Changes in the status of wildlife species at risk

Key results

Of the 530 wildlife species at risk that have been reassessed since the Committee on the Status of Endangered Wildlife in Canada started their assessments in 1982, and for which sufficient data are available to determine if there has been a change in status:

• 85 wildlife species (16%) are now in a higher risk category
• 105 wildlife species (20%) are now in a lower risk category
• 340 wildlife species (64%) show no change in status

Changes in the risk of disappearance of wildlife species from Canada, May 2023

How this indicator was calculated

Note: In this analysis, wildlife species refers to a species, subspecies^{Footnote 1}  or a genetically or geographically distinct population. Wildlife species disappearance may refer to extinction or extirpation (an extirpated species no longer occurs in the wild in Canada). Lower risk consists of species reassessed as no longer at risk as well as species in a lower risk category compared to the previous assessment.
Source: Committee on the Status of Endangered Wildlife in Canada (May 2023).

Monitoring wildlife species^{Footnote 2}  is important in order to determine the status of wildlife species, including if they are at risk. Conservation actions are often required to prevent the disappearance of wildlife species at risk from Canada.

The Committee on the Status of Endangered Wildlife in Canada assesses wildlife species that may be at risk and places them in a risk category. If conservation actions are effective, the risk level will generally decrease over time. Nonetheless, depending on the life cycle of the species and the condition of its habitat, recovery may take many decades. In addition, some wildlife species are naturally rare in Canada, and these species are expected to remain at some level of risk.

Changes in risk level can be a result of improved information rather than actual changes in the condition of the wildlife species. This is more likely to occur for wildlife species that have improved in status than for wildlife species that have declined.^{Footnote 3} 

Most wildlife species remain in the same category when they are reassessed. The changes that are observed most often occur between neighbouring categories.

In December 2022 and May 2023, 31 wildlife species were reassessed, of which 27 had no change in their status. Of the 4 wildlife species that had a change in status, 3 were classified to a lower risk category and 1 was classified to a higher risk category:

• The Gulf of St. Lawrence Aster changed in status from threatened to endangered as a result of climate change and changes in the quality and quantity of habitat available
• The Eastern Whip-poor-will changed in status from threatened to special concern as a result of a change in methodology for estimating abundance
• The Foothill Sedge changed in status from endangered to special concern as a result of changes in how assessment criteria were applied
• The Small-flowered Sand-verbena changed in status from endangered to special concern as a result of new subpopulations being discovered and improved monitoring

About the indicator

What the indicator measures

The Changes in the status of wildlife species at risk indicator reports on changes in wildlife species designations for wildlife species assessed by the Committee on the Status of Endangered Wildlife in Canada (COSEWIC). The COSEWIC is composed of independent experts who determine the national status of Canadian wildlife species, subspecies,^{Footnote 1}   varieties^{Footnote 4}   or other designatable units that are suspected of being at risk of extinction or extirpation.

Why this indicator is important

Recognition that a wildlife species is at risk of extinction or extirpation can focus management action. Successful management should reduce the risk of species loss. The conservation of wildlife species at risk is a key component of the Canadian Biodiversity Strategy, which aims to conserve biological diversity in Canada.^{Footnote 5}  The conservation of such wildlife species is also the goal of the Species at Risk Act, which provides legal protection to prevent the extinction of wildlife species and secure the necessary actions for their recovery.

Ecosystems are composed of a variety of animals, plants and other organisms, each of which performs a specialized role. This diversity of life supports vital ecological processes and provides a wide range of resources known as ecological goods and services, such as pest management, oxygen production and water purification. The loss of species has detrimental impacts on ecosystems and the goods and services they provide.

Related initiatives

The indicator contributes to the Sustainable Development Goals of the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development. It is linked to Goal 15, Life on Land and Target 15.5, "Take urgent and significant action to reduce the degradation of natural habitats, halt the loss of biodiversity and, by 2020, protect and prevent the extinction of threatened species."

The indicator also contributes to the Kunming-Montreal Global Biodiversity Framework. It is linked to Target 4: "Ensure urgent management actions, to halt human induced extinction of known threatened species and for the recovery and conservation of species, in particular threatened species, to significantly reduce extinction risk, as well as to maintain and restore the genetic diversity within and between populations of native, wild and domesticated species to maintain their adaptive potential, including through in situ and ex situ conservation and sustainable management practices, and effectively manage human-wildlife interactions to minimize human-wildlife conflict for coexistence."

Related indicators

The Species at risk population trends indicator shows whether population and distribution trends of species at risk that are listed under the Species at Risk Act are consistent with recovery or management objectives

The General status of wild species indicator reports extinction risks across a broad set of species and can reveal early signs of trouble before species reach a critical condition.

The Canadian species index indicator tracks average population trends for vertebrate species in Canada and is a good proxy measure of overall biodiversity trends.

Data sources and methods

Data sources

Data are from the Committee on the Status of Endangered Wildlife in Canada (COSEWIC) database on wildlife species at risk. Individual wildlife species status reports are available in the Species at risk public registry.

Methods

Wildlife species are assigned a status change based on their previous status. The Changes in the status of wildlife species at risk indicator uses the set of wildlife species that have been reassessed by the COSEWIC and have not been designated as data deficient in either of the last 2 assessments (530 species).

Caveats and limitations

Species at risk may take a long time to recover, and some wildlife species are naturally rare in Canada. A change in status may occur only after significant biological change (for example, increases in abundance, population size or geographical range) has been detected. For these reasons, relatively few wildlife species should be expected to show changes in risk level when reassessed. Nonetheless, if management efforts are successful, we should expect to see more improvements than declines over time.

Wildlife species at risk are reassessed approximately every 10 years and only a portion of assessed wildlife species are considered in this indicator. As such, comparisons between years should be made with caution.

Resources

References

Canadian Endangered Species Working Group (2016) Wild Species 2015: The General Status of Species in Canada. National General Status Working Group. Retrieved on October 17, 2023.

Government of Canada (2021) Committee on the Status of Endangered Wildlife in Canada. Retrieved on October 17, 2023.

Government of Canada (2022) Species at Risk Public Registry. Retrieved on October 17, 2023.

International Union for Conservation of Nature (2022) The IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. Version 2022-1. Retrieved on October 17, 2023.

International Union for the Protection of New Varieties of Plants (2011) What is a plant variety? Retrieved on October 17, 2023.

Moore A, Cyr A, Findlay S (2016) Do changes in COSEWIC status reflect changes in species' biological status. Report to the Committee on the Status of Endangered Wildlife in Canada (COSEWIC), 10pp. Retrieved on October 17, 2023.

Patten MA (2015) Subspecies and the philosophy of science. The Auk 132(2): 481-485. Retrieved on October 17, 2023.