IUCN-Internationl Union of Conservation of Nature

IUCN is the international body for checking the status of wildlife worldwide. Loss of flora & fauna is one of the world's most concerning issue and there is growing international concern about the status of the biodiversity on which so much of human life depends. It has been estimated that the current species extinction rate is between 1,000 and 10,000 times higher than it would naturally be.

Many species are declining to threat levels, habitats are shrinking swiftly and degraded, and ecosystems are being disturbed due to global warming, pollution, , and direct human impacts. But fortunately there is increasing awareness of how biodiversity supports livelihoods, allows sustainable development.

A brief history of the Red List

The IUCN Red List System was first conceived in 1963 and set a standard for species listing and conservation assessment efforts. For more than 30 years the Species Survival Commission has been evaluating the conservation status of species and subspecies on a global scale - highlighting those threatened with extinction and promoting their conservation.

With the passage of time, IUCN recognised that a more objective and scientific system for determining threat status was needed, one that drew on advances in the science of conservation biology and other disciplines. There was also a need for a more accurate system for use at the national and regional level. The IUCN Red List Categories evolved over a four-year period through extensive consultation and testing with more than 800 SSC members, and the wider scientific community. The more precise and quantitative Red List Categories and Criteria were adopted by IUCN in 1994.

In 1988 all bird species were evaluated, and in the 1996 IUCN Red List of Threatened Animals the conservation status of every mammal species in the world was assessed for the first time. These were major milestones in conservation because not only was the overall status of mammals and birds determined, but a baseline was established from which to monitor future trends. For the 1996 list 5,205 species were evaluated resulting in 25% of all mammals and 11% of all birds being listed as threatened. (source-IUCN)

What is the Red List?

The IUCN Red List is the world's most comprehensive inventory of the global conservation status of plant and animal species. It uses a set of criteria to evaluate the extinction risk of thousands of species and subspecies. These criteria are relevant to all species and all regions of the world. With its strong scientific base, the IUCN Red List is recognized as the most authoritative guide to the status of biological diversity.

The overall aim of the Red List is to convey the urgency and scale of conservation problems to the public and policy makers, and to motivate the global community to try to reduce species extinctions (SOURCE-IUCN).

Uses of the Red List

The Red List is used by government agencies, wildlife departments, conservation-related non-governmental organizations (NGOs), natural resource planners, educational organizations, and many others interested in reversing, or at least halting the decline in biodiversity.

Draws attention to the magnitude and importance of threatened biodiversity.

• Identifies and documents those species most in need of conservation action. Provides a global index of the decline of biodiversity.
   
• Establishes a baseline from which to monitor the future status of species.
   
• How is the Red List compiled?

There are nine categories in the IUCN Red List system: Extinct, Extinct in the Wild, Critically Endangered, Endangered, Vulnerable, Near Threatened, Least Concern, Data Deficient, and Not Evaluated. Classification into the categories for species threatened with extinction (Vulnerable, Endangered, and Critically Endangered) is through a set of five quantitative criteria that form the heart of the system. These criteria are based on biological factors related to extinction risk and include: rate of decline, population size, area of geographic distribution, and degree of population and distribution fragmentation. (SOURCE-IUCN).