2014/04/28 by Luigi Boitani, Georgina M. Mace, Carlo Rondinini · 1 citation
Environmental Science · #Ecology and Vegetation Dynamics Studies #Species Distribution and Climate Change #Land Use and Ecosystem Services
paper · pdf · doi:10.1111/conl.12111
openalex publication_date 2014/04/28 · openalex created_date 2025/10/10 · openalex updated_date 2026/08/04
Abstract The International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) is currently discussing the development of a Red List of Ecosystems (RLE) that would mirror the categories and criteria used to assess the conservation status of species. The suggested scientific foundations for the RLE are being considered by IUCN for adoption as the backbone of the RLE. We identify conceptual and operational weaknesses in the draft RLE approach, the categories, and criteria. While species are relatively well‐described units, there is no consistent means to classify ecosystems for assessing conservation status. The proposed RLE is framed mostly around certain features of ecosystems such as broad vegetation or habitat types, and do not consider major global change drivers such as climate change. We discuss technical difficulties with the proposed concept of ecosystem collapse and suggest it is not analogous to species extinction. We highlight the lack of scientific basis for the criteria and thresholds proposed by the RLE, and question the need to adopt the structure of the Red List of Species for an RLE. We suggest that the proposed RLE is open to ambiguous interpretations and uncertain outcomes, and that its practicality and benefit for conservation should be carefully evaluated before final approval.