EPA - Ireland's Environment 2016

Chapter 4: Nature

Red Lists Species

Identification and protection of species is aimed at

protecting those most at risk.

Red Lists provide an objective assessment of species using

the International Union for the Conservation of Nature

(IUCN) categories and criteria. They identify species in most

need of conservation interventions. The NPWS and NIEA

co-ordinate Red Lists in Ireland, and these lists are available

on the NPWS website.

Current assessments of Irish Red List

species are outlined in Figure 4.6. According to the latest

Red List, Macro-moths (Lepidoptera), 43 species of Irish

macro-moth are assessed as threatened to some degree

(i.e. vulnerable, endangered or critically endangered), which

represents 8% of the current Irish list. Fourteen species are

considered to have become regionally extinct as they had

not been recorded in the 50 years prior to 31 December

2012 (Allen

et al

., 2016).

In 2014, BirdWatch Ireland and the Royal Society for the

Protection of Birds (Northern Ireland) (RSPB NI) collaborated

in producing a revised Birds of Conservation Concern in

Ireland (BoCCI) list. Of 185 birds that breed and/or winter

in Ireland, 37 were placed on the Red List and 90 on the

Amber List, based on conservation status. Red-Listed

breeding species include the barn owl, corncrake, grey

partridge, grey wagtail and red grouse. Red-Listed breeding

and wintering species include the curlew, dunlin, golden

plover and Bewick’s swan. Two birds of prey that have

recently been reintroduced, the white-tailed eagle and the

golden eagle (see topic box “Reintroducing Birds of Prey to

Ireland”), are both Red Listed.

www.npws.ie/red-lists

Drivers and Pressures

Key Pressures on Ireland’s Habitats

and Species

Changing land use, direct impact and unsustainable

exploitation pressures evident across different

habitats.

The key pressures on Ireland’s habitats and species

include direct habitat damage from peat cutting, wetland

drainage/reclamation, over- and under-grazing, water

pollution, unsustainable exploitation (e.g. over-fishing),

invasive alien species (IAS) and recreational pressures

(NPWS, 2013). An example of an indirect pressure is

human population growth, the effects of which are

exacerbated by limited public awareness of biodiversity

and its benefits and economic value to society. Climate

change is also likely to have some effect on Irish species

and habitats (EPA, 2009). Pressures from urbanisation,

fertiliser use and road building have reduced since the first

assessment of Ireland’s habitats and species (2001‑2006)

(NPWS, 2013). However, in a recovering economy, it is

foreseeable that future land use changes will further

threaten Ireland’s habitats and species. The continuing

deterioration of high quality rivers is of great concern,

particularly as species such as salmon, trout and the

declining freshwater pearl mussel require and depend on

high quality water and river habitat (NPWS, 2013).

Figure 4.6

Conservation Status of Ireland’s Red List Species; Number of Species Assessed in Brackets (Source: NPWS)

100

Not Evaluated

Data Deficient

Regionally Extinct

Critically Endangered

Endangered

Vulnerable

Near Threatened

Least Concern

Mosses (835)

Mayflies (33)

Dragonflies & Damselflies (33)

Amphibia, Reptiles and FW Fish (26)

Butterflies (43)

Terrestrial Mammals (35)

Non Marine Molluscs (179)

Water Beetles (262)

Bees (102)