The first global assessment of freshwater animals across multiple taxonomic groups has revealed that one quarter of the 23,496 freshwater species surveyed by the IUCN Red List of Threatened Species™ are threatened by extinction.
The research included decapod crustaceans (shrimp, crabs, and crayfish), odonata (dragonflies and damselflies), and fish, and revealed that these are primarily under threat from pollution, dams, water extraction, agriculture, invasive species, and overharvesting.
This watershed report, published in Nature, underlines the urgency of the freshwater biodiversity crisis and identifies the priorities for immediate action.
The United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) focus on life on terrestrial (SDG 15: life on land) and marine (SDG 14: life below water) ecosystems. Although freshwater is included in SDG 15’s targets, freshwater is frequently buried by terrestrial conservation concerns, and so often forgotten in plans to protect and restore nature, despite its importance.
Lack of easily available research is part of this issue. Vital data from the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) Red List assessing the conservation status of birds, amphibians, and mammals has been available for over 15 years and provides a strong backbone for policy and decisions affecting biodiversity around the world. The first global reptile assessment was only completed recently, and freshwater fishes and invertebrates have also historically been left behind.
This monumental research effort (which took over 20 years with input from more than 1,000 scientists) summarises the extinction risk, distribution, key habitats, and primary drivers of decline of freshwater species, all of which can be found on the online IUCN Red List.
“Synchronicity Earth specialises in supporting overlooked challenges in conservation,” says Julie Thomas, Head of Conservation Programmes at Synchronicity Earth. “The Global Freshwater Fauna Assessment represents not only a fundamentally under-funded group of species and ecosystems, but also the importance of research to drive effective conservation action.
“Our Freshwater Programme has supported the IUCN Biodiversity Assessment and Knowledge Team (BAKT) for 11 years, and although this research provides a stark wake-up call, we are so proud of their achievement in publishing this vital paper.”