a Dotted section of line (after 2010) indicates extrapolated values.
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Figure 01 Annual rate of naming, and the accumulation of new species of animals, plants, fungi and protists since 1753
Figure 02 Growth in number of new records for all species held by the ALA, 1981–2020
Figure 03 Number of species recorded from each IBRA region held in the ALA, 2020
ALA = Atlas of Living Australia; IBRA = Interim Biogeographic Regionalisation for Australia
Figure 04 Number of species listed under the EPBC Act, 2000–20
EPBC Act = Environment Protection and Biodiversity Conservation Act 1999
Note: Plotted values are differences from the number of species listed in 2000.
Figure 05 Number of terrestrial and marine animal species listed under each threat category in the EPBC Act, 2011, 2015 and 2020
EPBC Act = Environment Protection and Biodiversity Conservation Act 1999
Figure 06 Number of plant species listed under each threat category in the EPBC Act, 2011, 2015 and 2020
EPBC Act = Environment Protection and Biodiversity Conservation Act 1999
Figure 07 IUCN Red List categories
IUCN = International Union for the Conservation of Nature
Extinct: No reasonable doubt that the last individual of a species has died.
Extinct in the Wild: The species is known to survive only in cultivation, in captivity or as a naturalised population well outside the former range.
Critically Endangered: When the best available evidence indicates that a species is facing an extremely high risk of extinction in the wild.
Endangered: Best available evidence suggests that a species is facing a very high risk of extinction in the wild.
Vulnerable: When the best available evidence suggests that a species is facing a high risk of extinction in the wild.
Near Threatened: When a species does not qualify for any of the above categories but is likely to qualify in the near future.
Least Concern: When a species does not qualify in any of the above categories. Widespread and abundant species are included in this category.
Data Deficient: When there is inadequate information to make a direct or indirect assessment of its risk of extinction based on its distribution and/or population status.
Not Evaluated: A species is not evaluated when it has not yet been evaluated against the Red List criteria.
Figure 08 Threatened Plant Index for Australia (a) to 2017, with baseline from 1995 for 112 threatened plant species representing about 8% of Australia’s EPBC Act–listed plants; (b) for sites where some management has occurred (64 species); (c) where translocation has occurred since 2000 (11 species)
EPBC Act = Environment Protection and Biodiversity Conservation Act 1999
Note: Data are primarily from monitoring sites in South Australia, Victoria and New South Wales, with a few sites in south-west Western Australia. Some plant groups such as grasses and herbs are not represented well in the data, whereas orchids are represented very well. Blue shading represents the 95% confidence interval.
Figure 09 Numbers of (a) declining and (b) imperilled (threatened) plant species per bioregion
Note: Imperilled species include those for which continuing declines are documented, suspected or projected across all populations, and the species occurs in low numbers (typically <2,500) with extinction possible in the medium term (10–100 years) OR continuing declines are documented and the species is extremely rare (known from <250 individuals and/or a single population) with high extinction risk within the next 10 years.
Source: Silcock & Fensham (2018). Republished with the permission of CSIRO Publishing, from Australian Journal of Botany, CSIRO (Australia) Academy of Science, 2018; permissions conveyed through Copyright Clearance Center, Inc. © CSIRO Publishing
Figure 10 (a) Distribution of eucalypt species richness. (b) Density of threatened eucalypt species
Source: Fensham et al. (2020b). Reprinted from Biodiversity Conservation, vol. 243, RJ Fensham, B Laffineur, TD Collingwood, E Beech, S Bell, SD Hopper, G Phillips, MC Rivers, N Walsh, M White, Rarity or decline: key concepts for the Red List of Australian eucalypts, 108455, 2020.