Update of the IUCN Red List of Endangered Species

38% of the world's trees are at risk of extinction according to the first Global Tree Assessment, published in the recent update of the International Union for Conservation of Nature's Red List of Threatened Species.

The IUCN Red List now includes 166,061 species, of which 46,337 are threatened with extinction.

The update shows that more than one in three tree species is threatened with extinction. Trees are essential to sustaining life on Earth because of their vital role in ecosystems, and millions of people depend on them for their lives and livelihoods.

"As the IUCN Red List celebrates 60 years of impact, this assessment highlights its importance as a barometer of life, but also, crucially, as a unique tool that guides action to reverse nature's decline," said Dr Grethel Aguilar, IUCN Director General.

For the first time, most of the world's trees have been included on the IUCN Red List. According to the analysis carried out, at least 16,425 of the 47,282 species assessed are in danger of extinction. Trees now account for more than a quarter of the species included in the IUCN Red List, and the number of threatened trees is more than double that of all threatened birds, mammals, reptiles and amphibians combined. Tree species are threatened with extinction in 192 countries around the world.

The highest proportion of threatened trees are found on the islands. Island trees are at particularly high risk due to deforestation for urban development and agriculture at all scales, as well as invasive species, pests and diseases. Climate change is increasingly threatening trees, especially in the tropics, due to rising sea levels and stronger and more frequent storms. Addressing the threats faced by trees, protecting and restoring their habitats, and conserving them ex situ through seed banks and botanical garden collections is critical to preventing extinction on islands and around the world.

The IUCN Red List also shows that tree loss is a major threat to thousands of other plants, fungi and animals. As a defining component of many ecosystems, trees are central to life on Earth because of their role in carbon, water, and nutrient cycles, soil formation, and climate regulation. People also depend on trees, as more than 5,000 of the tree species on the IUCN Red List are used for timber in construction, and more than 2,000 species for medicines, food and fuels, respectively.