Scientists Compile List of 100 Most Threatened Species
Posted on September 16, 2012
8,000 scientists from the IUCN Species Survival Commission (IUCN SSC) have identified 100 of the most threatened animals, plants and fungi on Earth. The report was presented at the IUCN World Conservation Congress in South Korea.
Some of the animals on the list include the Sumatran rhino (pictured above), Tarzan's chameleon, the spoon-billed sandpiper and the pygmy three-toed sloth, Dusky gopher frog, Cuban greater funnel eared bat, Pangasid catfish and Table Mountain ghost frog.
Professor Jonathan Baillie, ZSL's Director of Conservation, said in a statement, "The donor community and conservation movement are leaning increasingly towards a 'what can nature do for us' approach, where species and wild habitats are valued and prioritised according to the services they provide for people. This has made it increasingly difficult for conservationists to protect the most threatened species on the planet. While the utilitarian value of nature is important conservation goes beyond this. Do these species have a right to survive or do we have a right to drive them to extinction?"
ZSL's Ellen Butcher, co-author of the report, said, "All the species listed are unique and irreplaceable. If they vanish, no amount of money can bring them back. However, if we take immediate action we can give them a fighting chance for survival. But this requires society to support the moral and ethical position that all species have an inherent right to exist."
LiveScience has posted the entire list here.