There are presently 150,000 entries on the Red List for endangered species by the (IUCN). Some of these who have managed to make the list are those who are threatened with extinction. This list is extensive and fraught with concern. It includes 13 percent of birds, 27 percent of mammals, 33 percent of reef building corals 38 percent of sharks, and 41 percent of amphibians. However, a greater issue faced by the IUCN is that the information that have not been able to identify is ‘data insufficient’. As a result, many species remain unidentified and do not make it to the Red List even though they face the same threats.
Norwegian University of Science and Technology Researchers employed the use of appropriate machinery. It will anticipate the outcome of these data deficient species being at the verge of extinction. They managed to queue the algorithm on the list of more than 26,000 species. Which in turn the IUCN has been able to categorize. “These could include climatic conditions, land use conditions or land use changes, pesticide use, threats from invasive species or really a range of different stressors,” said by Jan Borgelt, from the university’s Industrial Ecology Programme.
Equating the results achieved from the algorithm with the IUCN’s lists. It, then applied by the team to further predict the risk of extinction of the data deficient species.
While composing in the Journal Communications Biology, they found 56 percent of the sampled species threatened with extinction. This included an alarming 85percent of amphibians and 61 percent of mammals. This compares in all with the 28 percent of the species which have assessed by the IUCN Red List.
Borgelt further said, “We see that across most land areas and coastal areas around the world. The average extinction risk would be higher if we included data deficient species”. According to Borgelt the analysis conclusively reveals some major areas for these frequently mentioned data deficient species. This includes Madagascar and Southern India.