conservation-biology-guide

Conservation Biology Guide

A skill for conducting conservation biology research, covering species assessment methods, habitat modeling, population viability analysis, key biodiversity databases, and frameworks for conservation prioritization.

Species Assessment and Red List

IUCN Red List Categories

Extinction Risk Categories (from highest to lowest):

  EX  - Extinct
  EW  - Extinct in the Wild
  CR  - Critically Endangered
  EN  - Endangered
  VU  - Vulnerable
  NT  - Near Threatened
  LC  - Least Concern
  DD  - Data Deficient
  NE  - Not Evaluated

Classification criteria (any one triggers the category):
  A: Population size reduction
  B: Geographic range (extent of occurrence, area of occupancy)
  C: Small population size and decline
  D: Very small or restricted population
  E: Quantitative extinction probability analysis

Querying the IUCN API

import os
import json
import urllib.request


def get_species_assessment(species_name: str) -> dict:
    """
    Retrieve IUCN Red List assessment for a species.

    Args:
        species_name: Scientific name (e.g., 'Panthera tigris')
    """
    api_token = os.environ["IUCN_API_TOKEN"]
    encoded_name = urllib.parse.quote(species_name)
    url = f"https://apiv3.iucnredlist.org/api/v3/species/{encoded_name}?token={api_token}"

    req = urllib.request.Request(url)
    response = urllib.request.urlopen(req)
    data = json.loads(response.read())

    if data.get("result"):
        species = data["result"][0]
        return {
            "scientific_name": species.get("scientific_name"),
            "common_name": species.get("main_common_name"),
            "category": species.get("category"),
            "population_trend": species.get("population_trend"),
            "assessment_date": species.get("assessment_date"),
            "criteria": species.get("criteria")
        }

    return {"error": "Species not found in IUCN Red List"}

Habitat Modeling

Species Distribution Models (SDMs)