Update of IUCN Red List of Threatened Species.

   13 December 2021.

Introduction:

As per an update of IUCN Red List of Threatened Species, the destruction of wetlands is causing the decline of dragonflies across the world.

Highlights

  • Number of species at risk of extinction in the Red List of IUCN has exceeded 40,000 for the first time.
  • Their decline is due to widespread loss of swamps, marshes, and free-flowing rivers where they breed in.
  • Decline is mostly driven by expansion of unsustainable agriculture and urbanisation worldwide.

Number of species at risk

  • The number of species at risk of extinction on the IUCN Red List has exceeded 40,000 for the first time.
  • It now includes 142,577 species, out of which 40,084 are threatened with extinction.

About IUCN red list

  • IUCN red list stands for ‘International Union for Conservation of Nature’ Red List of Threatened Species.
  • It was founded in 1964.
  • This list is the most comprehensive inventory of conservation status of biological species of the world.
  • It uses a set of precise criteria for evaluating the extinction risk of species and subspecies.
  • These criteria are relevant to all species and all the regions worldwide.
  •  List is recognized as the most authoritative guide, because of its scientific base.

Aim of the IUCN Red List

  • IUCN red list is maintained with the aim of conveying the urgency of conservation issues to the public as well as policy makers.
  • It seeks to help the international community for reducing species extinction.
  • Primary goal of the Red List is to provide scientific information on the status of species and subspecies at international level.

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