As per an update of IUCN Red List of Threatened Species, the destruction of wetlands is causing the decline of dragonflies across the world.

Highlights

• Number of species at risk of extinction in the Red List of IUCN has exceeded 40,000 for the first time.
• Their decline is due to widespread loss of swamps, marshes, and free-flowing rivers where they breed in.
• Decline is mostly driven by expansion of unsustainable agriculture and urbanisation worldwide.

Number of species at risk

The number of species at risk of extinction on the IUCN Red List has exceeded 40,000 for the first time. It now includes 142,577 species, out of which 40,084 are threatened with extinction.

About IUCN red list

IUCN red list stands for ‘International Union for Conservation of Nature’ Red List of Threatened Species. It was founded in 1964. This list is the most comprehensive inventory of conservation status of biological species of the world. It uses a set of precise criteria for evaluating the extinction risk of species and subspecies. These criteria are relevant to all species and all the regions worldwide. List is recognized as the most authoritative guide, because of its scientific base.