There is a clear need to know the conservation status of species – how threatened they are – in order to inform conservation action. Up to now, lists of conservation status have been drawn up on an ad hoc basis, to varying standards, for different geographical areas, and published in various forms. There are numerous lists in existence – Red Lists, Biodiversity Lists, Long Lists, Short Lists, Priority Lists, SoCC Lists, species listed on the schedules of the Wildlife & Countryside Act, etc, etc, and this has led to much confusion. For example, various different criteria and categories have been used in drawing up Red Lists and Red Data Books (e.g. old IUCN, new IUCN, made-up categories, etc.); different versions of the same list are in circulation; there is uncertainty over what individual lists actually mean and how they relate to one another; and, for some groups, competing lists have been produced. This situation has to change if species conservation is to move on.

 

Our proposal is to rationalise the process of assessing conservation status so that all taxonomic groups are assessed to a comparable standard across Great Britain. The most obvious option is to use the revised IUCN criteria and threat categories plus the 'domestic category' of Nationally Scarce. All status lists will be made available on the JNCC website, providing an authoritative source of species status information. Publication of a JNCC Species Status series is also proposed. Status lists will be produced by Expert Groups, and will be time-limited and updated on a rolling programme. The status lists will include Red Lists, and will inform conservation processes such as prioritising species for action through production and updating of the SoCC (Species of Conservation Concern) list.

 

The proposal covers England, Scotland and Wales, including the Isle of Man but not N. Ireland or the Channel Islands. Status is usually, and more logically, assessed for the island of Ireland as a whole, and the Channel Islands are biogeographically part of France. However, some specialist groups may wish to include assessment of Channel Island taxa too. Although N. Ireland will not be included in the GB status lists, it will be taken into account during the course of the project, for legal and legislative reasons.

 

There are two crucial principles behind this proposal. The first is to engage the specialist schemes and societies fully, so that the lists produced are of the best quality that expertise can provide. Therefore, it is proposed to run the project through a small Steering Group, with individual Expert Groups reporting to it. The second principle is to separate the process of assessment of conservation status from the process of prioritising conservation action. Thus, this proposal addresses the former but says nothing about the latter, although the status lists will, obviously, be used to inform prioritisation of conservation action through the SoCC list.

 

As the proposal develops, it is envisaged that other kinds of status will also be considered for each taxonomic group using the Expert Group mechanism (e.g. international status of British species, native/non-native status). Expert Groups may also be involved in such standard-setting matters as ensuring a consistent taxonomy in the Species Dictionary of the National Biodiversity Network and Recorder 2000.