The conservation status of any species may influence the amount of funding available to conserve it, the priority it receives from governments, and the level of public awareness and support it receives. Crucially, conservation statuses help inform decisions about wildlife trade made by the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora (CITES). Threatened plants and animals are much less likely to be traded internationally than common species.

If you followed developments during the recent CITES Conference of Parties (CoP18), you would have seen the term “endangered species” used frequently in the media. This article about species conservation assessments will help you better understand what this term means, which is an important part of developing your own informed opinions on wildlife conservation topics.

Who says its Endangered?

Popular articles and campaigns often use the term “endangered” quite loosely – applying to any plant or animal that is in some kind of danger. Furthermore, the Endangered Species Act is a law in the United States of America that was passed in 1973, which allows the US government to declare certain species Endangered or Threatened following their national criteria. In the rest of the world, however, the term Endangered refers to an internationally recognised conservation status that indicates where a species falls on a scale of threat from Least Concern to Extinct.