Add us as your preferred source on Google to see more of our content in Search.
Add to Preferred SourcesThe latest assessments from the International Union for Conservation of Nature’s (IUCN) Red List of Threatened Species reveal the alarming impact that the changing climate is having on the planet’s biodiversity.
Established in 1964, The IUCN Red list – the world’s most comprehensive source on the global conservation status of animal, fungi and plant species – is a critical indicator of the health of the world’s biodiversity. Despite promising signs of recovery for 10 species, 73 species have shown further decline since the publication of the last list in 2018. Of the 112,432 species on the list, 30,178 species are threatened with extinction.
As the Climate COP enters its second week in Madrid, the impact of climate change on biodiversity was apparent in several assessments, due to alteration of habitats, increased strength and frequency of extreme weather conditions, increased temperatures and drought threatening numerous species.
The latest assessment saw the status of eight bird species and two freshwater fish improve, including the Guam Rail, the second bird in history to recover after being declared Extinct in the Wild. Meanwhile, the Shorttail Nurse Shark moves from Vulnerable to Critically Endangered and the European rabbit moves from Near Threatened to Endangered – a worrying sign for its predator, the Iberian lynx, only recently recovered to 700 individuals from lows of 100.
In stressing the relationship between climate change and biodiversity loss, the new assessments have once again highlighted the urgent need for concerted action ahead of a critical year for the planet in 2020. Next year, the world will have a momentous opportunity to set nature on the path to recovery – for the sake of people and planet – with world leaders scheduled to take critical decisions on nature, climate and development. WWF and others are calling for them to secure a new deal for nature and people that brings together these related agendas and reverses nature loss by 2030.
Original source: WWF
Published on 10 December 2019