Species at Risk

Photo: G. Amistead-VIREO

Alarmingly, more than 500 plant and animal species in Canada are considered at risk. The decline of species is often an indication that part or all of an ecosystem is in trouble. When one species is lost, the entire food chain can be affected.  More importantly, when one species is lost because of poor choices by society, we are all diminished.

Loss of habitat and habitat fragmentation is most often cited as the primary reason for species decline. Moreover, the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change projects that 20 to 30 per cent of plant and animal species are likely to be at increasingly high risk of extinction as global mean temperatures exceed two to three degrees Celsius above pre-industrial levels. Other factors contributing to species endangerment include environmental contamination, invasive species, disease outbreaks and poaching.

CWF is a member of the Species at Risk Advisory Committee (SARA). This committee is a multi-stakeholder group that consists of other non-government organizations, industry and federal policy-makers to assist with regulatory and policy issues surrounding the Species at Risk Act. CWF is also a standing observer at the Committee on the Status of Endangered Wildlife in Canada (COSEWIC) meetings. COSEWIC is a recognized, credible scientific body that assesses species populations in Canada based on the best up-to-date biological information. CWF also submits recommendations for the listing of individual species on management and recovery plans. In addition to these activities, in 2008/2009, CWF began work to create a new Endangered Species Fund that will devote funding and provide grants and contracts to support species-at-risk work. We also supported several direct projects for the polar bear, the sauger, the eastern yellow-bellied racer, the chimney swift, the northern leopard frog and the black-footed ferret. 

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