The Earth's Threatened Species - the list grows

Orange-bellied parrot, Eastern Australia: critically endangered

The latest 'Red List of Threatened Species' assessment released in June 2013 by the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) continues to paint a bleak picture for the future of most of the planet's animal life. The Red List is not about climate change impact as the methodology and process was established long before the current global warming issue came to mainstream public debate. The assessment remains grim with 24 to 50 per cent of species being hihghly vulnerable, 22 to 44 per cent of amphibians and 15 to 32 per cent of corals - the lower estimate being the most optimistic and higher figure being the most pessimistic.    

In a separate study which specifically addresses the impact of climate change, species which are at the greatest risk from climate change are not currently conservation priorities. The IUCN paper, published in the journal PLOS ONE, is one of the largest studies of its kind, assessing all of the world’s birds, amphibians and corals. It draws on the work of more than 100 scientists over a period of five years. Up to 83% of birds, 66% of amphibians and 70% of corals that were identified as highly vulnerable to the impacts of climate change are not currently considered threatened with extinction. They are therefore unlikely to be receiving focused conservation attention, according to the study.

Where to now for Africa's Elephants ?

The estimates of the elephant population in Africa paint a grim picture of events taking place on that continent - from an estimated population and range of 1.3 million elephants in 1979, by 2007 the number had declined to 472,000 to 690,000. In many parts of Africa, elephants are now dying faster than they are being born almost entirely due to the impact of poaching. The Kenyan Wildlife Service found in a census this year that the elephant population in the Samburu / Laikopia region had lost over 1,000 elephants in just four years as the animals are slaughtered for their ivory. Similar events are occuring across several African countries. In Central and Western Africa, poaching accounts for between 84 % and 90 % of all elephant deaths while in Eastern and Southern Africa, the percentages are 51 % to 59 % of all deaths. These are extraordinary numbers and if maintained will lead to the extinction of the species in the wild in Africa within a relatively short time-frame. Poachers, including heavily armed groups use AK-47 assault rifles and RPG rocket propelled grenades to kill whole herds with the ivory predominantly being exported to Asia (China, Thailand, Hong Kong, Taiwan, Vietnam and the Philippines).