common to all species (although the evidence for this appears weak; Flather et al. 2011), then the SAFE index is merely a measure of N. The need for the logarithmic transformation in the SAFE index is unsupported. Clements et al. claim that the SAFE index improves communication of “distance” from extinction. However, the general public, donors, and policy makers will understand the implications...

The mandate of IUCN-ERO is to contribute to a sustainable Europe by influencing policy development and implementation for biodiversity and landscape conservation, restoration and sustainable use inside and outside Europe. The European Programme is active in agriculture, forestry and fisheries and, through its expert networks, protected areas and species conservation. The Programme provides inpu...

The IUCN Red List has assessed the global distributions of the majority of the world's amphibians, birds and mammals. Yet these assessments lack explicit reference to widely available, remotely-sensed data that can sensibly inform a species' risk of extinction. Our first goal is to add additional quantitative data to the existing standardised process that IUCN employs. Secondly, we ask: do our ...

Founded in 1948, The World Conservation Union brings together States, government agencies and a diverse range of non-governmental organizations in a unique world partnership: over 1000 members in all, spread across some 140 countries. As a Union, IUCN seeks to influence, encourage and assist societies throughout the world to conserve the integrity and diversity of nature and to ensure that any ...

Species distribution data provide the foundation for a wide range of ecological research studies and conservation management decisions. Two major efforts to provide marine species distributions at a global scale are the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN), which provides expert-generated range maps that outline the complete extent of a species' distribution; and AquaMaps, whic...