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The process of understanding the rapid global decline of sawfishes (Pristidae) has revealed great concern for their relatives, the wedgefishes (Rhinidae) and giant guitarfishes (Glaucostegidae), not least because all three families are targeted for their high-value and internationally-traded ‘white’ fins.The objective of this study was to assess the extinction risk of all 10 wedgefishes and 6 giant guitarfishes by applying the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) Red List Categories and Criteria, and to summarise their biogeography and habitat, life history, exploitation, use and trade, and population status.Wedgefishes and giant guitarfishes have overtaken sawfishes as the most imperilled marine fish families globally, with all but one of the 16 species facing an extremely high risk of extinction due to a combination of traits – limited biological productivity, presence in shallow waters overlapping with some of the most intense and increasing coastal fisheries in the world, and over-exploitation in target and bycatch fisheries driven by the need for animal protein and food security in coastal communities and trade in meat and high-value fins.Two species with very restricted ranges, the Clown Wedgefish (Rhynchobatus cooki) of the Indo-Malay Archipelago and the False Shark Ray (Rhynchorhina mauritaniensis) of Mauritania may be very close to extinction.Only the Eyebrow Wedgefish (Rhynchobatus palpebratus) is not assessed as Critically Endangered, due to it occurring primarily in Australia where fishing pressure is low, and some management measures are in place. Australia represents a ‘lifeboat’ for the three wedgefish and one giant guitarfish species occurring there.To conserve populations and permit recovery, a suite of measures will be required which will need to include species protection, spatial management, bycatch mitigation, and harvest and international trade management, all of which will be dependent on effective enforcement.

Since passage of the Endangered Species Act in 1973, over 1300 endangered and threatened species have been protected in the USA and its territories. Most species continue to face a significant risk of extinction, but the status of many species is improving. Here we present analyses of federal agency reports to the United States Congress (1988–2002) that describe differences in species status and show which variables are correlated with improving or declining status. We found that 52% of species showed repeated improvements or were not declining over this time. Species status improves over time, with only 35% still declining 13 years or more after protection. Taxonomy, funding by US Fish and Wildlife Service and National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, and agency assessment of risk of extinction and potential to recover were significantly correlated with status.

With the biodiversity crisis continuing unchecked, we need to establish levels and drivers of extinction risk, and reassessments over time, to effectively allocate conservation resources and track progress towards global conservation targets. Given that threat appears particularly high in freshwaters, we assessed the extinction risk of 1428 randomly selected freshwater molluscs using the IUCN Red List Categories and Criteria, as part of the Sampled Red List Index project. We show that close to one-third of species in our sample are estimated to be threatened with extinction, with highest levels of threat in the Nearctic, Palearctic and Australasia and among gastropods. Threat levels were higher in lotic than lentic systems. Pollution (chemical and physical) and the modification of natural systems (e.g. through damming and water abstraction) were the most frequently reported threats to freshwater molluscs, with some regional variation. Given that we found little spatial congruence between species richness patterns of freshwater molluscs and other freshwater taxa, apart from crayfish, new additional conservation priority areas emerged from our study. We discuss the implications of our findings for freshwater mollusc conservation, the adequacy of a sampled approach and important next steps to estimate trends in freshwater mollusc extinction risk over time., The authors would like to acknowledge the Esme ́e Fairbairn Foundation (NIDR and MB) and the Rufford Foundation (MB) for their generous support. MV is supported by the Russian Fund for Basic Research (project No. 19-04-00270).

The African Black Oystercatcher Haematopus moquini is a charismatic, southern African near-endemic, wader species, that is often seen as a flagship species for coastal bird conservation, as it was recently down-listed regionally to Least Concern on the IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. To celebrate this rare conservation success story, BirdLife South Africa named it the 2018 Bird of the Year and ran a year-long programme in collaboration with the Nature’s Valley Trust highlighting aspects of the species’ biology, current threats, and conservation success. We used data collected by the Southern African Bird Atlas Project (SABAP1 and SABAP2) to examine changes in the species’ range and relative abundance, both in the records between the two projects, as well as trends within the SABAP2 sampling period (2008–2017). This case study enabled us to assess whether such metrics can accurately reflect abundance and distributional changes in a species. We found increases in the reported range and the reporting rates between the two Atlas projects, and that the SABAP2 reporting rate was stable. Regionally, across four coastal categories, the reporting rate was lowest in KwaZulu-Natal, though this region also showed an increase in the probability of reporting during the SABAP2 period. While corroborating the recent change in the species’ conservation status, we also provide good evidence that the long-term SABAP data can be used successfully to assess population trends and range changes over time. Contrer la tendance: Les huîtriers pies noirs africains: un exemple de réussite récente en matière de conservationL’Huîtrier pie noir d’Afrique Haematopus moquini est une espèce charismatique quasi endémique d’Afrique australe, récemment classée dans la catégorie ‘menacée à moindre préoccupation,’ qui est souvent considérée comme une espèce phare pour la conservation des oiseaux côtiers. Pour célébrer cette rare réussite en matière de conservation, BirdLife South Africa l’a nommée ‘oiseau de l’année 2018’ et a mené un programme d’un an en collaboration avec le Nature’s Valley Trust, soulignant les aspects de la biologie de l’espèce, les menaces actuelles et le succès de la conservation. Sur la base de l’augmentation signalée de la taille de la population et de l’aire de répartition de l’espèce, nous utilisons les données recueillies dans le cadre des projets d’atlas des oiseaux d’Afrique australe (SABAP1 et SABAP2) afin d’examiner les modifications de l’aire de répartition et de l’abondance relative, au même titre que les tendances pour la période d’échantillonnage SABAP2 (2008–2017). Cela nous permet d’évaluer si ces paramètres peuvent indiquer avec précision de tels changements chez une espèce. Nous montrons que la portée et le taux de rapport ont augmenté entre les projets de l’atlas et que le taux de rapport pour SABAP2 est globalement stable. Au niveau régional, dans quatre groupes côtiers, le taux de rapport est le plus bas dans le KwaZulu-Natal, mais cette région montre également une augmentation de la probabilité de déclaration au cours de la période SABAP2. Tout en corroborant les changements récents dans l’état de conservation de l’espèce, le présent document fournit également de bonnes preuves que l’utilisation des données d’atlas à long-terme de SABAP peut être utilisée pour évaluer les tendances de la population et les modifications de l’aire de répartition dans le temps.Keywords: abundance, citizen science, Haematopus moquini, Red List Index, reporting rate, Southern African Bird Atlas Project

Crop-related wild plant species are a rich source of genetic diversity and are potentially useful in plant breeding for the development of varieties with novel traits. However, many crop wild relatives are poorly represented in gene banks, while their continued survival in situ is by no means ensured. Here we introduced a methodology to inventory relevant taxa and to assess their threat levels for continued survival in situ, including the expected effects of climate change, and applied it to crop wild relatives in The Netherlands. A total number of 214 taxa of wild relatives of economically important agricultural and horticultural crops were identified, of which 53 are included in the Dutch red list of plant species. The group of 53 red list species was studied in more detail to prioritize species for conservation. Based on recent distribution data, the number of Dutch populations consisting of at least 50 individuals varied strongly among the red list species. The majority of these ‘large’ populations were found to be located in protected areas. Furthermore, niche modelling was used to study the expected effects of climate change on the future distribution of the red list species. These analyses predicted a reduced distribution area for the majority of species, although also positive effects of climate change were observed for several species. Similar patterns of change were observed when only protected areas were considered. Results of the study were used to prioritize the conservation of crop wild relatives in The Netherlands.

International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) Red List assessments rely on published data and expert inputs, and biases can be introduced where underlying definitions and concepts are ambiguous. Consideration of climate change threat is no exception, and recently numerous approaches to assessing the threat of climate change to species have been developed. We explored IUCN Red List assessments of amphibians and birds to determine whether species listed as threatened by climate change display distinct patterns in terms of habitat occupied and additional nonclimatic threats faced. We compared IUCN Red List data with a published data set of species' biological and ecological traits believed to infer high vulnerability to climate change and determined whether distributions of climate change-threatened species on the IUCN Red List concur with those of climate change-threatened species identified with the trait-based approach and whether species possessing these traits are more likely to have climate change listed as a threat on the IUCN Red List. Species in some ecosystems (e.g., grassland, shrubland) and subject to particular threats (e.g., invasive species) were more likely to have climate change as a listed threat. Geographical patterns of climate change-threatened amphibians and birds on the IUCN Red List were incongruent with patterns of global species richness and patterns identified using trait-based approaches. Certain traits were linked to increases or decreases in the likelihood of a species being threatened by climate change. Broad temperature tolerance of a species was consistently related to an increased likelihood of climate change threat, indicating counterintuitive relationships in IUCN assessments. To improve the robustness of species assessments of the vulnerability or extinction risk associated with climate change, we suggest IUCN adopt a more cohesive approach whereby specific traits highlighted by our results are considered in Red List assessments. To achieve this and to strengthen the climate change-vulnerability assessments approach, it is necessary to identify and implement logical avenues for further research into traits that make species vulnerable to climate change (including population-level threats).

A critical requirement in assessing progress towards global biodiversity targets is improving our capacity to measure changes in biodiversity. Global biodiversity declined between 2000 and 2010, and there are indications that the decline was greater in freshwater than in terrestrial or marine systems. However, the data, tools and methods available during that decade were inadequate to reliably quantify this decline. Recent advances in freshwater monitoring make a global assessment now close to becoming feasible. Here we identify priorities for freshwater biodiversity assessment for 2020 and 2030, based on the Essential Biodiversity Variables (EBV) framework. We identify 22 priority activities for 2020 under three of the EBV classes (species populations, community composition, and ecosystem structure), which include: a globally systematic approach to collecting and assessing species data, collating existing and new data within global platforms, coordinated effort towards mapping wetland extent at high spatial resolution, linking in-situ data to modelling across regions, and mobilising citizen science for the collection and verification of data. Accomplishing these will allow the state of global biodiversity to be assessed according to a Red List Index with expanded geographic and taxonomic cover, an improved freshwater Living Planet Index with a greater number and phylogenetic range of species, measures of alpha and beta diversity, and globally-consistent estimates of wetland extent. To assess variables in the other EBV classes (genetic composition, species traits, and ecosystem function) we identify 15 priorities, which include development of environmental DNA methods, species-traits databases, eco-informatics and modelling over the next 15 years.

Analyses of knowledge gaps can highlight imbalances in research, encouraging greater proportionality in the distribution of research efforts. In this research we used generalized linear mixed models (GLMM) with the aim to determine if research efforts for the period 2005–2015 for terrestrial vertebrates of Amphibia, Aves, Mammalia and Reptilia in the South Pacific region were correlated with conservation status (critically endangered (CR), endangered (EN), vulnerable (VU), least concern (LC) and near threatened (NT)) or population trends (increasing, stable, decreasing and unknown) through the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) database. Our results showed that research distribution was uneven across different classes. Out of 633623 investigated papers, the average number of publications per species was 43.7, 306.7, 717.6 and 115.3 for Amphibia (284 species), Aves (1306 species), Mammalia (243 species) and Reptilia (400 species), respectively. Consistently, the lower publication effort on Amphibia compared to other taxonomic classes was revealed as significant by GLMM analysis. There was no significant differences in research effort among levels of conservation status. However, we found significantly different publication efforts among population trends of all examined species in that species with “unknown” population trends gained significantly lower researchers’ attention compared to species with “decreasing” trend. Results also indicated that, although it was not significant, the highest attention is given to species with “increasing” population trend over all taxonomic classes. Using the Information Theoretic approach we also generated a set of competing models to identify most important factors influencing research efforts, revealing that the highest ranked model included taxonomic class and population trend.

Global trait-based analyses can shed light on the factors predisposing species to high extinction risk, and can help bridge knowledge gaps in speciose and poorly known taxa. In this paper, I conduct the first global comparative study of crayfish extinction risk. I collated data on intrinsic (biology and ecology) and extrinsic (environment and threats) factors for 450 crayfish species assessed on the IUCN Red List. Phylogenetic multiple regression models were used to identify correlates of risk in all species; in centres of diversity (American cambarids and Australian parastacids); and among threat types (agriculture, water management, pollution). I assessed the relative ability of threat maps quantifying specific threats (e.g. river fragmentation, mercury deposition) or a generic threat (human population density) to predict crayfish extinction risk. I also quantified the effects of range size on extinction risk with variation partitioning and multiplicative bivariate regressions. Crayfish with small range size, small body size, habitat dependency on caves, and with ranges in areas of low precipitation, high altitude and high human population density were at higher risk of extinction. Correlates of risk varied between American cambarids and Australian parastacids, suggesting that centres of diversity shape patterns of extinction risk in crayfish. The explanatory power of models ranged between 31 and 65%, with low explanatory power for models based on threat types. Few specific threat measures were significantly related to extinction risk, suggesting that large-scale threat mapping may not be informative for freshwater invertebrates. In the absence of population data for most freshwater invertebrates, trait-based models are powerful and cost-effective tools for understanding and mitigating drivers of extinction risk.

Aim Information on change in species’ environmental preferences (i.e., niche) is currently not included in IUCN Red List criteria, although such information is key for assessing whether species not only lose geographic range but also lose part of their realized niche. Here, using niche size quantification and niche-based species distribution models (SDMs), we test whether realized niche size and predicted potential range size provide additional information compared with the standard IUCN scores. Location Switzerland, national scale. Methods We simulated randomly, spatially directed, and ecologically directed local extinction events of varying magnitudes (10%, 30%, and 50% of occurrences). For a set of 148 representative vascular plant species, we tested how accurately the geographic versus niche measures pictured these extinction scenarios respectively. Results We found that changes in niche size often corresponded to changes in geographic space. However, there was considerable variation and, for many species, changes in geographic and in niche space delivered complementary information. IUCN criteria based on spatial projections of SDMs did not capture extinction events in most cases and often increased the modelled range size, even when up to 50% of the occurrences were removed by simulated extinction events. Main conclusion Our findings demonstrate that changes in niche size can provide valuable additional information and could be used more systematically to complement changes in range size for Red List assessments. In turn, change in SDM-predicted range size was not a good surrogate for classical extent of occurrence and area of occupancy criteria and should be used with caution. Further research is needed to assess whether and how spatial predictions of SDMs may be used to appropriately complement current IUCN criteria and to test whether our findings apply to other organisms and other spatial extents.

Volunteer divers participating in the Reef Life Survey (RLS) program actively assist species conservation efforts by generating data for threat assessments and population trend monitoring, through in-water restoration efforts, and through outreach of marine conservation messages. Up to 2014, standardised underwater visual survey data provided by RLS divers described densities of 495 cryptic fish species at over 1200 sites distributed around Australia. Each species was recorded on 34 separate transect blocks on average, allowing the first assessments of population trends for many species. These data highlight the threatened and data deficient status of endemic Australian handfish species. At least five shallow-water handfish species are potentially threatened, including the smooth handfish Sympterichthys unipennis, which has not been sighted for over 200 years, but is yet to be included on any threatened species list. RLS divers undertook directed searches at key historical locations for two handfish species, the red handfish Thymichthys politus, now only known from a single reef, and Ziebell's handfish Brachiopsilus ziebelli, with no confirmed sighting for over a decade. From a total of 100 h of underwater search effort, only four red handfish were recorded, all at a site threatened by adjacent human activity. These and other handfish species should be considered for inclusion on the IUCN Red List given that populations are either very small or have vanished, spawning substrates have probably declined, and the species lack a larval dispersal stage. More importantly, the absence of information on the conservation status of the majority of marine species needs urgent attention, including through expanded citizen science efforts, if management intervention is to occur and extinctions minimised.

Aim Less than 6% of the worlds described plant species have been assessed on the IUCN Red List, leaving many species invisible to conservation prioritization. Large-scale Red List assessment of plant species is a challenge, as most species’ ranges have only been resolved to a coarse scale. As geographic distribution is a key assessment criterion on the IUCN Red List, we evaluate the use of coarse-scale distribution data in predictive models to assess the global scale and drivers of extinction risk in an economically important plant group, the bulbous monocotyledons. Location Global. Methods Using coarse-scale species distribution data, we train a machine learning model on biological and environmental variables for 148 species assessed on the IUCN Red List in order to identify correlates of extinction risk. We predict the extinction risk of 6439 ‘bulbous monocot’ species with the best of 13 models and map our predictions to identify potential hotspots of threat. Results Our model achieved 91% classification accuracy, with 88% of threatened species and 93% of non-threatened species accurately predicted. The model predicted 35% of bulbous monocots presently ‘Not Evaluated’ under IUCN criteria to be threatened and human impacts were a key correlate of threat. Spatial analysis identified some hotspots of threat where no bulbous monocots are yet on the IUCN Red List, for example central Chile. Main conclusions This is the first time a machine learning model has been used to determine extinction risk at a global scale in a species-rich plant group. As coarse-scale distribution data exist for many plant groups, our methods can be replicated to provide extinction risk predictions across the plant kingdom. Our approach can be used as a low-cost prioritization tool for targeting field-based assessments.

While greater research on threatened species alone cannot ensure their protection, understanding taxonomic bias may be helpful to address knowledge gaps in order to identify research directions and inform policy. Using data for over 10 000 animal species listed on the International Union for Conservation of Nature Red List, we investigated taxonomic and geographic biodiversity conservation research trends worldwide. We found extreme bias in conservation research effort on threatened vertebrates compared with lesser-studied invertebrates in both terrestrial and aquatic habitats at a global scale. Based on an analysis of common threats affecting vertebrates and invertebrates, we suggest a path forward for narrowing the research gap between threatened vertebrates and invertebrates.

The growing demand for natural resources to sustain human population has increased the loss and modification of natural habitats, enhancing the number of species threatened with extinction. Commonly tools such as Red Lists guide conservation actions and policies. However, Red Lists are based in population parameters, and important aspects of biodiversity such as phylogenetic diversity are not considered. Here we evaluated the amount of economic and traditional uses and evolutionary history of palms captured by the global IUCN Red List and the national Red Lists of Colombia and Madagascar. We estimated palms plant use diversity (PUD) and phylogenetic diversity (PD) for all species in the IUCN Red List and for each threat category at global and national scale. We also investigated if the number of uses, PUD and PD predict palm threat level. Species covered by IUCN Red List have lower PUD and PD than expected by chance. At global scale, palms with higher extinction risk have lower number of uses, PUD and PD. However, whereas in Colombia least concern species had lower PUD and PD, in Madagascar only Data Deficient species had lower PUD than expected by chance. Our findings highlight the need of palm specialists to expand the list of palms they have assessed and submit them for inclusion in Red Lists, enabling Red Lists to capture a more random sample of palm evolutionary history and economic uses. That would improve the success of biodiversity conservation actions by taking into account other aspects of biodiversity rather than taxonomic identity.

Chihuahua is Mexico’s largest state, and its physiographic complexity affects the distribution of its herpetofauna. We list amphibians and reptiles for the state of Chihuahua, with their conservation status. We also compare this list to those of six adjoining states in the United States and Mexico (New Mexico, Texas, Coahuila, Durango, Sinaloa, and Sonora). A total of 175 species of amphibians and reptiles is found in Chihuahua. Thirty-eight are amphibians, and 137 reptiles. Chihuahuan amphibians and reptiles represent just over 37% of such species from Chihuahua and neighboring states. Chihuahua shares the highest proportion of its herpetofauna with Sonora and Durango. Most of the herpetofauna of Chihuahua falls in IUCNs least concern category and is not listed by SEMARNAT. However, turtles in Chihuahua are a group of particular conservation concern.

Rising rates of extinction create an urgent need to identify the mechanisms and drivers of endangerment. One critical question is whether major phylogenetic lineages are equally at risk to the same threats. We used the IUCN Red List classification to explore the effect of four major threatening processes (habitat alteration, invasive species, climate change and overexploitation) on 7,441 species in four terrestrial vertebrate Classes. As expected, species rated as vulnerable to a higher number of threats were also at greater risk of extinction. However, this pattern differed strongly among Classes. Notably, invasive species and climate change were strongly associated with increased risk of extinction in birds but not mammals. These large-scale differences might be artefacts of differing methodologies used by Class specialists to classify species vulnerability; or might reflect biological differences. That ambiguity needs to be resolved, because it has strong implications for the assessment and amelioration of threatening processes. This article is protected by copyright. All rights reserved

Small body size is generally correlated with r-selected life-history traits, including early maturation, short-generation times, and rapid growth rates, that result in high population turnover and a reduced risk of extinction. Unlike other classes of vertebrates, however, small freshwater fishes appear to have an equal or greater risk of extinction than large fishes. We explored whether particular traits explain the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) Red List conservation status of small-bodied freshwater fishes from 4 temperate river basins: Murray-Darling, Australia; Danube, Europe; Mississippi-Missouri, North America; and the Rio Grande, North America. Twenty-three ecological and life-history traits were collated for all 171 freshwater fishes of ≤120 mm total length. We used generalized linear mixed-effects models to assess which combination of the 23 traits best explained whether a species was threatened or not threatened. We used the best models to predict the probability of 29 unclassified species being listed as threatened. With and without controlling for phylogeny at the family level, small body size-among small-bodied species-was the most influential trait correlated with threatened species listings. The k-folds cross-validation demonstrated that body size and a random effect structure that included family predicted the threat status with an accuracy of 78% (SE 0.5). We identified 10 species likely to be threatened that are not listed as such on the IUCN Red List. Small body size is not a trait that provides universal resistance to extinction, particularly for vertebrates inhabiting environments affected by extreme habitat loss and fragmentation. We hypothesize that this is because small-bodied species have smaller home ranges, lower dispersal capabilities, and heightened ecological specialization relative to larger vertebrates. Trait data and further model development are needed to predict the IUCN conservation status of the over 11,000 unclassified freshwater fishes, especially those under threat from proposed dam construction in the world's most biodiverse river basins.

Vipers are among the most misunderstood and persecuted animals. They occupy most terrestrial ecosystems around the world, often at high population densities. However, certain aspects of their biology (e.g., low fecundity and slow growth) have resulted in vipers being disproportionately threatened by extinction. Despite increased extinction risk, relatively little is known about viper biology, severely limiting the development and implementation of conservation initiatives. Here, we review the conservation status of vipers globally, map species richness, and develop three indices (one reactive; one proactive; one combined index emphasising irreplaceable species facing severe threats) to identify species for which conservation action should be prioritised. Moreover, we map species richness weighted by each index to identify regions for conservation prioritisation. We ranked prioritisation scores for all species for which data were available. In doing so we identify species for which valuable data are missing and that should be prioritised for research. We additionally show that 17 species, currently listed as Not Assessed or Data Deficient by the IUCN, score sufficiently high on our Threat Index to be considered as Threatened in the future. We identify multiple regions for which viper conservation action should be prioritised. These areas broadly correlate with species richness patterns, suggesting that species richness may be an effective proxy for conservation planning. Finally, we discuss the major gaps in knowledge, as well as the major threats facing vipers.

We have no information on the risk of extinction of 21% of reptiles listed as Data Deficient on the Sampled Red List Index (SRLI), an indicator developed to track global change in species status. Data Deficient species are of high research priority, because they contribute to uncertainty in estimates of extinction risk and are neglected by conservation programmes. We review the causes of data deficiency in reptiles; the likely status of Data Deficient reptiles; and possible solutions for their re-assessment. We find that 52% of Data Deficient reptiles lack information on population status and trends, and that few species are only known from type specimens and old records. We build a random forest model for SRLI species of known extinction risk, based on life-history, environmental and threat information. The final model shows perfect classification accuracy (100%) in ten-fold cross validation. We use the model to predict that 56 of 292 Data Deficient reptiles (19%) are at risk of extinction, so the overall proportion of threatened reptiles in the SRLI (19%) remains unchanged. Regions predicted to contain large numbers of threatened Data Deficient reptiles overlap with known centres of threatened species richness. However, the model shows lower accuracy (79%) on 29 species recently re-assessed in the Global Reptile Assessment. Predictive models could be used to prioritize Data Deficient species and reptiles not included in the SRLI, and new reptile assessments could be used to improve model predictions through adaptive learning.

Reptiles represent the world's most diverse group of terrestrial vertebrates (~ 10,300 recognized species). Knowledge of their conservation status, however, lags behind that of birds, mammals and amphibians. Only ~ 40% of the world's reptile species have had their conservation status assessed by the IUCN, and detailed analysis of extinction risk has been limited to a subset of 1500 species. Using lizards (Sauria and Amphisbaenia), the most diverse group of reptiles, we investigated whether biases in distribution, ecology, life-history and taxonomy exist in the species that have been assessed to date by the IUCN. Our results highlight that only 36% of the ~ 6300 described lizard species have had their conservation status assessed. Whilst data deficiency is a key concern in lizards (16% of assessed species), the large number of non-assessed species (~ 4000 species) represents a larger and more pressing issue. Accentuating this ‘assessment gap’ is the fact that biases exist in the subset of lizard species that have been assessed by the IUCN. Australia and Asia, as well as tropical areas in general, were the least assessed regions. Assessed lizard species were more likely to have larger body and clutch sizes, broader distributional and elevational ranges, occur at more northerly latitudes, and have a viviparous mode of reproduction. Some evidence suggests that they also tend to be diurnal, surface active, and with developed limbs. The level of assessment also differed significantly among lizard families and higher taxa. We recommend the implementation of an integrated approach to bridge the ‘assessment gap’ in lizards, involving regional and taxon-specific working groups associated with the IUCN's Global Reptile Assessment, predictive modelling, enhanced knowledge of lizard distribution and biology, and improved taxonomic methods.

Macroevolutionary rates of diversification and anthropogenic extinction risk differ vastly throughout the Tree of Life. This results in a highly heterogeneous distribution of Evolutionary distinctiveness (ED) and threat status among species. We examine the phylogenetic distribution of ED and threat status for squamates (amphisbaenians, lizards, and snakes) using fully-sampled phylogenies containing 9574 species and expert-based estimates of threat status for ~ 4000 species. We ask whether threatened species are more closely related than would be expected by chance and whether high-risk species represent a disproportionate amount of total evolutionary history. We found currently-assessed threat status to be phylogenetically clustered at broad level in Squamata, suggesting it is critical to assess extinction risks for close relatives of threatened lineages. Our findings show no association between threat status and ED, suggesting that future extinctions may not result in a disproportionate loss of evolutionary history. Lizards in degraded tropical regions (e.g., Madagascar, India, Australia, and the West Indies) seem to be at particular risk. A low number of threatened high-ED species in areas like the Amazon, Borneo, and Papua New Guinea may be due to a dearth of adequate risk assessments. It seems we have not yet reached a tipping point of extinction risk affecting a majority of species; 63% of the assessed species are not threatened and 56% are Least Concern. Nonetheless, our results show that immediate efforts should focus on geckos, iguanas, and chameleons, representing 67% of high-ED threatened species and 57% of Unassessed high-ED lineages.

Amphibian decline has led to worldwide conservation efforts, including the identification and designation of sites for their protection. These sites could also play an important role in the conservation of other freshwater taxa. In 89 ponds in Switzerland, we assessed the effectiveness of amphibians as a surrogate for 4 taxonomic groups that occur in the same freshwater ecosystems as amphibians: dragonflies, aquatic beetles, aquatic gastropods, and aquatic plants. The ponds were all of high value for amphibian conservation. Cross-taxon correlations were tested for species richness and conservation value, and Mantel tests were used to investigate community congruence. Species richness, conservation value, and community composition of amphibians were weakly congruent with these measures for the other taxonomic groups. Paired comparisons for the 5 groups considered showed that for each metric, amphibians had the lowest degree of congruence. Our results imply that site designation for amphibian conservation will not necessarily provide protection for freshwater biodiversity as a whole. To provide adequate protection for freshwater species, we recommend other taxonomic groups be considered in addition to amphibians in the prioritization and site designation process.

Identification, understanding and prediction of the factors that drive species to heightened risk of extinction are important goals for conservation, especially since few areas on the planet remain unaffected by human activities. Global extinction risk assessments of an entire family of ecologically complex marine fishes (family: Sparidae), using the International Union for Conservation of Nature Red List process, showed that 8.6% (13 species) of sparids are threatened. Intense fishing pressure and habitat destruction are the main reasons for the observed population declines. A further 7.9% (12 species) are classified as Near Threatened. The majority of the sparids (69.5%) are assessed as Least Concern, and these tended to have smaller body sizes, more widespread distributions, and shorter life spans. The remaining 21 species (13.9%) are listed as Data Deficient. In addition to presenting the first global assessment of sparid extinction risk, a Random Forest model identified correlates of extinction risk in the Sparidae using 33 biological and threat variables. The model correctly classified up to 90% of Red List category placements and showed complex interactions between intrinsic and extrinsic predictors. Larger body size was the most important predictor of extinction risk. Sparids with greater maximum sizes, ages, and turnover rates are at higher extinction risk. Conversely, lower area of occupancy and depth limit confer elevated risk. This analysis adds to the growing body of predictive extinction risk models in marine fishes and presents an opportunity to identify and mitigate threats affecting similar groups of highly-valued and ecologically important marine fishes.

Background: Conservation relies on the strategic use of resources because monies for conservation action are limited, especially in developing countries. South Africa’s Frog Atlas project established a baseline for the country’s amphibian data and threat levels in 2004, and in 2009 a prioritisation exercise developed a strategy for conservation research. Objectives: In this article, we assess this strategy for conservation research. Method: We conducted a quantitative and qualitative assessment of research undertaken since the strategy was developed. Results: The strategy has produced a lasting impact on taxonomy, ecological studies, monitoring and capacity building. Publications in all areas have increased, but particularly in conservation ecology. Other indicators are increases in the numbers of locality records for target taxa, species descriptions and postgraduate degrees with amphibians as the principal topic. We document important milestones for South African amphibian conservation, including the first Biodiversity Management Plan for Species (BMP-S) for Hyperolius pickersgilli , a smart device app that uploads locality data to an open access database, 15 years of monitoring data and new amphibian identification books for adults and children. The Red List Index calculated for South African amphibians shows that the country’s species are becoming more threatened (a 1% reduction in 10 years), but a hindcasting exercise suggests that most of the damage was already done by 1990. We provide a checklist for 131 amphibian species in South Africa, of which 82 species are endemic. Conclusion: A strategy for conservation research was found to greatly augment the focus of research on South African frogs. A new strategy should focus on fewer taxa over meaningful time spans.

Background The IUCN Red List of Threatened Species is the most widely used information source on the extinction risk of species. One of the uses of the Red List is to evaluate and monitor the state of biodiversity and a possible approach for this purpose is the Red List Index (RLI). For many taxa, mainly hyperdiverse groups, it is not possible within available resources to assess all known species. In such cases, a random sample of species might be selected for assessment and the results derived from it extrapolated for the entire group - the Sampled Red List Index (SRLI). The current contribution is the final in four papers that will constitute the baseline of a future spider SRLI encompassing 200 species distributed across the world. New information A sample of 200 species of spiders were randomly selected from the World Spider Catalogue, an updated global database containing all recognised species names for the group. The selected species were classified taxonomically at the family level and the familes were ordered alphabetically. In this publication, we present the conservation profiles of 50 species belonging to the families alphabetically arranged between Scytodidae and Zoropsidae, which encompassed Scytodidae, Selenopidae, Sicariidae, Sparassidae, Tetrablemmidae, Tetragnathidae, Theraphosidae, Theridiidae, Theridiosomatidae, Thomisidae, Trochanteriidae, Zodariidae and Zoropsidae.

An enduring challenge in ecology is to characterise and understand species richness patterns in tropical regions. Species richness maps produced by stacking species distribution model (SDM) range maps could prove useful in this regard, but little attention has been given to this approach. Here we generate a species richness map by stacking the ranges of 86 Mesoamerican fern species modelled by MaxEnt from field data collected by the Sampled Red List Index for Plants project. Predicted species richness showed a hump-backed relationship with elevation, peaking at mid-elevation (1800–2000 m). A remarkably similar pattern was observed in a field survey conducted to validate the approach. Predicted species richness was also low in sites with high water deficits, as previously shown in the fern literature. Beta-diversity in the lowlands was greatest between sites with strongly contrasting water deficits, further emphasising the importance of this environmental variable. The stacked SDM approach was thus able to reproduce broad biogeographical patterns of species richness, despite many of the fern species being represented by fewer than 20 samples. Keywords: MaxEnt, Mesoamerican ferns, Sampled red list index (SRLI), Species distribution models (SDMs)

Conservation actions, such as habitat protection, attempt to halt the loss of threatened species and help their populations recover. The efficiency and the effectiveness of actions have been examined individually. However, conservation actions generally occur simultaneously, so the full suite of implemented conservation actions should be assessed. We used the conservation actions underway for all threatened and near-threatened birds of the world (International Union for Conservation of Nature Red List of Threatened Species) to assess which biological (related to taxonomy and ecology) and anthropogenic (related to geoeconomics) factors were associated with the implementation of different classes of conservation actions. We also assessed which conservation actions were associated with population increases in the species targeted. Extinction-risk category was the strongest single predictor of the type of conservation actions implemented, followed by landmass type (continent, oceanic island, etc.) and generation length. Species targeted by invasive nonnative species control or eradication programs, ex situ conservation, international legislation, reintroduction, or education, and awareness-raising activities were more likely to have increasing populations. These results illustrate the importance of developing a predictive science of conservation actions and the relative benefits of each class of implemented conservation action for threatened and near-threatened birds worldwide.

Environmental pollution has an especially high impact on wildlife. This is especially the case in industrialized countries. Although, many species within the European Union benefit from protection by the Habitats Directive, no special consideration is given to possible detrimental effects of pesticides. This is in particular remarkable as negative effects, which may lead to a regional diversity loss, have already been identified in laboratory and mesocosm studies. We conducted a pesticide exposure risk evaluation for all European reptile species with sufficient literature data on the considered biological and ecological aspects and occurrence data within agricultural areas with regular pesticide applications (102 out of 141). By using three evaluation factors - (i) pesticide exposure, (ii) physiology and (iii) life history - a taxon-specific pesticide exposure risk factor (ERF) was created. The results suggest that about half of all evaluated species, and thus at least 1/3 of all European species exhibited a high exposure risk. At the same time, two of them (Mauremys leprosa and Testudo graeca) are globally classified as threatened with extinction in the IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. Variation regarding species occurrence in exposed landscapes between pesticide admission zones within the EU is rather large. This variation is mainly caused by differing land use and species abundances between zones. At the taxonomic level, significant differences in exposure risk can be observed between threatened and non-threatened species, which can be explained by the formers remote distribution areas. Lizards display the highest sensitivity toward pesticides, although no differences in overall ERFs can be observed between taxonomic groups. By identifying species at above-average risk to pesticide exposure, species-based risk evaluations can improve conservation actions for reptiles from cultivated landscapes.

Current rates of species endangerment and extinction are unprecedented in modern times. Conservation efforts aim to slow down, stop, and reverse threats to species and thus the current loss of biodiversity. However, the extinction risk to species continues to rise. Thus far, research has examined the efficiency and the effectiveness of conservation actions individually, yet, the full suite of implemented conservation actions should be considered. We assessed all implemented conservation actions for avian species listed under the Endangered Species Act (ESA) in the United States. Using data available through the US Fish and Wildlife Service (USFWS) we assessed the relationships between conservation actions implemented, population trends, and financial expenditures for all listed species each year between 1996 and 2013. We found positive associations between the amount of funding allocated for a species and their population trend. Implementation of the conservation actions habitat protection and educational awareness were positively associated with annual funding for a species. Our results highlight the disparity in conservation action implementation and resource allocation between ESA listed species on the mainland and on islands in the USA. Together these results and the cause and effect relationships they suggest could provide a pathway toward more effective conservation programs.

Determining species extinction risk and its drivers is a major goal for conservation biology. The IUCN Red List is widely used for classifying extinction-risk and prioritizing conservation action. However, this system has been acknowledged as biased and complementary approaches are strongly recommended to achieve more reliable conclusions on conservation priorities. Species traits, often perceived as determinant for resiliency to disturbances, have been used to identify potentially vulnerable species, even when data are scarce (e.g. Data Deficient species). We provide an integrative and cost-effective framework for predicting species extinction-risk using data on 195 anurans from the Brazilian Cerrado. We used IUCN population trend and expert-perceived vulnerability to habitat alteration as response variables, to identify traits associated to increased extinction-risk. We used species traits, threat pressure and geographic range to determine which species and areas should have higher conservation priority. We found the IUCN extinction-risk to be underestimated, as many species categorized as LC or DD are actually sensitive and/or declining. We identified breeding site, habitat and clutch size as predictors of anuran extinction risk. We found that > 70% of the biome's anurans have major protection gaps, incurring in high extinction-risk. The southwest and central regions of the biome are the main hotspots for high extinction-risk species and should be prioritized for conservation. Our framework may be particularly valuable to assess extinction-risk and prioritize conservation action regarding less studied taxa and regions with high anthropogenic pressure, but weak government support and scarce funding.

Groupers are highly susceptible to human-induced impacts, making them one of the most threatened fish families globally. Extinction risk assessments are important in endangered threatened species management, however the most comprehensive—the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) Red List—cannot classify approximately one-third of grouper species due to data deficiency. We used an ordinal analytical approach to model relationships between species-level traits and extinction risk categories. We found that larger species and those with shallower maximum depths and smaller geographic ranges had higher extinction risk. Using our best fitting model, we classified data deficient grouper species into IUCN's extinction risk categories based on traits. Most of these species were predicted to be of least concern. However, 12% were predicted to be endangered or vulnerable, suggesting that they may be of conservation interest. Importantly, we provide a quantitative method for overcoming data gaps that can be applied to conservation of other species.

The subterranean amphipod genus Bactrurus (Amphipoda: Crangonyctidae) is comprised of eight species that occur in groundwater habitats in karst and glacial deposits of the central and eastern United States. We reexamine the distribution, biogeography, and conservation status of Bactrurus in light of new species distribution records and divergence time estimates in the genus from a recent molecular study. In particular, we discuss hypotheses regarding the distribution and dispersal of B. mucronatus and B. brachycaudus into previously glaciated regions of the Central Lowlands. We also conducted the first IUCN Red List conservation assessments and reassessed global NatureServe conservation ranks for each species. We identified 17 threats associated with increased extinction risk that vary in source, scope, and severity among species, with groundwater pollution being the most significant threat to all species. Our conservation assessments indicate that five of the eight species are at an elevated risk of extinction under IUCN Red List or NatureServe criteria, with one species (B. cellulanus) already extinct. However, none of the eight species are considered threatened or endangered by any state or federal agency. Significant knowledge gaps regarding the life history, ecology, and demography of each species exist. Given results of our conservation assessments and available information on threats to populations, we offer recommendations for conservation, management, and future research for each species.

One of the most common conservation strategies used to preserve threatened species is the establishment of protected areas (PAs), providing a maximum representation of biodiversity with the smallest possible cost. The Brazilian Atlantic Forest is one of the 35 global biodiversity hotspots for conservation priorities, having high rate of habitat loss, which is one of the main factors driving threatened amphibians to extinction. Considering that amphibians are the vertebrate group with the largest number of species geographically excluded from global PAs, gap analysis was employed to evaluate whether or not the PAs of the Brazilian Atlantic Forest safeguard the threatened amphibian species in this region. Species status were compared through the official list of threatened species of the Brazilian Fauna and occurrence maps were obtained from the IUCN (International Union for Conservation of Nature) Red List database. Thirty-eight threatened amphibian species were found, accounting for 17 critically endangered (CR), 10 endangered (EN), and 11 vulnerable (VU). The PAs distributed in the Brazilian Atlantic Forest corresponds to only 9 % of the region's entire area. This protected network covers only 30 % of the total geographical range of the assessed species. Besides, a shift in Brazil's environmental policy has led to PAs downgrading. Therefore, the maintenance of PAs integrity is essential, as well as further investment is necessary for the creation of new reserves, avoiding species loss and reducing the extinction risk of the threatened amphibian species in the Brazilian Atlantic Forest.

Alien species indicators provide vital information to the biodiversity policy sector on the status-quo and trends of biological invasions and on the efficacy of response measures. Applicable at different geographical scales and organizational levels, alien species indicators struggle with data availability and quality. Based on policy needs and previous work on the global scale, we here present a set of six alien species indicators for Europe, which capture complementary facets of biological invasions in Europe: (a) an combined index of invasion trends, (b) an indicator on pathways of invasions, (c) the Red List Index of Invasive Alien Species (IAS), (d) an indicator of IAS impacts on ecosystem services, (e) trends in incidence of livestock diseases and (f) an indicator on costs for alien species management and research. Each of these indicators has its particular strengths and shortcomings, but combined they allow for a nuanced understanding of the status and trends of biological invasions in Europe. We found that the scale and impact of biological invasions are steadily increasing across all impact indicators, although societal response in recent years has increased. The Red List Index is fit-for-purpose and demonstrates that overall extinction risks (here shown for amphibians in Europe) are increasing. Introduction pathway dynamics have changed, with some pathways decreasing in relevance (e.g., biological control agents) and others increasing (e.g., horticultural trade) providing a leverage for targeted policy and stakeholder response. The IAS indicators presented here for the first time on a continental basis serve as a starting point for future improvements, and as a basis for monitoring the efficacy of the recent EU legislation of IAS. This will need a better workflow for data collection and management. To achieve this, all main actors must work toward improving the interoperability among existing databases and between data holders.

The application of IUCN Red List criteria to oceanic islands often produces uniform species assignments to high-threat categories, but in some cases this may result from uncertainties in the data and overly precautionary attitudes to risk. We illustrate this problem using the endemic vascular flora of the Cape Verde archipelago, and show that changing risk tolerance along the precautionary-evidentiary gradient greatly affects conservation assessments. Most taxa qualified for threat categories due to small areas of occupancy, but while precautionary assessments classified 88.9% of 81 evaluated taxa as Critically Endangered, evidentiary assessments assigned taxa to a wider range of categories. Taxa with very small ranges and restricted to one–three islands were consistently considered Critically Endangered. Our results suggest that conservation assessments under uncertainty may benefit from a more evidentiary attitude, which seem to provide higher discrimination ability among taxa, thereby enhancing the contribution of Red List assessments to prioritize conservation action.

Although Rhododendron subg. Vireya, comprising 400 taxa, is one of the largest plant genera in Southeast Asia, with taxa found throughout the region, it has a significant conservation problem, with conservation status assessments in 2011 and 2015 placing 201 taxa in an IUCN Red List threat category. Plant conservation is driven by the Global Strategy for Plant Conservation, with Target 8 requiring 75 % of threatened plant taxa to be conserved in ex situ collections, by 2020. To date there has been limited analysis of conservation priorities for subg. Vireya, or any consideration of how its geographic characteristics, complex taxonomy, and existing ex situ collections might influence priorities. We analyse the IUCN Red List status of geographic origins and taxonomic sections within Rhododendron subg. Vireya, then determine the representation of those groups in cultivation in New Zealand and selected international collections. Using a set of ‘Red List’ and ‘not in cultivation’ factors, our analysis shows that geographic origins New Guinea, Sumatra and Sulawesi, and taxonomic sections Schistanthe: malesia, Schistanthe: euvireya, and Hadranthe (Phaeovireya) should have priority for both in situ and ex situ conservation. Of the 400 taxa, 245 (61 %) are in cultivation, and of the 201 Red List taxa, 80 (40 %) are in cultivation. Wild-source material is held for 218 taxa, including 66 Red List taxa. These analyses provide baseline data for development of a conservation strategy for Rhododendron subg. Vireya, and we propose six actions that should be included in that strategy.

There are 1,372 bird species, including 77 endemic species in China. The over-exploitation of resources, habitat loss, fragmentation, and environmental pollution challenges the conservation of Chi- nese birds. In order to comprehensively evaluate the status of threatened birds in China, the Red List of Vertebrates (Bird) in China, supported by the Ministry of Environmental Protection of the People's Re- public of China, was initiated. According to IUCN red list criteria, this evaluation was accomplished by 27 researchers following the steps: confirm the evaluated species, data collection, preliminary evalua- tion, preliminary check, interactive check and finalization. Our evaluation demonstrated that three spe- cies (white stork Ciconia ciconia, siberian spruce grouse Falcipennis falcipennis, and sarus crane Grus antigone) are characterized as Regionally Extinct (RE), 15 species among them are Critically Endan- gered (CR), 51 species are Endangered (EN), 80 species are Vulnerable (VU), 190 species are Near Threatened (NT), 876 species are characterized as of Least Concern (LC), and 157 species are Data De- ficient (DD). Overall, 146 bird species (10.6% of the birds of China) were threatened (including CR, EN, and VU), and of these, 29 endemic species (37.7%) were listed as threatened. The proportion of

We review the conservation status and threats to the endemic vascular flora of the Cape Verde islands, mostly based on the past two decades of collecting, literature review and herbarium specimens. The application of IUCN Red List criteria and categories using RAMAS software reveals that 78% of the endemic plants are threatened (29.3% Critically Endangered, 41.3% Endangered, 7.6% Vulnerable). Most of these endemics have a limited geographical range, and half of them have Areas of Occupancy and Extents of Occurrence of

The Finnish Red Lists from 2000 and 2010 were used to calculate for the first time the national Red List Index for the order Lepidoptera and different Lepidoptera families with data from 2245 species. We grouped species according to their primary habitats and analysed each habitat's RLI as well. The overall RLI was significantly negative, reflecting the worsening of the group as a whole in the country. A significant negative trend was found for families Tortricidae, Gelechiidae and Hesperiidae and for coastal habitats. We also report that 76 Lepidoptera species newly established a population in Finland between 2000 and 2010, probably expanding northwards driven by climate warming.

In International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) Red List assessments, extent of occurrence (EOO) is a key measure of extinction risk. However, the way assessors estimate EOO from maps of species’ distributions is inconsistent among assessments of different species and among major taxonomic groups. Assessors often estimate EOO from the area of mapped distribution, but these maps often exclude areas that are not habitat in idiosyncratic ways and are not created at the same spatial resolutions. We assessed the impact on extinction risk categories of applying different methods (minimum convex polygon, alpha hull) for estimating EOO for 21,763 species of mammals, birds, and amphibians. Overall, the percentage of threatened species requiring down listing to a lower category of threat (taking into account other Red List criteria under which they qualified) spanned 11–13% for all species combined (14–15% for mammals, 7–8% for birds, and 12–15% for amphibians). These down listings resulted from larger estimates of EOO and depended on the EOO calculation method. Using birds as an example, we found that 14% of threatened and near threatened species could require down listing based on the minimum convex polygon (MCP) approach, an approach that is now recommended by IUCN. Other metrics (such as alpha hull) had marginally smaller impacts. Our results suggest that uniformly applying the MCP approach may lead to a one-time down listing of hundreds of species but ultimately ensure consistency across assessments and realign the calculation of EOO with the theoretical basis on which the metric was founded.

Species richness, endemism, and threat status represent different biodiversity attributes important in identifying biodiversity hotspots and conservation priorities. Global distributions of areas with the most species overall, most endemic species, and most threatened species are often not coincident. Previous studies have only considered single patterns or have considered patterns separately, such that an integrated biodiversity index is needed for biodiversity assessment and conservation planning. Based on a comprehensive database of amphibian distributions in China, we analyzed the congruence of species richness (SR), endemic species richness (EMSR), IUCN threatened species richness (THSR), proportion of endemic species (%EM), and proportion of IUCN threatened species (%TH). To identify conservation priorities and protection gaps for Chinese amphibians, we explored an integrated indicator that simultaneously considered the five biodiversity patterns using principal component analyses. Although we found significant nonlinearities among SR, EMSR, and THSR patterns, their relationships to %EM and %TH were weak, and overlaps in hotspots of the five biodiversity types were limited. Our results showed that amphibian biodiversity hotspots are focused in southern, southwestern, and central China, and that the national protected area network is not effective in representing amphibian species distributions and addressing amphibian conservation priorities in China. The network is particularly ineffective in the south, which has the highest biodiversity in China, but small and insufficient protected areas. Policy, governance, and the protected area system must be revised and improved. We provide an integrated biodiversity indicator that can provide a reference for conservation priority setting for different taxa in other areas.

article i nfo Environmental contamination is supposed to be a reason for population declines in reptiles. Especially intensifi- cation and expansion of agriculture are leading to increased pesticide exposure risks for wildlife. In the European Union, Special Areas of Conservation (SACs) have been established for the conservation of taxa listed in Annex II of the Habitats Directive. In the SACs, agricultural land use is legal. Therefore, we conducted a risk evaluation of pesticide exposure for Annex II reptiles by calculating proportions of land use with regular pesticide applications within SACs. Using three evaluation factors (occurrence probability, physiology, life-history aspects), a species- specific risk index was created. Nearly half of the species at above-average risk by pesticide use are globally threatened with extinction (IUCN Red List of Threatened Species). About 30% of their SACs are agriculturally used and one priority subspecies of the Habitats Directive is at highest risk (Vipera ursinii rakosiensis). Also, all evaluated fresh-water and land-dwelling turtle species are at high risk. National variation in agricultural land use in the SACs was observed. Species at above-average risk are mainly distributed in the Mediterranean and Pannonian/Continental biogeographical regions of Europe. Conservation status according to the IUCN Red List of Threatened Species as well as national differences among the member states argue for the inclusion of pesti- cide risk assessments in site-specific management plans for SACs to avoid regional loss of reptilian biodiversity. © 2015 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Background The IUCN Red List of Threatened Species is the most widely used information source on the extinction risk of species. One of the uses of the Red List is to evaluate and monitor the state of biodiversity and a possible approach for this purpose is the Red List Index (RLI). For many taxa, mainly hyperdiverse groups, it is not possible within available resources to assess all known species. In such cases, a random sample of species might be selected for assessment and the results derived from it extrapolated for the entire group - the Sampled Red List Index (SRLI). The current contribution is the second in four papers that will constitute the baseline of a future spider SRLI encompassing 200 species distributed across the world. New information A sample of 200 species of spiders were randomly selected from the World Spider Catalogue, an updated global database containing all recognised species names for the group. The 200 selected species where divided taxonomically at the family level and the familes were ordered alphabetically. In this publication, we present the conservation profiles of 45 species belonging to the families alphabetically arranged between Gnaphosidae and Nemesiidae, which encompassed Gnaphosidae, ldiopidae, Linyphiidae, Liocranidae, Lycosidae, Micropholcommatidae, Mysmenidae and Nemesiidae.

Nearly one-fifth of all vertebrates are currently estimated to be threatened with extinction, with a range between 16% and 33%. There are two well-established means of understanding how status changes over time: monitoring changes in the abundance of populations and tracking change in extinction risk. Evidence indicates a decline of 58% in vertebrate population abundance over the last 42 years, for the former, while at least 52 species per year deteriorated by one IUCN Red List category between 1980 and 2008. As alarming as these observed trends are, they undoubtedly would have been worse in the absence of conservation actions. Ongoing work aims to improve existing metrics of change, and also their utility for projecting change into the future under various scenarios.

During a field course on spider taxonomy and ecology at the University of Helsinki, the authors had the opportunity to sample four plots with a dual objective of both teaching on field methods, spider identification and behaviour and uncovering the spider diversity patterns found in the southern coastal forests of Hankoniemi, Finland. As an ultimate goal, this field course intended to contribute to a global project that intends to uncover spider diversity patterns worldwide. With that purpose, a set of standardised methods and procedures was followed that allow the comparability of obtained data with numerous other projects being conducted across all continents. A total of 104 species and 1997 adults was collected. Of these, 41 species (39%) were Linyphiidae and 13 (12%) Theridiidae. All other families had 6 or less species represented. Linyphiidae were also dominant in terms of adult individuals captured, with 1015 (51%), followed by 428 (21%) Lycosidae, 158 (8%) Tetragnathidae and 145 (7%) Theridiidae. All other families had less than 100 individuals. The most abundant species were Neriene peltata, Alopecosa taeniata, Piratula hygrophila and Dismodicus elevatus, all with more than 100 individuals. All sites had between 56 and 62 species and between 445 and 569 individuals.

Peru supports approximately 588 amphibian species, of which 492 have been assessed on the IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. Of these, 111 are classified as Threatened, with 69 species classified as Critically Endangered or Endangered. In addition, 140 amphibian species remain Data Deficient. We re-assessed the conservation status of 38 amphibian species originally identified as potentially Threatened by von May et al. (2008), using the IUCN Red List Categories and Criteria. Fourteen species assessments changed as a result of re-assessment, of which eight changed from Data Deficient to Threatened; two changed from Data Deficient to Near Threatened and Least Concern respectively; two were up-listed from Least Concern to a Threatened status; two were down-listed. None of the changes were due to a known genuine change since the previous assessment. All changes were justified by an increase in knowledge. The eight species with a change from Data Deficient to a Threatened category belonged to four anuran families: Craugastoridae, Dendrobatidae, Hemiphractidae and Telmatobiidae. The reasons for a change in assessment status were: changes in taxonomy, distribution, population status, threat status, or previously incorrect information. The main threat affecting re-assessed amphibian species was habitat loss, with other threats including pollution, disease outbreaks, and collection for the pet trade. Only 53% of the re-assessed species were found to occur in a protected area. Findings of this study indicate the continuing fragility of many Peruvian amphibians and highlight the need for improving their protection and for further research into their population status and threats.

The International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) Red List includes 832 species listed as extinct since 1600, a minuscule fraction of total biodiversity. This extinction rate is of the same order of magnitude as the background rate and has been used to downplay the biodiversity crisis. Invertebrates comprise 99% of biodiversity, yet the status of a negligible number has been assessed. We assessed extinction in the Hawaiian land snail family Amastridae (325 species, IUCN lists 33 as extinct). We did not use the stringent IUCN criteria, by which most invertebrates would be considered data deficient, but a more realistic approach comparing historical collections with modern surveys and expert knowledge. Of the 325 Amastridae species, 43 were originally described as fossil or subfossil and were assumed to be extinct. Of the remaining 282, we evaluated 88 as extinct and 15 as extant and determined that 179 species had insufficient evidence of extinction (though most are probably extinct). Results of statistical assessment of extinction probabilities were consistent with our expert evaluations of levels of extinction. Modeling various extinction scenarios yielded extinction rates of 0.4-14.0% of the amastrid fauna per decade. The true rate of amastrid extinction has not been constant; generally, it has increased over time. We estimated a realistic average extinction rate as approximately 5%/decade since the first half of the nineteenth century. In general, oceanic island biotas are especially susceptible to extinction and global rate generalizations do not reflect this. Our approach could be used for other invertebrates, especially those with restricted ranges (e.g., islands), and such an approach may be the only way to evaluate invertebrates rapidly enough to keep up with ongoing extinction.

1. Cost-effective reduction of uncertainty in global biodiversity indicators is a central goal of conservation. Comprising a sixth of the 74,000+ species currently on the IUCN Red List, Data Deficient species contribute to considerable uncertainty in estimates of extinction risk. Estimating levels of risk in Data Deficient species will require large resources given the costs of surveys and Red List assessments. Predicting extinction risk from species traits and geographical information could provide a cheaper approach for determining the proportion of Data Deficient species at risk of extinction. 2. We use double sampling theory to compare the cost-effectiveness of predictive models and IUCN Red List assessments for estimating risk levels in Data Deficient terrestrial mammals, amphibians, reptiles and crayfish. For each group, we calibrate Machine Learning models of extinction risk on species of known conservation status, and assess their cost and reliability relative to field surveys followed by Red List assessments. 3. We show that regardless of model type used or species group examined, it is always more cost-effective to determine the conservation status of all species with models and assess a small proportion of species with IUCN criteria (double sampling), rather than spend the same resources on field surveys and Red List assessments alone (single sampling). 4. We estimate that surveying and re-assessing all Data Deficient species currently listed on the IUCN Red List (12,206 species) with IUCN criteria would cost a minimum of US $323 million. Double sampling reduces the cost of determining the proportion of Data Deficient species at risk of extinction by up to 68%, because less than 6% of Data Deficient species would need to be surveyed and assessed with IUCN criteria. 5. Synthesis and applications. Double sampling with models cost-effectively estimates extinction risk levels in poorly-known species, and can be used to reduce the impact of uncertainty in the Red List and Red List Index. We provide recommendations for uptake by managers and a sampling planner spreadsheet. Double sampling could be applied more widely in ecology and conservation to formally compare the cost-effectiveness of sampling methods differing in cost and reliability.

The knowledge on spiders of the Czech Republic has substantially improved since the second version of the national Red List was published, mainly due to large-scale field records and the establishment of an extensive, searchable electronic database of both retrospective and prospective records. Meanwhile, Central European spiders have undergone substantial changes in abundance and distribution. In this report, an updated Red List is presented and compared with the previous editions from 1992 and 2002, assessing all 879 spider species known to occur in the Czech Republic. For the first time, the abundance, area of occupancy and population trends were calculated for each of the species using the data from the Czech Arachnological Society recording scheme. Twenty-seven species (3% of the total) were classified as Regionally Extinct (RE), 92 (10%) as Critically Endangered, 115 (13%) as Endangered, 155 (18%) as Vulnerable, and 121 (14%) were classified as Least Concern species. Some species listed in the previous version of the Red List were found to live also in non-endangered habitats or to be more common than previously thought, and were thus removed from the list or reclassified to the lower Red List categories. Additionally, several species with dramatically decreasing abundance were identified, among them Ozyptila rauda, Agyneta equestris, Agyneta mollis, Kishidaia conspicua, Clubiona genevensis and Centromerus semiater. The results confirm that spiders are a highly threatened group of arthropods in the Czech Republic, and the updated Red List provides an important foundation for defining conservation priorities.

Biological invasion is one of the key threats to the conservation of the broader Antarctic region. We provide an evidence-based assessment of the status of biological invasion in the region as a basis for future monitoring and management. We adapted the indicator framework for global biological invasion monitoring by collating information on (i) numbers of alien species and those invasive species impacting biodiversity (ii) trends in the extinction risks of native species impacted by invasive species and (iii) trends in relevant agreements, management intention and species eradications. Drivers of invasion including risk-associated human activities and trends were also evaluated. The number and trends in activities associated with invasion risk are broadly distributed across the region and increasing. Over 560 alien species from a wide range of taxa occupy the region, concentrated largely on the Southern Ocean Islands, with a high proportion of these considered to be invasive and to have negative biodiversity impacts. There has been a decline in the conservation status of species in the region that are impacted by invasives. Although policy responses to deal with the problem have increased since the 1970s, as have the number of successful eradications, management implementation statistics are patchy and progress in this area less apparent. The Antarctic Biological Invasions Indicator (ABII) provides a system for information exchange across the region and a vehicle for targeted monitoring and surveillance. It also enables inclusion of the region in global efforts to track both IAS and interventions for managing the threat. In a region that appears particularly prone to impacts from alien species, substantial further effort is needed to implement and monitor the effectiveness of management responses.