(ORDO NEWS) — To date, they are in fact considered lost, but they have not yet been given the status of extinct, according to Canadian researchers from Simon Fraser University.
As part of the study, scientists analyzed data on 32,802 taxa [a group of organisms] of terrestrial vertebrates listed in the Red Book of the International Union for Conservation of Nature.
Of these, 562 species (257 reptiles, 137 amphibians, 130 mammals and 38 bird species) can already be considered extinct, since they have not been seen for about 50 years.
A species is considered extinct if there is no reasonable doubt that the last individual of the species is extinct. Obviously, this is often very difficult to prove, because not all species can be easily found in the wild.
The range of most extinct species is located in countries with high biodiversity – in Indonesia, Mexico and Brazil.
This is of particular concern to scientists, since it is on the territory of these countries that tropical forests are valuable to the planet.
Experts hope that the results of the study will draw attention to endangered species and allow better tracking of lost populations of taxa.
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