International Union for Conservation of Nature

[in-ter-nash-uh-nl yoon-yuhn fer kon-ser-vey-shuhn uhv ney-cher]

noun

1. an international organization dedicated to research and analysis in the field of nature conservation: known as the world’s leading authority on the conservation status of plant and animal species and for its compilation of the IUCN Red List. IUCN

Word History and Origins

Origin of International Union for Conservation of Nature¹

First recorded in 1945–50

Example Sentences

The International Union for Conservation of Nature red list categorizes lions as vulnerable to extinction.

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They are however classed as endangered on the International Union for Conservation of Nature's Red List of Threatened Species -- primarily due to overfishing of the species which commercial fish farms cannot breed in captivity.

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Atlantic salmon in Great Britain were listed as an endangered species by the International Union for Conservation of Nature when they were last assessed in 2022.

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They are threatened by the loss of forests, hunting and the pet trade, according to the International Union for Conservation of Nature.

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The authors also considered threat levels -- for example "threatened," "endangered" or "least concern," -- for 163,000 species as assessed by the International Union for Conservation of Nature.

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