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| RED LIST RELEASE LINKS MELTING ICECAPS, DYING DESERTS, EMPTY OCEANS |
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2006 saw the release of an expanded IUCN Red List of Threatened Species with 16,116 threatened species. This gargantuan effort of 7,000 experts remains the cornerstone of knowledge and information to plan conservation action and inform societies about their impact.
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The 2006 IUCN Red List showed a clear trend: the rate of biodiversity loss is increasing, not slowing down. That grave situation has far-reaching implications for the productivity and resilience of ecosystems and those who depend on them. Melting summer sea ice made polar bears a global warming casualty, with a predicted 30% population decline. Dying deserts are being emptied of diverse and specialized wildlife, almost unnoticed, from dama gazelle to scimitar-horned oryx. Of 547 shark and rays listed, 20% face extinction, confirming how slowgrowing species like angel shark and common skate are exceptionally susceptible to over-fishing and are disappearing at an unprecedented rate. Freshwater fish species fared even worse: 56% of the 252 endemic freshwater Mediterranean fish face extinction; in East Africa, human impacts on the freshwater environment threaten over one in four (28%) freshwater fish. Reversal is possible, but we need to wake up and take urgent conservation action. |
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