If the Lorax is still speaking for the trees, it will have a lot to say about the International Union for Conservation of Nature's first Global Tree Assessment. The report states that about 35 percent of the world's tree species are threatened with extinction. More than 1,000 experts participated in the study, which covered more than 47,000 of the world's estimated 58,000 tree species and found that at least 16,425 are threatened, AFP reported. is “The number of threatened trees is twice that of all threatened birds, mammals, reptiles and amphibians combined,” the IUCN said. “Tree species are threatened with extinction in 192 countries worldwide.”
“Given the importance of trees to ecosystems and people, the importance of the Global Tree Assessment cannot be overstated,” said Emir Nick Lugdha, senior research leader at London's Royal Botanic Gardens, which works with trees around the world. Collecting seeds. The IUCN said many of the threatened tree species on its Red List are on islands, where they are “particularly at risk from deforestation for urban development and agriculture, as well as invasive species, pests and diseases.” ”
“We're in a biodiversity crisis right now,” Steven Bachman, another conservation researcher at the Royal Botanic Gardens, tells the BBC. “Many tree species around the world are providing habitat for many other species of birds, mammals, insects, fungi,” he says. “If we lose trees, we're losing many other species along with them.” The IUCN said “modern approaches” are needed to protect trees in South America, which has the greatest diversity of trees in the world. Lughadha noted that the report found that about 25% of the trees in the region are threatened, which is lower than the global average, but that there are many species “yet to be described to science and New tree species are more likely to become extinct.” (More tree stories.)