General Statistics for Endangered Species current as of October 15, 2009

How many species in the United States are listed as threatened or endangered?

614 U.S. animal species are listed.
747 U.S. plant species are listed.

How many species in the United States are proposed for listing as threatened or endangered?

18 U.S. animal species are currently proposed for listing.
46 U.S. plant species are currently proposed for listing.

How many listed species have designated critical habitat?

539 U.S. species have designated critical habitat.

How many candidate species are there?

138 animal species are candidates for listing.
110 plant species are candidates for listing.

How many habitat conservation plans (HCPs) have been approved?

1017 habitat conservation plans have been approved (849 current, 168 expired).

How many listed species have approved recovery plans?

1134 species have approved recovery plans.

A total of 56,289 penguins banded

                -42,137 chicks, 2,194 resighted

25,472 eggs measured

174,019 chick measurements

                -56,568 individual chicks

443 satellite tags deployed

1,838 books of data

2,358,205 records

Check out The Penguin Sentinels great website!

For more information check out Thriving Oceans and “Whaling under the guise of science”

Basking sharks filter up to 1,500 gallons of water per hour

The smallest is a lantern shark, averaging just 8 inches

The largest fish in the world is the whale shark and can reach lengths of over 40 to 60 feet

The fastest shark is the Mako, which has reached speeds of more than 45 miles per hour

Blue sharks have been tracked swimming more than 10,000 miles

Sharks may hear a fish a mile away

Sharks can smell blood in the water from 1/3 of a mile away

The Spiny dogfish has a gestation period close to 2 years, which makes it one of the longest of any animals

Spiny dogfish females are thought to reach breeding age at 35 years

Dusky shark females reach breeding age at 20 years

The smalltooth sawfish population has declined by 99%

The IUCN estimates that 20% of sharks are in danger of extinction

Worldwide shark takes have tripled since 1985

Tens of millions of sharks are accidentally caught as bycatch in commercial fisheries each year

According to Oceana, “estimates of the total number of sharks killed each year for their fins range from 26 to 73 million per year.”

Data: Ocean Conservancy and Oceana

Only 2.7% of the 1.8 million described species have been analyzed.
Overall, a minimum of 16,928 species are threatened with extinction.

Threatened with Extinction:

38% of all fishes in Europe and 28% in Eastern Africa.
At least 17% of the 1,045 shark and ray species are threatened
12.4% of groupers
 6 of the 7 marine turtle species are threatened with extinction.
27% of the 845 species of reef building corals are threatened
20% of reef building corals are Near Threatened
27.5% of marine birds are in danger of extinction
11.8% of terrestrial birds.
33% of amphibians
Nearly 25% of mammals are threatened with extinction.
28% of Conifers
52% of cycads

Data: Vié, J.-C., Hilton-Taylor, C. and Stuart, S.N. (eds.) (2009). Wildlife in a Changing World – An Analysis of the 2008 IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. Gland, Switzerland: IUCN. 180 pp.

Photo Credit:
Asian Wild Ass (Equus hemionus). Threat category Endangered © Jean-Christophe Vié

-The estimated mallard population is 8.5 million birds, a 10 percent increase over last year’s estimate of 7.7 million birds and 13 percent above the long-term average.

-The estimated population of 3.1 million gadwall is similar to last year’s estimate and 73 percent above the long-term average.

-At 7.4 million, the estimated population size of blue-winged teal is the second highest on record, while green-winged teal numbers were at an all-time high of 3.4 million. Estimates for both species are well above their long-term averages (60 percent and 79 percent, respectively).

-The 3.2 million estimate for northern pintails is 23 percent more than last year but 20 percent below the long-term average.

-The estimated number of one million redheads is similar to last year and is 62 percent above the long-term average.

-The canvasback estimate of 662,000 is 35 percent more than last year’s estimate and similar to the long-term average.

-The estimated abundance of northern shovelers (4.4 million) is 25 percent more than last year and 92 percent above the long-term average.

-The scaup (lesser and greater combined), estimate of 4.2 million, is 12 percent greater than last year but 18 percent below the long-term average. 

Data: U.S. FWS, Trends in Duck Breeding Populations, 1955-2009

The global index (Living Planet Index) shows that vertebrate species populations declined by nearly 30% during the period 1970 to 2005.

Humanity’s Ecological Footprint- Human demand on the biosphere more than doubled during the period 1961 to 2005.

 Global Living Planet Index shows an average trend of -28% from 1970 to 2005 in 4,642 populations of 1,686 species.

Temperate Living Planet Index shows a +6% average trend between 1970 and 2005 in 3,309 opulations of 1,235 species.

Tropical Living Planet Index shows a -51% overall trend from 1970 to 2005 in 1,333 populations of 585 species.

Terrestrial Living Planet Index shows an average -33% trend between 1970 and 2005 in 2,007 populations of 887 terrestrial species.

Marine Living Planet Index shows an average -14 % trend over 35 years in 1,175 populations of 341 marine species.

Freshwater Living Planet Index shows an average -35% trend from 1970 to 2005 in 1,463 populations of 458 species.

Tropical Forest Living Planet shows an average -62% trend between 1970 and 2005 in 503 populations of 186 species.

Dryland Living Planet Index shows an average -44% trend between 1970 and 2005 in 476 populations of 149 species.

Grassland Living Planet Index shows an average -36% trend between 1970 and 2005 in 703 populations of 309 species.

Nearctic Living Planet Index shows no overall change in 1,117 populations of 588 Nearctic species.

Neotropical Living Planet Index shows an average -76% trend over 34 years in 202 populations of 144 Neotropical species.

Palearctic Living Planet Index shows an overall +30% trend over 35 years in 1,167 populations of 363 Palearctic species.

Afrotropical Living Planet Index shows an average -19% trend over 35 years in 552 populations of 201 Afrotropical species.

Indo-Pacific Living Planet Index includes the Indomalayan, Australasian and Oceanic realms, and shows an average -35% trend over 35 years in 441 populations of 155 species.

Bird Living Planet Index shows an average -20% trend between 1970 and 2005 in 2,185 populations of 895 species.

Mammal Living Planet Index shows an average -19% trend from 1970 to 2005 in 1,161 populations of 355 species.

Data: The Living Planet Report 2008, Published in October 2008 by WWF–World Wide Fund For Nature (formerly World Wildlife Fund), Gland, Switzerland.

At least 81 bird species inhabit U.S. marine waters, spending their lives at sea and  returning to islands and coasts to nest.

At least 39% of bird species in U.S. marine waters are believed to be declining, but data are lacking for many species.

Of 81 ocean bird species, almost half are of conservation concern.

4 that are federally listed as endangered or threatened.

37% of ocean bird species have stable population trends.

12% of the 81 ocean bird species have  increasing populations.

12% of ocean birds do not have enough data available to determine population trends.

Longline fisheries worldwide injure and drown as many as 60 bird species.

Reference: North American Bird Conservation Initiative, U.S. Committee, 2009. The State of the Birds, United States of America, 2009. U.S. Department of Interior: Washington, DC.

credit: Karl Kaufman

From 1961 to 1973, bluefin tuna represented 45 to 80% of the U.S. western Atlantic catch of large pelagic species.

Since 1980, the percentage has dropped to less than 15%, reflecting a combination of the decline in the bluefin tuna population, the impact of catch restrictions, and the increasing harvests of alternative species.

Landings for 2005, 2006, and 2007 were 718, 472, and 758 metric tons, respectively.

Data: NOAA/ICCAT