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Hochkirch A, Bilz M, Ferreira CC, Danielczak A, Allen D, Nieto A, Rondinini C, Harding K, Hilton-Taylor C, Pollock CM, Seddon M, Vié JC, Alexander KN, Beech E, Biscoito M, Braud Y, Burfield IJ, Buzzetti FM, Cálix M, Carpenter KE, Chao NL, Chobanov D, Christenhusz MJM, Collette BB, Comeros-Raynal MT, Cox N, Craig M, Cuttelod A, Darwall WRT, Dodelin B, Dulvy NK, Englefield E, Fay MF, Fettes N, Freyhof J, García S, Criado MG, Harvey M, Hodgetts N, Ieronymidou C, Kalkman VJ, Kell SP, Kemp J, Khela S, Lansdown RV, Lawson JM, Leaman DJ, Brehm JM, Maxted N, Miller RM, Neubert E, Odé B, Pollard D, Pollom R, Pople R, Presa Asensio JJ, Ralph GM, Rankou H, Rivers M, Roberts SPM, Russell B, Sennikov A, Soldati F, Staneva A, Stump E, Symes A, Telnov D, Temple H, Terry A, Timoshyna A, van Swaay C, Väre H, Walls RHL, Willemse L, Wilson B, Window J, Wright EGE, Zuna-Kratky T. A multi-taxon analysis of European Red Lists reveals major threats to biodiversity. PLoS One 2023; 18:e0293083. [PMID: 37939028 PMCID: PMC10631624 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0293083] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/16/2023] [Accepted: 10/04/2023] [Indexed: 11/10/2023] Open
Abstract
Biodiversity loss is a major global challenge and minimizing extinction rates is the goal of several multilateral environmental agreements. Policy decisions require comprehensive, spatially explicit information on species' distributions and threats. We present an analysis of the conservation status of 14,669 European terrestrial, freshwater and marine species (ca. 10% of the continental fauna and flora), including all vertebrates and selected groups of invertebrates and plants. Our results reveal that 19% of European species are threatened with extinction, with higher extinction risks for plants (27%) and invertebrates (24%) compared to vertebrates (18%). These numbers exceed recent IPBES (Intergovernmental Platform on Biodiversity and Ecosystem Services) assumptions of extinction risk. Changes in agricultural practices and associated habitat loss, overharvesting, pollution and development are major threats to biodiversity. Maintaining and restoring sustainable land and water use practices is crucial to minimize future biodiversity declines.
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Affiliation(s)
- Axel Hochkirch
- Musée National d’Histoire Naturelle, Luxembourg, Luxembourg
- Department of Biogeography, Trier University, Trier, Germany
- IUCN SSC Invertebrate Conservation Committee, Trier, Germany
- IUCN SSC Steering Committee, Caracas, Venezuela
- IUCN SSC Grasshopper Specialist Group, Trier, Germany
| | - Melanie Bilz
- Institute of Landscape Architecture and Environmental Planning, Technische Universität Berlin, Berlin, Germany
- IUCN SSC Freshwater Plant Specialist Group, Stroud, United Kingdom
- IUCN European Regional Office, Brussels, Belgium
| | - Catarina C. Ferreira
- IUCN European Regional Office, Brussels, Belgium
- UFZ—Helmholtz Centre for Environmental Research, Department of Conservation Biology, Leipzig, Germany
| | - Anja Danielczak
- Department of Biogeography, Trier University, Trier, Germany
| | - David Allen
- IUCN, Biodiversity Assessment and Knowledge Team, Cambridge, United Kingdom
| | - Ana Nieto
- IUCN European Regional Office, Brussels, Belgium
- IUCN, Species Conservation Action Team, Gland, Switzerland
| | - Carlo Rondinini
- Global Mammal Assessment program, Department of Biology and Biotechnologies, Sapienza University of Rome; Rome, Italy
- Global Wildlife Conservation Center, State University of New York College of Environmental Science and Forestry, Syracuse, NY, United States of America
| | - Kate Harding
- IUCN, Biodiversity Assessment and Knowledge Team, Cambridge, United Kingdom
| | | | | | - Mary Seddon
- IUCN SSC Invertebrate Conservation Committee, Trier, Germany
- IUCN SSC Mollusc Specialist Group, Devon, United Kingdom
| | - Jean-Christophe Vié
- IUCN SSC Steering Committee, Caracas, Venezuela
- Fondation Franklinia, Genève, Switzerland
- IUCN SSC Plant Conservation Committee, Pretoria, South Africa
| | | | - Emily Beech
- Botanic Gardens Conservation International, Richmond, United Kingdom
| | - Manuel Biscoito
- Funchal Natural History Museum, Funchal, Portugal
- MARE-Marine and Environmental Sciences Centre, Lisboa, Portugal
| | - Yoan Braud
- IUCN SSC Grasshopper Specialist Group, Trier, Germany
| | - Ian J. Burfield
- BirdLife International, Cambridge, United Kingdom
- IUCN SSC Red List Authority for Birds, Cambridge, United Kingdom
| | - Filippo Maria Buzzetti
- IUCN SSC Grasshopper Specialist Group, Trier, Germany
- Fondazione Museo Civico di Rovereto, Sezione Zoologia, Rovereto, Italy
| | - Marta Cálix
- IUCN European Regional Office, Brussels, Belgium
- Rewilding Portugal, Guarda, Portugal
| | - Kent E. Carpenter
- IUCN Marine Biodiversity Unit, Biological Sciences, Norfolk, VA, United States of America
| | | | - Dragan Chobanov
- IUCN SSC Grasshopper Specialist Group, Trier, Germany
- Institute of Biodiversity and Ecosystem Research, Bulgarian Academy of Sciences, Sofia, Bulgaria
| | | | - Bruce B. Collette
- IUCN Tuna and Billfish Specialist Group, National Museum of Natural History, Washington, DC, United States of America
| | - Mia T. Comeros-Raynal
- ARC Centre of Excellence for Coral Reef Studies, James Cook University, Townsville, Australia
- Water Resources Research Center, University of Hawai’i, Honolulu, HI, United States of America
| | - Neil Cox
- IUCN-Conservation International Biodiversity Assessment Unit, Washington, DC, United States of America
| | - Matthew Craig
- National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, National Marine Fisheries Service, Southwest Fisheries Science Center, La Jolla, CA, United States of America
| | - Annabelle Cuttelod
- IUCN Red List Unit, IUCN Global Species Programme, Cambridge, United Kingdom
| | | | - Benoit Dodelin
- IUCN Specialist Adviser on European Saproxylic Beetles, Truro, United Kingdom
| | - Nicholas K. Dulvy
- Earth to Ocean Research Group, Department of Biological Sciences, Simon Fraser University, Burnaby, Canada
| | - Eve Englefield
- IUCN European Regional Office, Brussels, Belgium
- Joint Nature Conservation Committee, Peterborough, United Kingdom
| | - Michael F. Fay
- IUCN SSC Orchid Specialist Group, Royal Botanic Gardens; Richmond, United Kingdom
| | - Nicholas Fettes
- IUCN European Regional Office, Brussels, Belgium
- Scott Cawley, Dublin, Ireland
| | - Jörg Freyhof
- Museum für Naturkunde, Leibniz Institute for Evolution and Biodiversity Science, Berlin, Germany
| | | | - Mariana García Criado
- IUCN European Regional Office, Brussels, Belgium
- School of Geosciences, The University of Edinburgh, Edinburgh, United Kingdom
| | - Michael Harvey
- IUCN Marine Biodiversity Unit, Biological Sciences, Norfolk, VA, United States of America
| | - Nick Hodgetts
- European Committee for the Conservation of Bryophytes, Portree, United Kingdom
| | | | | | - Shelagh P. Kell
- The University of Birmingham, School of Biosciences, Birmingham, United Kingdom
| | - James Kemp
- IUCN European Regional Office, Brussels, Belgium
| | - Sonia Khela
- IUCN SSC Cave Invertebrate Specialist Group, Cambridge, United Kingdom
| | | | - Julia M. Lawson
- IUCN Red List Unit, IUCN Global Species Programme, Cambridge, United Kingdom
- Bren School of Environmental Science & Management, University of California, Santa Barbara, Santa Barbara, CA, United States of America
| | | | - Joana Magos Brehm
- The University of Birmingham, School of Biosciences, Birmingham, United Kingdom
- IUCN SSC Crop Wild Relative Specialist Group, Birmingham, United Kingdom
| | - Nigel Maxted
- The University of Birmingham, School of Biosciences, Birmingham, United Kingdom
| | - Rebecca M. Miller
- IUCN Red List Unit, IUCN Global Species Programme, Cambridge, United Kingdom
| | | | - Baudewijn Odé
- IUCN SSC Grasshopper Specialist Group, Trier, Germany
- FLORON Plant Conservation Netherlands, Nijmegen, Netherlands
| | - David Pollard
- Department of Ichthyology, Australian Museum, Sydney, Australia
| | - Riley Pollom
- Species Recovery Program, Seattle Aquarium, Seattle, WA, United States of America
| | - Rob Pople
- BirdLife International, Cambridge, United Kingdom
| | | | - Gina M. Ralph
- IUCN Marine Biodiversity Unit, Biological Sciences, Norfolk, VA, United States of America
| | - Hassan Rankou
- IUCN SSC Orchid Specialist Group, Royal Botanic Gardens; Richmond, United Kingdom
| | - Malin Rivers
- Botanic Gardens Conservation International, Richmond, United Kingdom
- IUCN SSC Global Tree Specialist Group, Richmond, United Kingdom
| | - Stuart P. M. Roberts
- Department of Agroecology, Université Libre de Bruxelles (ULB), Brussels, Belgium
| | - Barry Russell
- IUCN Snapper, Seabream and Grunt Specialist Group, Museum and Art Gallery of the Northern Territory, Darwin, Australia
| | - Alexander Sennikov
- Botanical Museum, Finnish Museum of Natural History, University of Helsinki, Helsinki, Finland
| | - Fabien Soldati
- Office National des Forêts, Laboratoire National d’Entomologie Forestière, Quillan, France
| | - Anna Staneva
- BirdLife International, Cambridge, United Kingdom
| | - Emilie Stump
- IUCN Marine Biodiversity Unit, Biological Sciences, Norfolk, VA, United States of America
| | - Andy Symes
- BirdLife International, Cambridge, United Kingdom
| | - Dmitry Telnov
- Natural History Museum, Department of Life Sciences, London, United Kingdom
- Coleopterological Research Center, Institute of Life Sciences and Technology, Daugavpils University, Daugavpils, Latvia
- Institute of Biology, University of Latvia, Rīga, Latvia
| | - Helen Temple
- The Biodiversity Consultancy, Cambridge, United Kingdom
| | - Andrew Terry
- Zoological Society of London, London, United Kingdom
| | - Anastasiya Timoshyna
- IUCN SSC Medicinal Plant Specialist Group, Ottawa, Canada
- TRAFFIC, Cambridge, United Kingdom
| | - Chris van Swaay
- Vlinderstichting (Dutch Butterfly Conservation), Wageningen, Netherlands
| | - Henry Väre
- Botanical Museum, Finnish Museum of Natural History, University of Helsinki, Helsinki, Finland
| | - Rachel H. L. Walls
- Reef Environmental Education Foundation, Key Largo, FL, United States of America
| | - Luc Willemse
- IUCN SSC Grasshopper Specialist Group, Trier, Germany
- Naturalis Biodiversity Center, Leiden, The Netherlands
| | - Brett Wilson
- Department of Plant Sciences, University of Cambridge, Cambridge, United Kingdom
| | - Jemma Window
- IUCN, Biodiversity Assessment and Knowledge Team, Cambridge, United Kingdom
| | | | - Thomas Zuna-Kratky
- IUCN SSC Grasshopper Specialist Group, Trier, Germany
- Ingenieurbüro für Landschaftsplanung und Landschaftspflege, Vienna, Austria
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