- Rising to the global challenge of “significantly reducing the current rate of loss of biodiversity by 2010” requires tools to monitor our progress and highlight where we need to focus our conservation efforts.
- Red List Indices (RLIs) will play a critical role in tracking progress towards this 2010 target. RLIs have already been applied to birds and amphibians, revealing an increase in the extinction risk of both these species groups.
- The IUCN Sampled Red List Index (SRLI) is now being developed, based on a sample of species from major taxonomic groups to provide trends in extinction risk representative of global biodiversity. This information will be critical for guiding policy- and decision-makers as to what conservation actions are needed.
Goal
To produce conservation assessments for a representative sample of the world’s plant species and include this information in a global index of extinction risk for biodiversity, starting in 2006 and reporting regularly from then on.
Proposed taxonomic groups
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Bryophytes
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Pteridophytes
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Gymnosperms
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Monocots
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Dicots
A random sample of 1200 species will be selected for each of these five groups. |
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Methods
- Authoritative species lists are already being compiled for each taxonomic group.
- Random sampling will be used to select 1200 species from these lists for each group.
- The conservation status of each species selected for the index will be assessed, using the IUCN Red List Categories and Criteria, and re-assessed at regular intervals.
- GIS techniques will be used to automatically assign conservation ratings to a database of geo-referenced herbarium specimens.
- Genuine changes in the conservation status of each species over time (e.g., from Vulnerable to Critically Endangered) will provide the information to calculate overall trends in extinction risk.
Timeline
- In 2006 lists of randomly-selected species will be drawn up and production of conservation assessments begun, beginning with monocots and gymnosperms.
- By the end of 2006, conservation assessments will have been conducted for all gymnosperms and work will begin in 2007 on bryophyte and pteridophyte species.
- Work will begin in 2008 on producing conservation assessments for dicot species.
- By the end of 2009 conservation assessments will have been completed for a broad, representative sample of the world’s plants.
- Assessments will be reviewed at a series of expert workshops in 2010 and used to calculate the overall Sampled Red List Index for all species groups.
Why monitor biodiversity at the species level?
- Species are the building blocks of biodiversity.
- Species are targeted in conservation-related legislation from the international to local level.
- Red List assessments of each species can be based on a diversity of data sources, making use of the best available information.
- Species can serve as indicators of ecosystem health.
- Species hold great appeal for, and provide essential services to, millions of people.
Outputs
- Estimates of the conservation status of, and trends in extinction risk for, a sample of plant species that broadly represents global plant diversity.
- Identification of regions in which the conservation status of plant species is declining most rapidly.
- Indications of which major ecosystems are experiencing the greatest decline in the conservation status of plant species.
Other benefits:
- Broader representation of plant species on the IUCN Red List.
- Identification of taxonomic groups, regions, and ecosystems for which data are currently insufficient to assess conservation status.
Can You Help Us?
- Do you hold expert knowledge or specimen data for any of the species on our list?
- Please consult the species list on the website (details below) and get in touch with us – we are very keen to draw on as wide a pool of knowledge as we can.
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Checklists
A checklist of 1500 random species will be provided for each major taxonomic group as listed above. Only the Monocot list has been prepared at this time, all other lists will be added as they become available.
Contacts
srli@kew.org
Further Information
- Baillie et al. 2004. 2004 IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. A Global Species Assessment. IUCN – The World Conservation Union, Gland, Switzerland.
- Butchart et al. 2005. Using Red List Indices to measure progress towards the 2010 target and beyond. Philosophical Transactions of the Royal Society of London, series B 360.
- Butchart et al. 2004. Measuring global trends in the status of biodiversity: Red List Indices for birds. PLoS Biology 2(12): e383.
See www.iucnredlist.org and http://indicators.birdlife.org
Download presentation from SRLI Workshop here
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