Abstract
Red Lists are important conservation tools because they attempt to estimate the extinction risks of species. We compared the conservation status of Brazilian mammals presented in the Brazilian Red Book with those presented in the IUCN Red List, highlighting the importance of each list and why they should be used jointly. Out of 636 species, 181 were considered endemic to Brazil and 121 were considered threatened by at least one of the lists. Considering the complete database, 86 % of the species had the same status on both lists, whereas only 48 % of the threatened species had the same status. Some possible factors responsible for variations are the period in which the evaluations were carried out, the evaluation process and the fact that a species threatened nationally may not be threatened globally. We recommend that communication should be improved, that lists should be kept updated, and that both the type of information and the data itself to be used in the assessments should be standardized.
Highlights
Biodiversity conservation is one of the biggest challenges facing the current generation (Vale et al, 2009).Megadiverse countries, such as Brazil, have an enormous responsibility when it comes to protecting endangered species (Brandon et al, 2005)
When species are assigned to categories that represent their degree of threat, their risk of extinction can be estimated, making it easier to infer which species need urgent conservation actions (Peres et al, 2011), evaluate the state of biodiversity, identify sites for conservation action, and inform policy and management (Rodrigues et al, 2006)
Since we chose not to include taxa that were not evaluated by the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) Red List, as well as those that IUCN considers as subspecies, and the candango mouse (Juscelinomys candango), classified as extinct by IUCN, our database comprised 636 species
Summary
Biodiversity conservation is one of the biggest challenges facing the current generation (Vale et al, 2009). Megadiverse countries, such as Brazil, have an enormous responsibility when it comes to protecting endangered species (Brandon et al, 2005). When species are assigned to categories (known as conservation status) that represent their degree of threat, their risk of extinction can be estimated, making it easier to infer which species need urgent conservation actions (Peres et al, 2011), evaluate the state of biodiversity, identify sites for conservation action, and inform policy and management (Rodrigues et al, 2006). Having already assessed the global risk of extinction of more than 116,000 species (including more than 5,000 mammals), the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) has played a major role in making these lists known worldwide
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