The ‘Red List of Threatened Species’ published by the International Union for Conservation of Nature and Natural Resources, based in Gland, Switzerland, is an expert report that was first published in 1966. It currently covers 172,620 animal and plant species and lists the degree of threat in an index.
The IUCN Red List is valid worldwide and currently contains 48,600 species that are threatened with extinction. In addition to the IUCN, other international organizations, states, and federal states also publish similar lists, which are also referred to as “red lists.” These usually apply to a regional area (e.g., a federal state).
In Germany, several red lists are published by the Federal Agency for Nature Conservation. In addition, all federal states publish their own red lists. These serve as a source of information for authorities and legislators. In Austria, the national lists are published by the Federal Environment Agency. Here, too, some federal states publish their own red lists. In Switzerland, the national red lists are published by the Federal Office for the Environment and have been part of the Federal Ordinance on Nature and Landscape Conservation since 1991. In addition, more and more countries are compiling their own red lists.
Many red lists initially used their own classifications. However, the IUCN threat categories are increasingly being adopted in order to simplify the comparability of results.
Classification according to IUCN
- EX = extinct
- EW = extinct in the wild
- CR = critically endangered
- EN = endangered
- VU = vulnerable
- NT = near threatened
- LC = least concern
The species listed in the CR, EN, and VU categories are collectively designated as ‘endangered species’ by the IUCN.
In addition, there are the categories DD (data deficient) and NE (not evaluated).
