Threatened and protected species

Indicator definition

This indicator shows:

It will show how many species present in Europe and assessed as globally threatened are protected by European instruments such as EC Directives and the Bern Convention.

Units

Number of species

Policy context and targets

Context description

Halting the loss of biodiversity  by 2010 is one target expressed by the 6EAP and the European Council at Gothenburg and re-expressed by the Environment Council in Brussels by June 2004.

This Council also emphasizes "the importance of monitoring, evaluating and reporting on progress towards the 2010 targets, and that it is absolutely vital to communicate biodiversity issues effectively to the general public and to decision-makers in order to provoke appropriate policy responses".

Targets

There are no quantitative targets for this indicator.

The target "Halt the loss of biodiversity by 2010" implies not only that species extinction must be stopped but that threatened species must be shifted to a better status.

Related policy documents

• COM (1998) 42
  Communication of the European Commission to the Council and to the European Parliament on a European Community Biodiversity Strategy. COM (1998) 42
• COM (2001) 31 final. Environment 2010.
  Environment 2010: Our future, our choice, 6th Environmental Action Programme, Communication from the Commission to the Council, the European Parliament, the Economic and Social Committee and the Committee of the Regions. COM (2001) 31 final.
• Council Directive 79/49/EEC Birds Directive
  European Council Directive 79/49/EEC of 2 April 1979 on the Conservation of Wild Birds
• Council Directive 92/43/EEC of 21 May 1992
  Council Directive 92/43/EEC of 21 May 1992 on the conservation of natural habitats and of wild fauna and flora.
• EU Council Conclusion 10997/04 Halting the loss of biodiversity
  EU council conclusion of 28 June 2004 on Halting the loss of biodiversity by 2010 (10997/04)
• Message from Malahide
  'Message from Malahide'. Outcome of the EU Presidency stakeholder conference 'Biodiversity and the EU - Sustaining life, sustaining livelihoods', 25-27 May 2004, Malahide, Ireland.

Methodology

Methodology for indicator calculation

Protection of globally threatened species by European instruments

1.  Extract from EUNIS the list of globally threatened fauna species categorized as Vulnerable (VU), Endangered (EN) and Critically Endangered (CR) present in EU 25 in which both EC Directives and Bern Convention apply
2. Based on this list, count the number of species by species group (Invertebrates, Fishes, Reptiles, Amphibians, Birds and Mammals)
3. Count the number of globally threatened fauna species by species group strictly protected by at least one of the categories of instruments:
   • Bern Convention, Annex II only
   • Bern Convention (Annex II) + EC Birds Directive (Annex II and III) + EC Habitats Directive (Annex IV)
   • Bern Convention (Annex II) + revised EC Birds Directive (Annex II and III) + revised EC Habitats Directive (Annex IV)

4. Calculate the percentage

Specific Notes:

For each group, the list of globally threatened species is extracted following the countries in which the regulations apply. Therefore the species distribution from IUCN database is used.

Subspecies globally threatened are considered as strictly protected if their nominate species was so. It is to be noted also that there is one genus of invertebrate considered by IUCN as globally threatened (Hauffenia sp., Hydrobiidae, Mesogastropoda, Mollusca). This group is mentioned as occurring in Bern signatory countries and Accessing Countries. Then, as the number of species concerned by this genus remains unknown and as no Hauffenia species is strictly protected neither by the Bern Convention nor by the EC Habitats Directive, the proportion estimated in the graph is probably higher than the reality.

Regarding the EC Bird Directive, as all the species are considered as strictly protected with special derogations for hunting and trade for a short list of species (ANNEX II & III), it is checked that no globally threatened taxa is in that short list.

Methodology for gap filling

No data gap filling is applied.

Methodology references

No methodology references available.

Uncertainties

Methodology uncertainty

Protection of globally threatened species by European instruments

none

Data sets uncertainty

Protection of globally threatened species by European instruments

• In data sets;
• Geographical and time coverage on EU level

IUCN red list is published every year but the update is made gradually by main species group. Because it is a global list, all Pan European countries are covered.

• Representativeness of data on national level

The assessment of each species is made at Global level. At lower level (region such as European region), it is relevant to calculate how many species threatened at Global level are present in Europe. But at country level, some confusion can be made with the national assessment of species threatened at national level.

• Comparability

none

Rationale uncertainty