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Lost or Extinct? Study Finds the Existence of 562 Animal Species Remains Uncertain

Rejected submission by hubie at 2022-05-20 04:18:51 from the missing you since you went away dept.
Science

Study finds the existence of 562 animal species remains uncertain [www.sfu.ca]:

An international study provides the first global evaluation of all terrestrial vertebrate species that have not been declared extinct and identifies more than 500 species considered to be ‘lost’—those that haven’t been seen by anyone in more than 50 years.

Researchers reviewed information on 32,802 species from the International Union for Conservation of Nature Red List of Threatened Species (IUCN Red List) and identified 562 lost species. Their findings appear in the journal Animal Conservation [wiley.com].

[...] A total of 311 terrestrial vertebrate species have been declared extinct since 1500, meaning 80 per cent more species are considered lost than have been declared extinct.

[...] The authors suggest that future survey efforts concentrate on the identified ‘hotspots’ where the existence of many particular species remains in question. More funding would be needed to support such hotspot-targeted fieldwork to either rediscover lost species or to remove the reasonable doubt that a particular lost species does, in fact, still exist.

Journal Reference:
T.E. Martin et al., 'Lost' taxa and their conservation implications, Animal Conservation, 2022
DOI: 10.1111/acv.12788 [doi.org]


Original Submission