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Endangered Species and Spaces
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2.3
Committee on the Status of Endangered Wildlife in Canada (COSEWIC)
This committee was formed in 1977
to meet the need to produce a single official, scientifically sound
national list of wild species at risk in Canada. All native plants
and animals, except invertebrates, fall under COSEWIC’s purview
(Munro, 1994).
The committee is comprised of one
member from each provincial and territorial wildlife agency, one
member from each of four federal agencies, and one from each of
three nationally-based not-for-profit conservation agencies. Sub-committees
are struck to obtain and review status reports on species from various
taxonomic groups (mammals, birds, amphibians, reptiles, fish, and
plants), and then present recommendations to the full committee
for formal assignment of status. COSEWIC recognizes five categories
of risk: vulnerable; threatened; endangered, extirpated; and extinct.
Table 3 below provides definitions of these categories.
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Table 3: COSEWIC Definitions of Conservation Status
| Status |
Definition
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Rare |
This term has not been assigned
by COSEWIC since 1989; replaced by "vulnerable"
which permits inclusion of rare species which are vulnerable
because of their rarity, and those species where declining
numbers may indicate a potential threat. Species assigned
as "rare" prior to 1989 will remain so until their
status is reviewed. |
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Vulnerable |
Any indigenous species of fauna
or flora that is particularly at risk because of low or declining
numbers, occurrence at the fringe of its range or in restricted
areas, or for some other reason, but is not a threatened species. |
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Threatened |
Any indigenous species of fauna
or flora that is likely to become endangered in Canada if
the factors affecting its vulnerability are not reversed. |
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Endangered |
Any indigenous species of fauna
or flora that is threatened with imminent extinction or extirpation
throughout all or a significant portion of its Canadian range,
owing to human action. |
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Extirpated |
Any indigenous species of fauna
or flora no longer existing in the wild in Canada, but occurring
elsewhere. |
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Extinct |
Any species of fauna or flora
formerly indigenous to Canada, but no longer existing anywhere. |
Source:
Munro, W.T.1994. National Criteria for the Designation of Endangered
and Threatened Species. Ch. 2 in Biodiversity in British Columbia,
Harding and McCullum Ed’s.
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As with the provincial
and other classification systems, assigned status is not permanent,
but can change on the basis of new information and be either up-listed,
down-listed, added to the list, or dropped entirely. COSEWIC lists
are intended only to draw official attention to species at risk,
and they hold no formal requirement to act on the basis of designation.
They merely provide a scientific consensus that may be used by appropriate
jurisdictions to take action (Munro, 1994). |
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