An endangered species is a taxonomic group (typically at the species level) that faces a very high risk of extinction in the near future across all or a significant portion of its range, as determined by quantitative assessment criteria such as population size, rate of decline, geographic range, and degree of habitat fragmentation. In conservation biology and environmental policy, endangered status guides prioritization of management actions, legal protections, and resource allocation. Scientific evaluation commonly uses standardized frameworks (e.g., formal Red List–type criteria) based on demographic trends, reproductive rates, and known or projected threats, including habitat loss, overexploitation, invasive species, pollution, and climate change.
A new study has revealed a "hidden extinction crisis" in China's flora, showing that habitat decline over the past four decades has sharply increased extinction risks nationwide. The findings, published in One Earth on September ...
Plants & Animals
Sep 3, 2025
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North Korea is notorious for its illicit trade in weapons and narcotics. But a new investigation that I conducted with colleagues in the UK and Norway reveals a new concern: the illegal trade in wildlife, including species ...
Ecology
Sep 2, 2025
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International researchers have taken an in-depth look at three Aotearoa New Zealand crested penguin species, revealing one is thriving while others face uncertain futures.
Plants & Animals
Aug 29, 2025
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More than 350 frogs made the leap back into the Southern California wilderness this month, part of an effort from the Birch Aquarium and other regional partners to reintroduce an endangered species to its home waters.
Plants & Animals
Aug 28, 2025
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Whale sharks, the largest living fish species, are classified as endangered on the IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. Over the past 75 years, populations have declined by more than 50% worldwide, and by up to 63% in the ...
Plants & Animals
Aug 28, 2025
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All eight known pangolin species remain at high risk of extinction due to over-exploitation and loss of habitat, conservationists warned Wednesday, warning knowledge gaps were hampering protection efforts.
Plants & Animals
Aug 27, 2025
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Humans could learn a thing or two from orangutans when it comes to maintaining a balanced, protein-filled diet. Great apes native to the rainforests of Indonesia and Malaysia, orangutans are marvels of adaptation to the vagaries ...
Plants & Animals
Aug 27, 2025
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The international BioRescue consortium has entered new grounds in its mission to save the northern white rhinoceros (NWR, Ceratotherium simum cottoni) from extinction. Since the beginning of the year, it has produced three ...
Plants & Animals
Aug 26, 2025
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Endangered Pacific pocket mice, native to Southern California, were once thought to be extinct until a tiny remnant population was rediscovered in the mid-1990s.
Plants & Animals
Aug 21, 2025
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Lessons from extinction could help protect the bears of today. New research reveals that the now-extinct cave bear was much more adaptable than once thought yet was still made extinct when faced with the combined pressures ...
Plants & Animals
Aug 20, 2025
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