IUCN Red List: more than one in three tree species worldwide faces extinction

Cali, Colombia, 28 October 2024 (IUCN) – Thirty-eight per cent of the world’s trees are at risk of extinction according to the first Global Tree Assessment, published in today’s update of the IUCN Red List of Threatened Species™. Also in today’s update, the conservation status of the Western European hedgehog has deteriorated and is now listed as Near Threatened.  

Header photo: Flower of Magnolia Quatapensis, Colombia (c) Salvamontes Colombia

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

“Today, we are releasing the global assessment of the world’s trees on the IUCN Red List, which shows that more than one in three tree species are threatened with extinction. Trees are essential to support life on Earth through their vital role in ecosystems, and millions of people depend upon 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 guiding action to reverse the decline of nature,” said Dr Grethel Aguilar, IUCN Director General.  

For the first time, the majority of the world’s trees have been listed on the IUCN Red List, revealing that at least 16,425 of the 47,282 species assessed are at risk of extinction. Trees now account for over one quarter of species on the IUCN Red List, and the number of threatened trees is more than double the number of all threatened birds, mammals, reptiles and amphibians combined. Tree species are at risk of extinction in 192 countries around the world.