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  • Word comparison: endangered vs. threatened species

endangered vs. threatened species

endangered

adjective

  1. threatened with a danger.

    endangered lives of trapped coal miners.

  2. Biology, Ecology.,  generally perceived as threatened with extinction.

    In 1967, the U.S. government declared the bald eagle endangered, but the national bird’s population recovery since then has been remarkable.

  3. Biology, Ecology.,  (of a threatened plant or animal species) having a very high risk of extinction, second only to the status of critically endangered, as categorized by the IUCN Red List: EN

    There are more than 3,600 endangered plant species throughout the world.

threatened species

noun

Biology, Ecology.

  1. a plant or animal species generally perceived as likely, in the near future, to become endangered within all or much of its range.

    The drainage of this wetland promises to leave us with a number of threatened species.

  2. a plant or animal species that has been categorized by the IUCN Red List as vulnerable, endangered, or critically endangered.

    In evaluating the conservation status of this threatened species, we must follow closely the population growth rate.