Vulnerable species

A vulnerable species is a species that has been categorized by the International Union for Conservation of Nature as being threatened with extinction unless the circumstances that are threatening its survival and reproduction improve.

Vulnerability is mainly caused by habitat loss or destruction of the species' home. Vulnerable habitat or species are monitored and can become increasingly threatened. Some species listed as "vulnerable" may be common in captivity, an example being the military macaw.

In 2012, a total of 5,196 animals and 6,789 plants were classified as vulnerable, compared with values of 2,815 and 3,222 in 1998, corresponding to increases of 85 percent and 111 percent, respectively, over a 14 year period, or about 4 percent and 5 percent a year.

Practices such as cryoconservation of animal genetic resources have been enforced in efforts to conserve vulnerable breeds of livestock specifically.

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