conservation status

[kon-ser-vey-shuhn stey-tuhs, stat-uhs]

noun

Biology, Ecology.

1. the designation of a plant or animal species’ likelihood of becoming extinct or having already become extinct: the most consulted global ranking system for conservation status is the IUCN Red List.

   Has the conservation status of the narwhal changed over the past five years?

Word History and Origins

Origin of conservation status¹

First recorded in 1965–70

Example Sentences

Both the pink waxcap and violet coral are listed as "vulnerable" on The Red List, a conservation status catalogue compiled by the International Union for the Conservation of Nature.

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More than 70 species of bird were contestants this year, and ranged in conservation status from "doing okay" to "in serious trouble" due to a number of factors including predators and habitat loss.

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The European eel is red-listed as critically endangered - it ranks one tier below the conservation status given to pandas, rhinos and tigers.

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The value we attribute to species has direct implications for how much time and money we allocate to each species and can even impact a species’ designated conservation status.

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Many of the conservation status designation decisions — for example, whether a species is endangered — rely on the information available.

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