Scientists call for action to stop extinction

A study of more than 25,000 vertebrate species on the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) red list of threatened species found the number at risk of extinction was increasing.

According to the research in the journal Science, on average 52 species of mammals, birds and amphibians slide a step closer to extinction each year, moving into a more threatened category on the red list.

But without conservation action the situation would be much worse, with an additional 20 per cent of species affected, the scientists estimated.

Work to conserve species has helped a number of animals turn their fortunes round, from the black-footed ferret, which became extinct in the wild before being reintroduced in the US, to the white rhino and the humpback whale.

According to the IUCN red list, which assesses species on the level of extinction risk they face and considers them threatened if they fall into the categories of vulnerable, endangered or critically endangered, 19 per cent of vertebrates are threatened.

The percentage of each group under threat ranged from 13 per cent of birds to 41 per cent of amphibians, the study found.

But 64 species had seen an improvement in their status as a result of work to help protect them and their habitat. Others have not have not seen their status improve as a result of conservation but without it they would be declining or, in some cases, have become extinct.

Report author Dr Simon Stuart, chairman of the IUCN's species survival commission, said history showed "conservation can achieve the impossible", such as with the white rhino in southern Africa, but warned long-term investment is needed to prevent species disappearing; action has been under way for 30 years to protect the golden lion tamarin and for 115 years for the white rhino.

And the current level of action is far outweighed by the scale of the threat to the world's wildlife.

Amongst vertebrates – animals with backbones – the main threats are agricultural expansion, logging, over-exploitation and the impact of invasive alien species.

The call to action came as a separate report by the Zoological Society of London (ZSL) warned it was not just threatened species which were suffering but that common animals were also declining – with knock-on effects on services people rely on, such as pollination of crops.

The Evolution Lost report said populations of mammal, bird, reptile, amphibian and fish species had declined on average by 30 per cent in the past 40 years.

Over those decades, land mammal populations are estimated to have declined by a quarter, marine fish by a fifth and freshwater fish by up to 65 per cent.

According to co-author Dr Ben Collen, of ZSL, for many species "the rates of decline are not quick enough to enter the Red List, but have very large effects on things that humans care about, ecosystem services such as pollination or fisheries where the number of fish is important".

The report also warned that entire "lineages" of species such as marine turtles and pandas are on the brink of being lost – with no similar species able to fill the ecological niches or functions they inhabit.

Conservation experts called on governments who are meeting in Nagoya, Japan, in a bid to agree new targets for 2020 on stopping losses in the natural world to scale up efforts to conserve the Earth's biodiversity.

IUCN director general Julia Marton-Lefevre , said: "It is a clarion call for all of us – governments, businesses, citizens – to mobilise resources and drive the action required.

"Conservation does work, but it needs our support and it needs it fast."

Stag shot for its antlers

Nature lovers are mourning a giant stag feared to have been shot dead for its antlers.

The male red deer, known as Emperor and reputedly the biggest wild animal in Britain, was reportedly killed by a trophy hunter in Exmoor, Devon. He was apparently shot legally after the landowner was paid for the shooting rights.

Emperor was 9ft tall to the tips of his antlers and is believed to have weighed 300lbs.

Exmoor-based deer management expert Peter Donnelly said he was angry the animal had been shot during the mating season.

"It could be that he didn't get a chance to rut properly this year, therefore his genes have not been passed on this time round."

It is estimated Emperor's mounted head could fetch as much as 2,000 if properly stuffed.