Missing: Possibly Extinct
Extinctions have occurred in all animal and plant groups, but some are more studied than others. Some species, subspecies and varieties are not seen for many years. Proving extinction beyond reasonable doubt is often very difficult. A few species that were thought to be Extinct were subsequently rediscovered in remnant populations. This page identifies those species and subspecies that are likely to be extinct, but for which there is a small chance that they may still be extant. Surveys to discover whether these species and subspecies still exists should be carried out urgently, followed by appropriate conservation action if needed.
Often those are animals or plants that are classified as Critically Endangered or Data Deficient by the IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. BirdLife International applies also 'Possibly Extinct' tag to certain Critically Endangered species: CR (PE). This is not an official category of the IUCN Red List, but is under review by the IUCN Red List (IUCN 2010ab). They should not be listed as Extinct until local or unconfirmed reports have been discounted, and adequate surveys have failed to find any individuals. The Sixth Extinction Website classifies these missing animals and plants as Possibly Extinct (PE).
Photo: the lastest mammal extinction may that of the baiji or Yangtze River Dolphin (Lipotes vexillifer). A survey in 2006 failed to find a single individual. In August 2007 a possible baiji has been filmed. Sadly, the picture quality was extremely poor, because it had been filmed at long range on a non specialized digital camera (Turvey, 2008). Professor Wang Ding, a leading scientist at the Institute of Hydrobiology of the Chinese Academy of Sciences later confirmed that the footage could be showing the Baiji dolphin (WWF 2007), but he couldn't rule out the alternative possibility that it was a Yangtze Finless Porpoise, Neophocaena phocaenoides asiaeorientalis (Turvey, 2008). Photo copyright:baiji.org foundation, Steven Leatherwood. All right reserved.
NOTE: The lists with possibly extinct species and subspecies presented here are incomplete and will regularly be updated with new entries. Do you know a species or subspecies that should be included or has been rediscovered? Please contact us if you have more information.
Reptiles (2/0) |
Amphibians (127/0) |
||
Fish (43/0) |
Molluscs (1/0) |
Sea Anemones & Corals (2/0) |
Crustaceans (0/0) |
Insects (11/0) |
Arachnids (2/0) |
Worms (2/0) |
Mammals (Mammalia)
The subjoined table lists 35 mammal species and 4 mammal subspecies as missing (possibly extinct).
| Species (35) | |||
| Scientific Name | Common Name | TSEW Status | IUCN Status |
| Bos sauveli | Kouprey | PE | CR (PE) |
| Crateromys australis | Dinagat Bushy-tailed Cloud Rat | PE | CR (PE) |
| Crateromys paulus | Ilin Bushy-tailed Cloud Rat | PE | DD |
| Crocidura trichura | Christmas Island Shrew | PE | CR (PE) |
| Crocidura wimmeri | Wimmer's Shrew | PE | CR (PE) |
| Cryptochloris wintoni | De Winton's Golden Mole | PE | CR (PE) |
| Cryptotis nelsoni | Nelson's Small Eared Shrew | PE | CR (PE) |
| Dendrolagus mayri | Wondiwoi Tree-kangaroo | PE | CR (PE) |
| Dipodomys gravipes | San Quintin Kangaroo Rat | PE | CR (PE) |
| Harpiola grisea | Peter's Tube-nosed Bat | PE | DD |
| Leporillus apicalis | Lesser Stick-nest Rat | PE | CR (PE) |
| Lipotes vexillifer | Yangtze River Dolphin | PE | CR (PE) |
| Melanomys zunigae | Zuniga's Dark Rice Rat | PE | CR (PE) |
| Mesocapromys nanus | Dwarf Hutia | PE | CR (PE) |
| Mesocapromys sanfelipensis | Little Earth Hutia | PE | CR (PE) |
| Murina tenebrosa | Tsushima Tube-nosed Bat | PE | CR (PE) |
| Myotis hajastanicus | Armenian Whiskered Bat | PE | CR |
| Mysateles garridoi | Garrido's Hutia | PE | CR (PE) |
| Mystacina robusta | New Zealand Greater Short-tailed Bat | PE | CR |
| Nyctophilus howensis | Lord Howe Long-Eared Bat | PE | CR (PE) |
| Octodon pacificus | Pacific Degu | PE | CR |
| Paracoelops megalotis | Vietnamese Leaf-nosed Bat | PE | DD |
| Peromyscus mekisturus | Puebla Deer Mouse | PE | CR (PE) |
| Phalanger matanim | Telefomin Cuscus | PE | CR (PE) |
| Pharotis imogene | New Guinea Big-eared Bat | PE | CR (PE) |
| Pipistrellus murrayi | Christmas Island Pipistrelle | PE | CR |
| Pipistrellus sturdeei | Sturdee's Pipistrelle | PE | DD |
| Pteropus aruensis | Aru Flying Fox | PE | CR (PE) |
| Pteropus loochoensis | Okinawa Flying Fox | PE | DD |
| Pteropus tuberculatus | Vanikoro Flying Fox | PE | CR (PE) |
| Scotophilus borbonicus | Lesser Yellow Bat | PE | DD |
| Uromys emmae | Emma's Giant Rat | PE | CR (PE) |
| Uromys imperator | Emperor Rat | PE | CR |
| Uromys porculus | Guadalcanal Rat | PE | CR |
| Viverra civettina | Malabar Civet | PE | CR |
| Subspecies (4) | |||
| Scientific Name | Common Name | TSEW Status | IUCN Status |
| Cercopithecus mitis schoutedeni | Schouteden’s Blue Monkey | PE | CR |
| Dicerorhinus sumatrensis lasiotis | Northern Sumatran Rhinoceros | PE | NE |
| Piliocolobus badius waldronae | Miss Waldron's Red Colobus | PE | CR |
| Procolobus pennantii bouvieri | Bouvier’s Red Colobus | PE | CR (PE) |
Birds (Aves)
The subjoined table lists 31 bird species and 1 bird subspecies as missing (possibly extinct).
Photo: A Po'o-uli (Melamprosops phaeosoma) on the island of Maui (Hawaii, United States) photographed by Paul E. Baker. One of three known individuals was captured in September 2004, but sadly died on 28 November 2004. The other two individuals have not been seen since 2004. Besides these three, no other individual Po'o-uli have been seen since 1998. This species may be extinct, but continuing surveys in all areas of potential habitat are still needed to confirm that no other individuals survive (BirdLife International 2009). This image is the work of an U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service employee, taken during the course of an employee's official duties. As a work of the U.S. federal government, the image is in the public domain. For more information, see the Fish and Wildlife Service copyright policy.
| Species (31) | |||
| Scientific Name | Common Name | TSEW Status | IUCN Status |
| Anodorhynchus glaucus | Glaucous Macaw | PE | CR |
| Campephilus imperialis | Imperial Woodpecker | PE | CR (PE) |
| Campephilus principalis | Ivory-billed Woodpecker | PE | CR |
| Charmosyna diadema | New Caledonian Lorikeet | PE | CR |
| Columba argentina | Silvery Wood-pigeon | PE | CR |
| Cymochorea macrodacyla | Guadalupe Storm-petrel | PE | CR (PE) |
| Cyornis ruckii | Rueck's Blue-flycatcher | PE | CR |
| Eriocnemis godini | Turquoise-throated Puffleg | PE | CR (PE) |
| Eurochelidon sirintarae | White-eyed River-martin | PE | CR |
| Gallicolumba menagei | Sulu Bleeding-heart | PE | CR |
| Gallinula pacifica | Samoan Moorhen | PE | CR |
| Gallinula silvestris | Makira Moorhen | PE | CR |
| Gallirallus lafresnayanus | New Caledonian Wood Rail | PE | CR |
| Grallaria chthonia | Tachira Antpitta | PE | CR |
| Hemignathus lucidus | Nukupuu | PE | CR (PE) |
| Leucopeza semperi | Semper's Warbler | PE | CR |
| Melamprosops phaeosoma | Po'o-uli | PE | CR (PE) |
| Myadestes lanaiensis | Olomao | PE | CR (PE) |
| Numenius borealis | Eskimo Curlew | PE | CR (PE) |
| Ophrysia superciliosa | Himalayan Quail | PE | CR |
| Otus siaoensis | Siau Scops-owl | PE | CR |
| Paroreomyza maculata | Oahu Creeper | PE | CR (PE) |
| Psittirostra psittacea | Ou | PE | CR (PE) |
| Pterodroma caribbaea | Jamaica Petrel | PE | CR (PE) |
| Ptilinopus arcanus | Negros Fruit-dove | PE | CR |
| Rhodonessa caryophyllacea | Pink-headed Duck | PE | CR |
| Siphonorhis americana | Jamaican Pauraque | PE | CR (PE) |
| Sporophila melanops | Hooded Seedeater | PE | CR (PE) |
| Tadorna cristata | Crested Shelduck | PE | CR |
| Vanellus macropterus | Javanese Lapwing | PE | CR |
| Vermivora bachmanii | Bachman's Warbler | PE | CR (PE) |
| Subspecies (1) | |||
| Scientific Name | Common Name | TSEW Status | IUCN Status |
| Grallaria milleri gilesi | Antioquia Brown-banded Antpitta | PE | NE |
Reptiles (Reptilia)
The subjoined table lists 2 reptile species as missing (possibly extinct).
| Species (2) / Subspecies (0) | |||
| Scientific Name | Common Name | TSEW Status | IUCN Status |
| Alsophis ater | Black Racer | PE | CR |
| Aparallactus nigriceps | Mozambique Centipede Eater | PE | NE |
Amphibians (Amphibia)
In 2004, a total of 122 amphibian species were listed as Critically Endangered (Possibly Extinct) by the IUCN Red List of Threatened Species, and 113 of these could have disappeared since 1980 (Baillie et al. 2004). The subjoined table lists 127 amphibian species (106 frogs and toads, 13 salamanders and 8 caecilians) as missing (possibly extinct). More additions are expected to follow.
Conservation International, Global Wildlife Conservation, the IUCN Amphibian Specialist Group and teams of scientists around the world had launched in August 2010 an unprecedented search in the hope of rediscovering 100 species of "lost" amphibians, animals considered possibly extinct but that may be holding on in a few remote places. This search is the first ever coordinated effort to find such a large number of "lost" creatures and comes as global amphibian populations are suffering a shocking decline, with more than 30 per cent of all species threatened with extinction. (Black 2010; IUCN 2010c; Conservation International 2010) The five-month global search took researchers to 21 countries, but sadly only four species of the targeted 100 were found (Black 2011). The team of scientists rediscovered the Mexican Cave Splayfoot Salamander (Chiropterotriton mosaueri), the Mount Nimba Reed Frog (Hyperolius nimbae), the Omaniundu Reed Frog (Hyperolius sankuruensis) and the Rio Pescade Stubfoot Toad (Atelopus balios) (Conservation International 2010). For more information you can visit: www.conservation.org/lostfrogs.
Scientists from India, inspired by this global search, launched their own campaign to find local species: the Lost! Amphibians of India (LAI) programme (Biju 2011; Concervation International 2011). The programme, co-ordinated by S.D. Biju from the University of Delhi, was formally launched on 2 November 2010. The good news is that just three months after launch of the campaign, LAI has made remarkable rediscoveries of five lost species of frogs: Dehradun Stream Frog (Amolops chakrataensis), Elegant Tropical Frog (Micrixalus elegans), Chalazodes Bubble-nest Frog (Raorchestes chalazodes), Anamalai Dot-frog (Ramanella anamalaiensis) and Silent Valley Tropical Frog (Micrixalus thampii). Currently 15 teams are pursuing the remaining 45 lost species. (University of Delhi 2011)
In July 2011, local scientists rediscovered the Sambas Stream toad or the Bornean rainbow toad (Ansonia latidisca) on Borneo in the Malaysian state of Sarawak These scientists were inspired by the 2010 search for the world's missing amphibians by Conservation International (CI), Global Wildlife Conservation and the IUCN Amphibian Specialist Group (BBC Nature 2011; Hance 2011).
| Frogs and Toads (Anura) - Species (105) / Subspecies (0) | |||
| Scientific Name | Common Name | TSEW Status | IUCN Status |
| Afrixalus schneideri | Schneider's Banana Frog | PE | DD |
| Amietophrynus danielae | Unknown | PE | DD |
| Amietophrynus perreti | Unknown | PE | VU |
| Amolops jaunsari | Jaunsar Stream Frog | PE | DD |
| Ansonia siamensis | Unknown | PE | VU |
| Aromobates nocturnus | Venezuelan Skunk Frog | PE | CR |
| Arthroleptis troglodytes | Cave Squeaker | PE | CR |
| Atelopus carauta | Rio Carauta Stubfoot Toad | PE | CR |
| Atelopus carbonerensis | Venezuelan Yellow Frog | PE | CR |
| Atelopus chiriquiensis | Unknown | PE | CR |
| Atelopus chocoensis | Unknown | PE | CR |
| Atelopus dimorphus | Unknown | PE | EN |
| Atelopus farci | Forest Stubfoot Toad | PE | CR |
| Atelopus galactogaster | Unknown | PE | CR |
| Atelopus halihelos | Morona-Santiago Stubfoot Toad | PE | CR |
| Atelopus longibrachius | Unknown | PE | EN |
| Atelopus lozanoi | Unknown | PE | CR |
| Atelopus lynchi | Lynch's Stubfoot Toad | PE | CR |
| Atelopus mandingues | Unknown | PE | CR |
| Atelopus mindoensis | Mindo Stubfoot Toad | PE | CR |
| Atelopus minutulus | Colombian Stubfoot Toad | PE | CR |
| Atelopus onorei | Onore's Harlequin Toad | PE | CR |
| Atelopus oxyrhynchus | Red-nosed Stubfoot Toad | PE | CR |
| Atelopus petersi | Peter's Stubfoot Toad | PE | CR |
| Atelopus sernai | Unknown | PE | CR |
| Atelopus sonsonensis | Unknown | PE | CR |
| Atelopus sorianoi | Scarlet Harlequin Frog | PE | CR |
| Atopophrynus syntomopus | Unknown | PE | CR |
| Callixalus pictus | African Painted Frog | PE | VU |
| Chiromantis shyamrupus | Hornbill Bubble-nest Frog | PE | DD |
| Chrysobatrachus cupreonitens | Unknown | PE | DD |
| Cochranella geijskesi | Unknown | PE | DD |
| Colostethus jacobuspetersi | Quito Rocket Frog | PE | CR |
| Craugastor angelicus | Angel Robber Frog | PE | CR |
| Craugastor coffeus | Unknown | PE | CR |
| Craugastor fleischmanni | Fleischmann's Robber Frog | PE | CR |
| Craugastor omoaensis | Unknown | PE | CR |
| Craugastor stadelmani | Unknown | PE | CR |
| Crossodactylus grandis | Bahia Spinythumb Frog | PE | DD |
| Cryptothylax minutus | Unknown | PE | DD |
| Cycloramphus diringshofeni | Sao Bent Button Frog | PE | DD |
| Cycloramphus valae | Gruta Button Frog | PE | DD |
| Dasypops schirchi | Unknown | PE | VU |
| Eleutherodactylus eneidae | Mottled Coqui | PE | CR |
| Eleutherodactylus glanduliferoides | La Selle Grass Frog | PE | CR |
| Eleutherodactylus jasperi | Golden Coqui | PE | CR |
| Eleutherodactylus karlschmidti | Web-footed Coqui | PE | CR |
| Euphlyctis ghoshi | Manipus FrogManipur Frog | PE | DD |
| Fejervarya assimilis | Calcutta Frog | PE | DD |
| Fejervarya murthii | Ghats Wart Frog | PE | CR |
| Fejervarya parambikulamana | Parambikulum Frog | PE | DD |
| Fejervarya sauriceps | Mysore Wart Frog | PE | DD |
| Fejervarya brama | Bengal Toad | PE | DD |
| Ghatophryne rubigina | Kerala Steam Toad | PE | VU |
| Glandirana minima | Small Mountain Frog | PE | CR |
| Holoaden bradei | Unknown | PE | CR |
| Hyla helenae | Helena's Treefrog | PE | DD |
| Hylarana melanomenta | Papahag Frog | PE | DD |
| Hylodes mertensi | Mertens' Tree Toad | PE | DD |
| Hyloscirtus chlorosteus | Parjacti Treefrog | PE | CR |
| Hyloscirtus denticulentus | Charta Treefrog | PE | EN |
| Hyloscirtus lynchi | Lynch's Colombian Treefrog | PE | EN |
| Hypsiboas cymbalum | Campo Grande Treefrog | PE | CR |
| Hypsiboas fuentei | Fuente's Powakka Treefrog | PE | DD |
| Indirana longicrus | Roa's Frog | PE | DD |
| Indirana tenuilingua | Roa's Indian Frog | PE | DD |
| Ingerana charlesdarwini | Charles Darwin's Frog | PE | CR |
| Limnonectes khasianus | Khasi Wart Frog | PE | DD |
| Lithobates omiltemanus | Guerreran Leopard Frog | PE | CR |
| Lithobates tlaloci | Tlaloc's Leopard Frog | PE | CR |
| Litoria nyakalensis | Mountain Mist Frog | PE | CR |
| Litoria piperata | Peppered Treefrog | PE | CR |
| Micrixalus narainensis | Narain's Torrent Frog | PE | DD |
| Micrixalus silvaticus | Forest Torrent Frog | PE | DD |
| Micrixalus swamianus | Ramaswami's Torrent frog | PE | DD |
| Paratelmatobius lutzii | Unknown | PE | DD |
| Peltophryne fluviatica | Hispaniolan Crestless Toad | PE | CR |
| Petropedetes dutoiti | Du Toit's Torrent Frog | PE | CR |
| Philautus dubius | Darjeeling Bubble-nest Frog | PE | DD |
| Philautus jacobsoni | Jacobson's Bubble-nest Frog | PE | CR |
| Philautus jerdonii | Jerdon's Bubble-nest Frog | PE | DD |
| Philautus kempii | Kemp's Spadefoot frog | PE | DD |
| Philautus microdiscus | Kobo Bubble-nest Frog | PE | DD |
| Philautus sanctisilvaticus | Sacred Grove Bush Frog | PE | CR |
| Phrynobatrachus brongersmai | Unknown | PE | NE |
| Plectrohyla hazelae | Hazel's Treefrog | PE | CR |
| Plectrohyla mykter | Unknown | PE | EN |
| Pristimantis bernali | Argelia Robber Frog | PE | CR |
| Ramanella minor | Little Dot Frog | PE | DD |
| Ramanella montana | Mountain Dot Frog | PE | NT |
| Ranitomeya abdita | Collins' Poison Frog | PE | CR |
| Raorchestes flaviventris | Malabar Bubble-nest Frog | PE | DD |
| Raorchestes sahai | Sahai Bush Frog | PE | DD |
| Rhinella rostrata | Mesopotamia Beaked Toad | PE | CR |
| Rhinoderma rufum | Chile Darwin's Frog | PE | CR |
| Raorchestes terebrans | Boring Bush Frog | PE | DD |
| Scutiger maculatus | Piebald Alpine Toad | PE | CR |
| Sphaerotheca leucorhynchus | Roa's Burrowing Frog | PE | DD |
| Taudactylus acutirostris | Sharp-snouted Day Frog | PE | CR |
| Telmatobius brevipes | Unknown | PE | EN |
| Telmatobius niger | Kayla | PE | CR |
| Theloderma moloch | Eerie Tree Frog | PE | VU |
| Uperoleia marmorata | Marbled Toadlet | PE | DD |
| Vandijkophrynus amatolicus | Amatola Toad | PE | CR |
| Werneria africana | Unknown | PE | NE |
| Salamanders (Caudata) - Species (13) / Subspecies (0) | |||
| Scientific Name | Common Name | TSEW Status | IUCN Status |
| Bolitoglossa hermosa | Guerreran Climbing Salamander | PE | NT |
| Bolitoglossa jacksoni | Jackson's Climbing Salamander | PE | DD |
| Cryptotriton alvarezdeltoroi | Alvarez del Toro's Moss Salamander | PE | EN |
| Cryptotriton wakei | Wake's Moss Salamander | PE | CR |
| Eurycea robusta | Blanco Blind Salamander | PE | DD |
| Hynobius turkestanicus | Turkestanian Salamander | PE | DD |
| Oedipina altura | Cartago Worm Salamander | PE | CR |
| Oedipina paucidentata | El Empalme Worm Salamander | PE | CR |
| Pseudoeurycea ahuitzotl | Unknown | PE | CR |
| Pseudoeurycea brunata | Brown False Brook Salamander | PE | CR |
| Pseudoeurycea praecellens | Admirable False Brook Salamander | PE | CR |
| Pseudoeurycea tenchalli | Unknown | PE | EN |
| Thorius infernalis | Atoyac Minute Salamander | PE | CR |
| Caecilians (Gymnophiona) - Species (8) / Subspecies (0) | |||
| Scientific Name | Common Name | TSEW Status | IUCN Status |
| Ichthyophis husaini | Husain's Caecilian | PE | DD |
| Ichthyophis longicephalus | Long-headed Caecilian | PE | DD |
| Ichthyophis singaporensis | Singapore Caecilian | PE | DD |
| Uraeotyphlus interruptus | Chengalam Caecilian | PE | DD |
| Uraeotyphlus malabaricus | Malabar Caecilian | PE | DD |
| Uraeotyphlus menoni | Menon's Caecilian | PE | DD |
| Uraeotyphlus narayani | Narayan's Caecilian | PE | DD |
| Uraeotyphlus oommeni | Oommen's Caecilian | PE | DD |
Fish (Actinopterygii & Cephalaspidomorphi)
The subjoined table lists 8 fish species as missing (possibly extinct).
| Species (43) / Subspecies (0) | |||
| Scientific Name | Common Name | TSEW Status | IUCN Status |
| Coregonus hoferi | Schwebrenke | PE | CR |
| Haplochromis arcanus | Unknown | PE | DD |
| Haplochromis artaxerxes | Unknown | PE | DD |
| Haplochromis bartoni | Unknown | PE | DD |
| Haplochromis bayoni | Unknown | PE | DD |
| Haplochromis boops | Unknown | PE | DD |
| Haplochromis cassius | Unknown | PE | CR |
| Haplochromis decticostoma | Unknown | PE | DD |
| Haplochromis dentex | Unknown | PE | CR |
| Haplochromis estor | Unknown | PE | DD |
| Haplochromis flavipinnis | Unknown | PE | CR |
| Haplochromis gilberti | Unknown | PE | DD |
| Haplochromis gowersi | Unknown | PE | DD |
| Haplochromis ishmaeli | Unknown | PE | CR |
| Haplochromis lividus | Unknown | PE | DD |
| Haplochromis longirostris | Unknown | PE | CR |
| Haplochromis macrognathus | Unknown | PE | CR |
| Haplochromis maculipinna | Unknown | PE | DD |
| Haplochromis mandibularis | Unknown | PE | DD |
| Haplochromis martini | Unknown | PE | CR |
| Haplochromis michaeli | Unknown | PE | CR |
| Haplochromis microdon | Unknown | PE | CR |
| Haplochromis mylergates | Unknown | PE | CR |
| Haplochromis nanoserranus | Unknown | PE | CR |
| Haplochromis nigrescens | Unknown | PE | DD |
| Haplochromis nyanzae | Unknown | PE | DD |
| Haplochromis obtusidens | Unknown | PE | DD |
| Haplochromis pachycephalus | Unknown | PE | DD |
| Haplochromis paraguiarti | Unknown | PE | DD |
| Haplochromis paraplagiostoma | Unknown | PE | DD |
| Haplochromis percoides | Unknown | PE | CR |
| Haplochromis perrieri | Unknown | PE | CR |
| Haplochromis pharyngomylus | Unknown | PE | DD |
| Haplochromis prognathus | Unknown | PE | DD |
| Haplochromis pseudopellegrini | Unknown | PE | DD |
| Haplochromis spekii | Unknown | PE | DD |
| Haplochromis teegelaari | Unknown | PE | CR |
| Haplochromis thuragnathus | Unknown | PE | DD |
| Haplochromis victorianus | Unknown | PE | CR |
| Haplochromis xenostoma | Unknown | PE | CR |
| Hoplotilapia retrodens | Unknown | PE | VU |
| Knipowitschia cameliae | Danube Delta Dwarf Goby | PE | CR |
| Pyxichromis parorthostoma | Unknown | PE | DD |
Molluscs (Mollusca)
The subjoined table list 1 mollusc species as missing (possibly extinct).
| Species (1) / Subspecies (0) | |||
| Scientific Name | Common Name | TSEW Status | IUCN Status |
| Belgrandia varica | Unknown | PE | CR(PE) |
Sea Anemones & Corals (Anthozoa)
Sea anemones and corals are marine animals of the class Anthozoa. Although the IUCN Red List of Threatened Species Version 2010.2 (IUCN 2010a) has not listed any animal from this class as extinct, that does not mean there are some that are possibly extinct. It has been calculated that 50,000-60,000 coral species could become extinct if only 5% of reef area is destroyed and 300,000-400,000 coral species could become extinct if 30% of the global reefs were destroyed (Carlton et al. 1999). Many probably unnoticed. The subjoined table lists 2 anthozoa species as missing (possibly extinct).
| Species (2) / Subspecies (0) | |||
| Scientific Name | Common Name | TSEW Status | IUCN Status |
| Edwardsia ivelli | Ivell's Sea Anemone | PE | DD |
| Ivell's sea anemone is only known from the Widewater Lagoon in West Sussex, England. It was first discovered by Dick Manuel in 1975 when he and his colleague Professor Richard Ivell were examining Widewater for anemones. This Ivell's Sea Anemone has not been recorded since 1983. Since that year, three surveys have failed to record this sea anemone. The habitat of Ivell's sea anemone is threatened by habitat degradation as a result of reduced seawater inflow from adjacent marshes. Pollution from nearby gardens following the run-off of pesticides and fertilisers has also caused reduced water quality. This animal may be extinct but this is a small anemone of shallow soft mud bottoms, a habitat not well explored for small invertebrates, and thus this creature may well be living, unnoticed, in other localities. (Barnes 1994; Jackson 1999; World Conservation Monitoring Centre 1996) | |||
| Millepora boschmai | Boschmai's Fire Coral | PE | CR |
| The hydrocoral Millepora boschmai (Weerdt & Glynn 1991), endemic to Panama, disappeared from shallow reef habitats during the 1982-83 El Niño-Southern Oscillation (ENSO), and was believed to have suffered extinction (Glynn and de Weerdt 1991). A survey in a relatively deep, off-reef habitat about nine years following the first disappearance of this species revealed a living population of under 100 colonies (Glynn and Feingold 1992). Evidently this population, located on the north shore of Uva Island (named Lazarus Cove), Gulf of Chiriquí, Panamá, survived the 1982-83 ENSO warming event. Unfortunately, all of these colonies bleached and died six years later, during the 1997-98 ENSO. (Glynn 2001) No confirmed living animals are known, although animals possibly conspecific with this species have recently been reported from Indonesia. Research into this possibility is recommended. (Razak & Hoeksema 2003; Guzmá & Edgar 2008; IUCN 2010a) | |||
Crustaceans (Crustacea)
The subjoined table lists 0 crustacean species as missing (possibly extinct).
| Species (0) / Subspecies (0) | |||
| Scientific Name | Common Name | TSEW Status | IUCN Status |
| None | None | - | - |
Insects (insecta)
The subjoined table lists 9 insect species as missing (possibly extinct).
| Species (11) / Subspecies (0) | |||
| Scientific Name | Common Name | TSEW Status | IUCN Status |
| Leptogryllus deceptor | Oahu Deceptor Bush Cricket | PE | EW |
| Omiodes asaphombra | 'Ohe Hedyleptan Moth | PE | DD |
| Omiodes continuatalis | Unknown | PE | DD |
| Omiodes epicentra | Oahu Swamp Hedyleptan Moth | PE | DD |
| Omiodes euryprora | Ola'A Banana Hedyleptan Moth | PE | DD |
| Omiodes fullawayi | Fullaway's Banana Hedyleptan Moth | PE | DD |
| Omiodes laysanensis | Laysan Hedyleptan Moth | PE | DD |
| Omiodes meyricki | Meyrick's Banana Hedyleptan Moth | PE | DD |
| Omiodes musicola | Maui Banana Hedyleptan Moth | PE | DD |
| Omiodes telegrapha | Telegraphic Hedyleptan Moth | PE | DD |
| Sympetrum dilatatum | St. Helena Darter | PE | DD |
Arachnids (Arachnida)
The subjoined table lists 2 arachnid species as missing (possibly extinct).
| Species (2) / Subspecies (0) | |||
| Scientific Name | Common Name | TSEW Status | IUCN Status |
| Pterotrogus principalis | Ivory-billed Woodpecker Feather Mite | PE | NE |
| Thermacarus nevadensis | Nevada Water Mite | PE | NE |
Worms (Annelida, Onychophora & Platyhelminthes)
The subjoined table lists 1 worm species, a species of velvet worm (Onychophora) as missing (possibly extinct).
| Species (2) / Subspecies (0) | |||
| Scientific Name | Common Name | TSEW Status | IUCN Status |
| Peripatopsis leonina | Lion's Hill Velvet Worm | PE | CR |
| The Lion's Hill Velvet Worm has only been recorded from the type locality of Lion's Hill (Signal Hill), a small area in the Western Cape, South Africa. It was last collected in 1900. Unfortunately, the type locality and its habitat have undergone enormous changes over the past 100 years. It was listed as extinct (EX) since the 1996 IUCN Red List of Threatened Species, but has removed from the extinctions list in the 2003 red list. The justification of the IUCN is: "there is no conclusive evidence that this species is extinct, and given the nature of onychophorans and the lack of research on this group, there is a chance that this species may still be extant, but Critically Endangered as a result of changes to its narrow habitat". Recently, velvet worms have recently been reported as being seen at Lion's Hill, but none have been collected. (Hamers 2003; IUCN 2010a) | |||
| Xerobdella lecomtei | European Land Leech | PE | NE |
Barnes, R.S.K. (1994). The Brackish-Water Fauna of Northwestern Europe. Cambridge, UK: Cambridge Unic. Press. 287 pp.
BBC Nature (2011). Lost rainbow toad is rediscovered. Downloaded on 14 July 2011 from http://www.bbc.co.uk/nature/14151541.
Biju S.D., Bossuyt F., Church D.R., Das I., Dinesh K.P., Firoz A., Gower D.J., Gururaja K.V., Kamei R.G., Mahony S., Robin M., Saibal S., Vasudevan K., Vijayakumar S.P. and Wilkinson M. (2011). LAI list version 2. Lost! Amphibians of India, in search of 'lost species'. University of Delhi. Downloaded on 18 February 2011 from http://www.lostspeciesindia.org/LAI2/wanted.php.
BirdLife International (2009). Melamprosops phaeosoma. In: IUCN (2010). IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. Version 2010.3. <www.iucnredlist.org>. Downloaded on 09 October 2010.
Black, R. (2010). Global hunt begins for 'extinct' species of frogs. BBC News (9 August 2010). Downloaded on 14 August 2010 from http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/science-environment-10859989.
Black, R. (2011). Frog hunt ends: Most still absent. BBC News (17 February 2011). Downloaded on 17 February 2011 from http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/science-environment-12484316.
Boyd, J.H. (2011). Taxonomy in Flux Checklist 2.5. <http://www.jboyd.net/Taxo/List.html>. Downloaded on 28 january 2011.
Carlton, J. T., J. B. Geller, M. L. Reaka-Kudla, and E. A. Norse. (1999). Historical extinctions in the sea. Annual Review of Ecology and Systematics 30:525–538. Online pdf.
Conservation International (2010). Search for the lost aphibians - The frogs that may not have croaked. Press Release 9 August 2010. Downloaded on 14 August 2010 from http://www.conservation.org/newsroom/pressreleases/Pages/lost_frogs.aspx.
Conservation International (2011). The search for lost frogs - Rediscovering lost amphibians around the world. Downloaded on 18 February 2011 from http://www.conservation.org/campaigns/lost_frogs/Pages/search_for_lost_amphibians.aspx.
Fontaine, B. et al., (2007) The European union’s 2010 target: Putting rare species in focus. Biological Conservation 139: 167–185. doi:10.1016/j.biocon.2007.06.012.
Glynn, P.W. (2001). History Of Significant Coral Bleaching Events And Insights Regarding Amelioration: 36-39. In: Salm, R.V. and S.L. Coles (eds). (2001). Coral Bleaching and Marine Protected Areas. Proceedings of the Workshop on Mitigating Coral Bleaching Impact Through MPA Design, Bishop Museum, Honolulu, Hawaii, 29-31 May 2001. Asia Pacific Coastal Marine Program Report # 0102, The Nature Conservancy, Honolulu, Hawaii, U.S.A: 118 pp.
Glynn, P. W. and J. S. Feingold. (1992). Hydrocoral species not extinct. Science 257: 1845.
Glynn, P. W. and W. H. de Weerdt. (1991). Elimination of two reef-building hydrocorals following the 1982-83 El Niño warming event. Science 253: 69-71.
Guzmán, H. & Edgar, G. (2008). Millepora boschmai. In: IUCN 2010. IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. Version 2010.2. <www.iucnredlist.org>. Downloaded on 24 July 2010.
Hamer, M. (2003). Peripatopsis leonina. In: IUCN (2010). IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. Version 2010.2. <www.iucnredlist.org>. Downloaded on 24 July 2010.
Hance, J. (2011). First ever picture of long lost rainbow toad. Mongabay.com, 13 July 2011. Downloaded on 14 July 2011 from http://news.mongabay.com/2011/0713-hance_borneanrainbowtoad.html.
IUCN (2010a). IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. Version 2010.2. <www.iucnredlist.org>. Downloaded on 24 July 2010.
IUCN (2010b). IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. Version 2010.4. <www.iucnredlist.org>. Downloaded on 7 November 2010.
IUCN (2011). IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. Version 2011.1. <www.iucnredlist.org>. Downloaded on 25 June 2011.
IUCN (2010c). Search for lost amphibians, News Release 11 August 2010. IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. Version 2010.2. <www.iucnredlist.org>. Downloaded on 14 August 2010 from http://www.iucnredlist.org/news/search-for-lost-amphibians.
Jackson, A., (1999). Edwardsia ivelli. Ivell's sea anemone. Marine Life Information Network: Biology and Sensitivity Key Information Sub-programme [on-line]. Plymouth: Marine Biological Association of the United Kingdom. [cited 19/07/2006]. Available from: <http://www.marlin.ac.uk/species/Edwardsiaivelli.htm>
Mironov, S.V., Dabert, J. and Ehrnsberger, R. (2005). A New Species of the Feather Mite Genus Pterotrogus Gaud (Analgoidea: Pteronyssidae) from the Ivory-billed Woodpecker Campephilus principalis L. (Aves: Piciformes). Annals of the Entomological Society of America 98(1):13-17. (doi: 10.1603/0013-8746(2005)098[0013:ANSOTF]2.0.CO;2)
Prie, V. (2009). Belgrandia varica. In: IUCN (2010). IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. Version 2010.4. <www.iucnredlist.org>. Downloaded on 07 November 2010.
Razak, T.B. & B.W. Hoeksema, (2003). The hydrocoral genus Millepora (Hydrozoa: Capitata: Milleporidae) in Indonesia. Zoologische Verhandelingen Leiden 345: 313-336.
Turvey, S. (2008). Witness to extinction. How we failed to save the Yangtze River Dolphin. Oxford University Press, New York.
University of Delhi (2011). Rediscovery of 5 Lost! Frogs from India. Press Release 17 February 2011. Downloaded from http://www.lostspeciesindia.org/LAI2/Press%20Relaease/feb2011/INDIAN%20DISCOVERY.pdf
Weerdt, W.H. de & P.W. Glynn, (1991). A new and presumably now extinct species of Millepora (Hydrozoa) in the eastern Pacific. Zoologische Mededelingen, Leiden, 65: 267-276.
World Conservation Monitoring Centre (1996). Edwardsia ivelli. In: IUCN (2006). 2006 IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. <www.iucnredlist.org>. Downloaded on 22 September 2006.
Zippel, K.C.. (Conservation Breeding Specialist Group (CBSG), Amphibian Program Officer), Personal communication, October 2010.
| Citation: | Maas, P.H.J. (2011). Missing (Possibly Extinct). In: TSEW (). The Sixth Extinction Website. <http://www.petermaas.nl/extinct>. Downloaded on . |
| Disclaimer: | To make use of this information, please check the <Terms of Use>. |
| Feedback: | If you see any errors, questions or suggestions on what is shown on this page, please contact us so that we can correct or extend the information provided. |
| Updated: | 14 July 2011 |