Threatened and Endangered Species

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Every year, more of Canada’s animals and plants are threatened by extinction.

Today, there are 602 endangered species at risk in Canada, according to the scientific Committee on the Status of Endangered Wildlife in Canada. The most recent threatened or endangered animal species, added in April 2010, include:

Bobolink. This grassland bird species is Threatened by habitat loss and fragmentation, pesticide exposure, and mortality from agricultural operations.

Rusty-patched Bumble Bee. Once an important pollinator throughout southern Ontario, this Endangered insect is at risk due to disease, pesticides and habitat fragmentation.

Whitebark Pine. This long-lived pine tree, found high in the mountains of British Columbia and Alberta, is Endangered due to the effects of disease, pests and climate change.

Loggerhead Sea Turtle. This Endangered turtle has seen population declines worldwide. In Canada, its population is at risk from commercial fishing and bycatch in the Atlantic Ocean, as well as chemical pollution.

Extinction Threats are Growing

Many scientists believe that the rate of loss is greater now than at any time in history.

Currently, one in eight of the world’s birds are threatened with global extinction, and of the 428 bird species that regularly breed in Canada, 60 are classified as at risk. One in 8 of the world’s plant species are threatened with extinction, and 23% of the world’s mammals are at risk.

Most scientists agree that human activity is causing rapid deterioration in biodiversity. The loss of critical wildlife habitat, from expanding human settlements, logging, mining, agriculture and pollution are destroying ecosystems, upsetting nature's balance and driving many species to extinction.

For roughly 75 per cent of endangered species, the loss and degradation of their habitat is the central cause of their declining numbers. Illegal poaching and the growing effects of climate change are also threats that species face every day.

Nature Canada’s Endangered Species Program

Nature Canada is working to reverse this trend by informing the public about the plight of Canada’s threatened wildlife, pushing for effective laws and supporting programs to protect endangered species and their habitats.

Nature Canada led a multi-year Endangered Species Campaign involving NGO and government stakeholders to establish federal endangered species legislation. As a member of the Species at Risk Working Group we helped secure the passage of the federal Species at Risk Act in 2003.

Under the Act, the federal government is obligated to work to rebuild threatened or endangered species populations and take action to prevent relatively common species from facing further risk.

Unfortunately Canada is failing to fulfill its duty of care toward our nation’s wildlife.

Key weaknesses in the Act’s implementation have left many plant and animal species at continued risk of extinction. Nature Canada is focusing on getting the federal government to live up to its obligations under the legislation, and ensure that Canada’s plant and animal populations do not continue to decline.

In April 2009, Nature Canada released a report card on the government's performance, coinciding with a mandatory review of the Act. In the report, a failing grade is assessed twice: first for failing to take measures to protect the habitat of at-risk species, and again for refusing to ever employ the federal "safety net," which is meant to protect SARA-listed species under provinical jurisdiction when provincial governments fail to protect them.