-4262-0403-6, U.S.$35.00 hardcover.) It features every one of the 193 bird families on the planet and profiles another 500 "representative" species.

I am only a casual birder, but I do appreciate any opportunity to learn as much as I can about birds.

I remember often the excellent advice given to me by a former news editor boss, an avid "twitcher," who once asked me as I was about to visit South Africa's Kruger National Park if I would be looking out for the birds. My head was filled with anticipated sightings of lions, elephants, buffalo, and other large fauna, but I had not given much thought about the birds I might see. His advice was to drive through Kruger slowly and also take in the birds. "You will triple your enjoyment of the park," he said.

He was right. I have enjoyed looking out for birds all over the world since I first really opened my eyes to them in the Kruger Park.

The first stages of becoming a birder are relatively easy, I found. A good field guide and a pair of binoculars quickly led to identification of the more obviously discernible species. But then came the hard and very hard parts. It's very difficult to distinguish between many of the more subtly differentiated species. This is where knowledge of habitat, behavior, diet, and calls become very important.

"Complete Birds of the World" provides a more holistic picture of the universe of birds, from Arctic to Antarctic and every climate zone inbetween. Understanding birds from the perspective of their different families adds much to my comprehension of our feathered relatives, and certainly to my appreciation of their infinite variety.

This is labeled Blue Grouse in the book (page 32) but is now renamed Dusky Grouse because it was recently split.

NGS photo

The project editor for "Complete Birds of the World" was Jonathan Alderfer, who also wrote the foreword. "The book was an international effort," Alderfer told me in an email. "The editor was Tim Harris from England, ten authors wrote the text, many award-winning photographers contributed, and National Geographic cartographers produced the maps."

I interviewed Alderfer about the book. Here is an edited Q&A:

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Sand-fleas such as Hyperoche capucinus, are common predators swimming in polar waters. This specimen is about the width of a finger.

Russ Hopcroft, University of Alaska Fairbanks, Census of Marine Life.

Earth's unique, forbidding ice oceans of the Arctic and Antarctic have revealed secrets to explorers, who were especially surprised to find at least 235 species live in both polar seas despite a distance of more than 7,000-mile (13,000-kilometer) distance in between, the Census of Marine Life (CoML) project announced today.

"The scientists found marine life that both poles apparently share in common include marathoners such as grey whales and birds, but also worms, crustaceans, and angelic snail-like pteropods, the latter discoveries opening a host of future research questions about where they originated and how they wound up at both ends of the Earth," the CoML said in a news statement.

DNA analysis is underway to confirm whether the species are indeed identical.

Among many other findings, the scientists also documented evidence of cold water-loving species shifting towards both poles to escape rising ocean temperatures.

The discoveries are the result of a series of voyages conducted during International Polar Year, 2007-2008.

The studies by a global network of polar researchers have added substantially to human knowledge about the diversity, distribution and abundance of marine life, with results to be fully detailed in the world's first Census report, to be released in London October 4, 2010.

"The polar seas, far from being biological deserts, teem with an amazing quantity and variety of life," said Ian Poiner, chair of the Census Scientific Steering Committee. "Only through the co-operation of 500 people from more than 25 countries could the daunting environmental challenges be overcome to produce research of such unprecedented scale and importance. And humanity is only starting to understand the nature of these regions."

Census researchers last year established that several octopus types have repeatedly colonized the deep sea, each migration coinciding with retreating Antarctic ice over 30 million years.

Russ Hopcroft, University of Alaska Fairbanks, Census of Marine Life.

"Today they theorize that the Antarctic also regularly refreshes the world's oceans with new varieties of sea spiders, isopods (crustaceans related to shrimp and crabs), and others as well. They believe the new species evolve when expansions of ice cloister Antarctica; when the ice retreats, they radiate northward along the same pathways followed by the octopuses," the CoML release said.

The nemertean Pelagonemertes rollestoni, about 1.2 inches (3 centimeters) long, hunts for zooplankton prey that it will harpoon with a dart attached to the tongue coiled within it. It yellow stomach reaches out to feed all parts of the body.

Russ Hopcroft, University of Alaska Fairbanks, Census of Marine Life.

More from National Geographic News:

PHOTOS: Odd, Identical Species Found at Both Poles

PHOTOS: New Deep-Sea Species Revealed by Marine Census

Ocean Life Survey Reveals World of Deep-Sea Creatures

 

Photo by L.S. Vors/WCS

Caribou could soon become endangered by threats such as oil exploration and climate change, according to a new book by authors from the Wildlife Conservation Society and the World Wildlife Fund.

"Many children who grow up in North America and Europe are familiar with caribou as symbols of holiday myths and legends," says Justina Ray, Executive Director of WCS-Canada and a co-author of the book.

Caribou is the name given to wild reindeer in North America. They are a familiar sight on holiday cards at this time of the year. Reindeer famously draw Santa's toy-laden sleigh through the starry Christmas sky.

"It's important to remember that reindeer play an important role in the rich ecosystems of the Northern Hemisphere that we all rely on." Ray said in a WCS news release about her book. "Protecting calving areas and other habitats needed to satisfy their enormous needs can help us conserve the caribou for the benefit of both the natural world and human culture."

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"Not really a great moment for us," is how Rob Gauntlett (in the photo on the right) described his fall through sea ice into the Arctic Ocean.

It was one of a number of scrapes with death that he and James Hooper, British teenagers fresh out of school, encountered on a 409-day odyssey from the north geomagnetic pole to the south geomagnetic pole.

The 26,000-mile journey by skiing, dog sledding, cycling, and sailing won them recognition by National Geographic Adventure magazine as 2008 Adventurers of the Year. They were presented with the award last night here at National Geographic headquarters in Washington, D.C. ► Read This Entire Post

Illustration courtesy National Snow and Ice Data Center

The giant ice cube bobbing on the top of the planet just got smaller.

Warming sea and air probably caused the Arctic sea ice to melt to its lowest volume on record this summer, the University of Colorado at Boulder's National Snow and Ice Data Center reported today. 

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2007 had the lowest sea ice coverage in recorded history, seriously impinging upon the habitat of the polar bear. This image released by WWF is not one of the bears spotted in open water last week.

Image courtesy WWF

While looking for whales in Alaska's Chukchi Sea last week, U.S. government officials noticed an unusually high number of polar bears swimming in the open sea. Some were apparently heading for shore and some were heading toward ice. Several of them were 15 to 20 miles from either destination.

Polar bears are good swimmers, of course, and they do cross water to get out to the ice, which they use as a platform to hunt marine life.

Biologists have predicted that polar bears might be in trouble as global warming causes the Arctic ice to retreat.

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