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Threatened species Red List shows escalating 'global extinction crisis'

Alison Benjamin | September 12

Guardian Unlimited - Corals and seaweed have joined the ranks of threatened species, and more apes and reptiles are now facing extinction according to the World Conservation Union, which warns of a "global extinction crisis".

The conservation group's annual Red List of threatened species, published today, found that the extinction crisis had escalated in the last year with 16,306 species now at the highest levels of extinction threat, equivalent to almost 40% of all species in the survey.

A quarter of all mammals, a third of all amphibians and one in eight birds on the 2007 IUCN Red List are in jeopardy.

More than 180 species have been added since 2006 to the ranks of those classified as endangered, critically endangered or vulnerable.

[...]

"We're at code red," said Dr Mark Wright, chief scientist at WWF-UK. "The plight of the world's species is a mirror on the state of the planet. Species are under enormous pressure as we systematically destroy their habitat or overexploit them for our increasingly demanding lifestyles.

"We urgently need to reverse this trend and start living within the planet's natural resources - not just for the wellbeing of these threatened species but also for our own."

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Also: Gorillas head race to extinction

BBC, By Richard Black, September 12

Gorillas, orangutans, and corals are among the plants and animals which are sliding closer to extinction.

The Red List of Threatened Species for 2007 names habitat loss, hunting and climate change among the causes.

The World Conservation Union (IUCN) has identified more than 16,000 species threatened with extinction, while prospects have brightened for only one.

The IUCN says there is a lack of political will to tackle the global erosion of nature.

Governments have pledged to stem the loss of species by 2010; but it does not appear to be happening.

[...]

"The rate of biodiversity loss is increasing, and we need to act now to significantly reduce it and stave off this global extinction crisis."

One in three amphibians, one in four mammals, one in eight birds and 70% of plants so far assessed are believed to be at risk of extinction, with human alteration of their habitat the single biggest cause.

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Raja September 12, 2007 - 7:54am
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US predicts polar bear meltdown

BBC, September 10

Two-thirds of the world's polar bears will be gone by the middle of the century, says a US government agency.

The US Geological Survey (USGS) says parts of the Arctic are losing summer ice so fast that no bears will be able to live there within several decades.

Scientists believe Arctic ice will hit a record low this year.

The US government commissioned the study to assess whether polar bears should be protected under the national Endangered Species Act.

Its decision is due in January 2008. The species (Ursus maritimus) is classified as Vulnerable to extinction on the internationally acknowledged Red List of Threatened Species.

"Vanity, Vanity, all is Vanity."

Raja September 12, 2007 - 8:00am
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Coral 'hot spots' off East Coast

Canadian Press, By Alison Auld, September 11

HALIFAX — Scientists have for the first time discovered a string of coral ‘hot spots' in waters off Canada's East Coast and will use the surprising finds to press global fishing interests to steer clear of areas they say are vital marine habitats.

Canadian researchers, being released Tuesday, said they found heavy concentrations of about 30 species of coral along a stretch of the seabed that extends from the Hudson Strait off Labrador to the Grand Banks off southern Newfoundland.

Their 40-page report says three main sites serve as sanctuaries for a variety of marine animals but are being damaged by intense fishing.

“We're recommending an immediate fisheries closure in those areas where coral concentrations can be identified within those hot spots,” said Bob Rangeley of the World Wildlife Fund, which released the study. “Corals represent something very, very important about marine biodiversity.”

"Vanity, Vanity, all is Vanity."

Raja September 12, 2007 - 8:16am
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Stark warning of extinction list:'Life on Earth is disappearing'

The Independent, By Michael McCarthy, September 13

Gorillas, vultures, corals, Asian crocodiles and even seaweeds are joining thousands of other species on the slide towards extinction, according to the latest edition of the Red List, the international catalogue of threatened wildlife, published yesterday.

In the past 12 months there have been nearly 200 to the list, which is published by the Swiss-based International Union for the Conservation of Nature (IUCN), taking the number of threatened species worldwide from 16,118 to 16,306.

This means that one in four of the world's mammals, one in eight birds, one third of all amphibians and 70 per cent of the world's assessed plants on the current list are in now in jeopardy. "Life on Earth is disappearing fast and will continue to do so unless urgent action is taken," the IUCN said yesterday.

The Red List is recognised as the most reliable evaluation of the conservation status of the world's species. It classifies them according to their extinction risk, through the categories extinct, critically endangered, endangered and vulnerable. Once an organism is classified as critically endangered, extinction is very close.

"Vanity, Vanity, all is Vanity."

Raja September 13, 2007 - 7:26am
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Agonist Post: The Great Die Off

Ian Welsh: We tend to forget, even those of us who who are aware of it, that we're in the middle of a great die-off...

"Vanity, Vanity, all is Vanity."

Raja September 13, 2007 - 7:28am
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