Knowledge Gap

There are more than 500 species of birds of prey on our planet. We estimate that more than half of all raptor species are in decline, and 18% are threatened with extinction. The IUCN Red List uses information on the size, structure, and trends of species' populations and ranges to classify species into categories of extinction risk that include, Least Concern, Near Threatened, Vulnerable, Endangered, Critically Endangered, Extinct in the Wild, and Extinct. When there is insufficient information to apply criteria, and a species can not be assigned a category, it may be considered Data Deficient.

For most raptor species (59%), global population sizes has not been estimated. Our scientist have determined that research into current and/or past population levels is a research priority for 42% of raptor species (see link to journal article below). In concert with the IUCN "Red List," we are designing the Global Raptor Impact Network (GRIN), a new tool to gather data and analyze the abundance, distribution, and threats to species in real time. With GRIN in our toolkit, we hope to increase the amount of information we have about species that are currently less well known.