Nature protection and biodiversity - State and impacts (Czech Republic)

The Czech Republic has a surprisingly high abundance of wild plant and animal species. In total, there are 73 000–102 000 species within the country, of them 2 800 higher plant species, 50 000 invertebrate species and 577 vertebrate species.

The recently published comprehensive report Nature and the Landscape in the Czech Republic 2009, Report on the State (CZ version) demonstrates that only 17 % of the whole country´s territory is covered with natural and semi-natural habitats.

According to the recent national Red Lists, 34 % of mammalian, 52 % of breeding birds, 50 % of reptiles, 43 % of amphibians, 43 % of fish, 60 % of higher plant and 43 % of moss species have been threatened (click here for more information, CZ version). The above report shows that 878 species have become extinct in the Czech Republic, of them 84 fungi, 27 bryophytes, 118 vascular plants, 627 invertebrates and 22 vertebrates. For more details, see the biodiversity indicators based on the SEBI 2010 outputs (also see Fig. A, Fig. B, Fig. C).

In the Czech Republic, 90 of plant species flora have been classified as invasive alien species. The list of animal invasion alien species in the country has been also published.