A rare species is a group of organisms that are very uncommon, scarce, or infrequently encountered. This designation may be applied to either a plant or animal taxon, and is distinct from the term endangered or threatened. Designation of a rare species may be made by an official body, such as a national government, state, or province. The term more commonly appears without reference to specific criteria. The International Union for Conservation of Nature does not normally make such designations, but may use the term in scientific discussion.[1]

Rarity rests on a specific species being represented by a small number of organisms worldwide, usually fewer than 10,000. However, a species having a very narrow endemic range or fragmented habitat also influences the concept.[2][3] Almost 75% of known species can be classified as "rare".[4]

Rare species are species with small populations. Many will move into the endangered or vulnerable category if the negative factors affecting them continue to operate. Well-known examples of rare species - because these are large terrestrial animals - include the Himalayan brown bear, Fennec fox, Wild Asiatic buffalo, or the Hornbill.

They are not endangered yet, but classified as "at risk",[5][6] although the frontier between these categories is increasingly difficult to draw given the general paucity of data on rare species. This is especially the case in the world Ocean where many 'rare' species not seen for decades may well have gone extinct unnoticed, if they are not already on the verge of extinction like the Mexican Vaquita.[7]

A species may be endangered or vulnerable, but not considered rare if it has a large, dispersed population. IUCN uses the term "rare" as a designation for species found in isolated geographical locations. Rare species are generally considered threatened because a small population size is less likely to recover from ecological disasters.

A rare plant's legal status can be observed through the USDA's Plants Database.

Rare species

Name Image IUCN Red List conservation status Last sighting Estimated population Endemic geographic location
Common name Scientific name Lowest wildlife Highest wildlife Captive Total lowest Total highest
Ethiopian amphibious rat Nilopegamys plumbeus Critically Endangered, Possibly Extinct 1927 ? ? 0 ? ?
Zuniga's melanomys Melanomys zunigae Critically Endangered, Possibly Extinct 1949 ? ? 0 ? ? Lima Department, Peru
De Winton's golden mole Cryptochloris wintoni Critically Endangered, Possibly Extinct c. 1950 ? ? 0 ? ?
Northern Sumatran rhinoceros Dicerorhinus sumatrensis lasiotis Critically Endangered, Possibly Extinct After 1960 1 ? ? 0 ? ? Myanmar & Malay Peninsula, Malaysia / Thailand
Christmas Island shrew Crocidura trichura Critically Endangered, Possibly Extinct 1986 ? ? 0 ? ? Christmas Island
Cuban ivory-billed woodpecker Campephilus principalis bairdii Critically Endangered 16 March 1987 ? ? 0 ? ? Cuba
Garrido's hutia Capromys garridoi Critically Endangered, Possibly Extinct 1989 ? ? 0 ? ? Banco de los Jardins y Jardinillos, Canarreos Archipelago, Cuba
Angel Island mouse Peromyscus guardia Critically Endangered, Possibly Extinct 1991 ? ? 0 ? ?
Emma's giant rat Uromys emmae Critically Endangered, Possibly Extinct 1994 ? ? 0 ? ? Owi Island, Indonesia
Wimmer's shrew Crocidura wimmeri Critically Endangered 2008 ? ? 0 ? ?
Baiji Lipotes vexillifer Critically Endangered, Possibly Extinct 2018 ? ? 0 ? ?
Puebla deer mouse Peromyscus mekisturus Critically Endangered, Possibly Extinct 1948 0 50 0 0 50
Dwarf hutia Mesocapromys nana Critically Endangered, Possibly Extinct 26 October 1951 0 50 0 0 50 Zapata Swamp, Cuba
New Zealand greater short-tailed bat Mystacina robusta Critically Endangered, Possibly Extinct 1967 0 50 0 0 50
Kouprey Bos sauveli Critically Endangered, Possibly Extinct 1988 0 50 0 0 50
Montane monkey-faced bat Pteralopex pulchra Critically Endangered, Possibly Extinct 17 May 1990 0 50 0 0 50
San Felipe hutia Mesocapromys sanfelipensis Critically Endangered, Possibly Extinct 1978 0 99 0 0 99 Cayo de Juan Garcia & Cayos de San Felipe, Cuba
Gloomy tube-nosed bat Murina tenebrosa Critically Endangered, Possibly Extinct 1962 1 1 0 1 1 Tsushima Island & Yakushima, Japan
Fernandina Island Galápagos tortoise Chelonoidis niger phantasticus Critically Endangered, Possibly Extinct N/A 1 5 0 1 5 Fernandina Island, Ecuador
Aru flying fox Pteropus aruensis Critically Endangered, Possibly Extinct 1887 1 49 0 1 49 Trangan, Indonesia
Horrid ground-weaver Nothophantes horridus Critically Endangered N/A 9 9 ? 9 9 Cattedown, Plymouth, United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland
Northern white rhinoceros Ceratotherium simum cottoni Critically Endangered (Possibly Extinct in the Wild) N/A ? 2 ? 2 2 2 2 2 2 2
One-striped opossum Monodelphis unistriata Critically Endangered, Possibly Extinct 9 April 1899 2 10 0 2 10
Yangtze giant softshell turtle Rafetus swinhoei Critically Endangered N/A 2 4 1 3 5
American ivory-billed woodpecker Campephilus principalis principalis Critically Endangered 8 April 2022 3 (as of 8 April 2022)[8] 3 (as of 8 April 2022)[8] 0 3 (as of 8 April 2022)[8] 3 (as of 8 April 2022)[8]
Guadalcanal rat Uromys porculus Critically Endangered, Possibly Extinct Between 1886 and 1888 3 3 0 3 3
Emperor rat Uromys imperator Critically Endangered, Possibly Extinct c. 1960s 3 3 0 3 3
Key tree-cactus Pilosocereus robinii Critically Endangered N/A 7 15 7 15 Florida Keys, Mexico, Puerto Rico
Lord Howe Island stick insect Dryococelus australis Critically Endangered N/A < 10 (as of 3 October 2021)[9] < 10 (as of 3 October 2021)[9] < 10 (as of 3 October 2021)[9] < 10 (as of 3 October 2021)[9] Ball's Pyramid, Australia
Vaquita Phocoena sinus Critically Endangered N/A 10 (as of 5 May 2022)[10] 10 (as of 5 May 2022)[10] 0 10 (as of 5 May 2022)[10] 10 (as of 5 May 2022)[10]
Saola Pseudoryx nghetinhensis Critically Endangered 2013 20 (as of 30 October 2021)[11] < 100 (as of 20 August 2021)[12] 0[13] 20 (as of 30 October 2021)[11] < 100 (as of 20 August 2021)[12]
Telefomin cuscus Phalanger matanim Critically Endangered, Possibly Extinct 1997 40 40 0 40 40
Gobi bear Ursus arctos gobiensis Critically Endangered N/A 51 (as of 27 May 2022)[14] 51 (as of 27 May 2022)[14] 0[15] 51 (as of 27 May 2022)[14] 51 (as of 27 May 2022)[14]
Māui dolphin Cephalorhynchus hectori maui Critically Endangered N/A 55 55 55 55
Cat Ba langur Trachypithecus poliocephalus Critically Endangered N/A 65 67 65 (as of March 2018)[16] 67 (as of March 2018)[16]
Indonesian Javan rhinoceros Rhinoceros sondaicus sondaicus Critically Endangered N/A 76 (as of 20 September 2022)[17] 76 (as of 20 September 2022)[17] 0 76 (as of 20 September 2022)[17] 76 (as of 20 September 2022)[17]
Western Sumatran rhinoceros Dicerorhinus sumatrensis sumatrensis Critically Endangered N/A 75 (as of 18 December 2022)[18] 85 (as of 18 December 2022)[18] 10 85 95
Alagoas curassow Mitu mitu Extinct in the wild N/A 0 130 130 130
Kākāpō Strigops habroptilus Critically Endangered N/A 149 149 149 149 Anchor Island, Codfish Island / Whenua Hou, Little Barrier Island and Maud Island, New Zealand
Philippine eagle Pithecophaga jefferyi Critically Endangered N/A 200 breeding pairs 200 breeding pairs 200 breeding pairs 200 breeding pairs
Cross River gorilla Gorilla gorilla diehli Critically Endangered N/A 200 300 0 200 300
Bornean rhinoceros Dicerorhinus sumatrensis harrissoni Critically Endangered N/A < 250 (as of 24 February 2020)[19] < 250 (as of 24 February 2020)[19] 0 < 250 (as of 24 February 2020)[19] < 250 (as of 24 February 2020)[19] East Kalimantan, Indonesia & Sarawak, Malaysia
Malabar large-spotted civet Viverra civettina Critically Endangered, Possibly Extinct 1993 249 249 0 249 249
Devils Hole pupfish Cyprinodon diabolis Critically Endangered N/A 263 (as of 29 September 2022)[20] 300 (as of 11 May 2022)[21] 475 (as of 4 May 2022)[22] 475 (as of 4 May 2022)[22] Devils Hole, Death Valley National Park, United States of America
North Atlantic right whale Eubalaena glacialis Critically Endangered N/A 366 366 366 366
Black softshell turtle Nilssonia nigricans Critically Endangered N/A 150 150 300 450 450 Sultan Bayazid Bastami shrine at Chittagong
California condor Gymnogyps californianus Critically Endangered N/A 446 446 446 446
Central rock rat Zyzomys pedunculatus Critically Endangered N/A 800 800 0 800 800
Wild Bactrian camel Camelus ferus Critically Endangered N/A 950 950 950 950
Eastern lowland gorilla Gorilla beringei graueri Critically Endangered N/A < 5,000 (as of 7 October 2022)[23] < 5,000 (as of 7 October 2022)[23] 1 < 5,000 or 5,000 < 5,000 or 5,000

Notes:

See also

References

  1. ^ "Assessment Process". www.iucnredlist.org. Retrieved 2017-11-14.
  2. ^ R. MacNally and G. W. Brown, Reptiles and Habitat Fragmentation in the Box-ironbush Forests of Central Victoria, Australia: Predicting Compositional Change and Faunal Nested-ness, Oecologia 128:116–125 (2001).
  3. ^ Prendergast, J. R.; Quinn, R. M.; Lawton, J. H.; Eversham, B. C.; Gibbons, D. W. (1993-09-23). "Rare species, the coincidence of diversity hotspots and conservation strategies". Nature. 365 (6444): 335–337. Bibcode:1993Natur.365..335P. doi:10.1038/365335a0.
  4. ^ Dinerstein, Eric (2013) The Kingdom of Rarities. Island Press. ISBN 9781610911955.
  5. ^ "Rare Species". www.encyclopedia.com. Retrieved 2017-11-15.
  6. ^ "IUCN – A brief history". IUCN. 2017-10-06. Retrieved 2017-11-15.
  7. ^ Briand, Frederic (October 2012). "Species Missing in Action - Rare or Already Extinct?". National Geographic.
  8. ^ a b c d Multiple lines of evidence indicate survival of the Ivory-billed Woodpecker in Louisiana
  9. ^ a b c d Dryococelus australis (Lord Howe Island Phasmid)
  10. ^ a b c d The critically endangered vaquita is not doomed to extinction by inbreeding depression
  11. ^ a b Searching for the Saola in the Annamite Mountains
  12. ^ a b IUCN SSC experts urge for immediate action to find Saola before it’s too late
  13. ^ Saola
  14. ^ a b c d Population of endangered Gobi bears exceeds 50 in Mongolia
  15. ^ Gobi Bear Project
  16. ^ a b CAT BA LANGUR
  17. ^ a b c d 2022 State of the Rhino Report
  18. ^ a b Two Horned Rhino – Sumatran Rhinoceros Profile
  19. ^ a b c d Bornean Rhinoceros
  20. ^ Devils Hole pupfish population at 19-year high
  21. ^ Critically endangered pupfish on the rise on 50th anniversary of official monitoring effort
  22. ^ a b The Devil’s Hole pupfish has paddled back from the brink in a hellish desert domain
  23. ^ a b Eastern Lowland Gorilla

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