Abstract - IUCN Red List of Ecosystems

Abstract - IUCN Red List of Ecosystems

Red List of Terrestrial Ecosystems of Costa Rica: Final Project Report
Herrera-F Bernal. (2015). Director Cátedra Latinoamericana de Áreas Protegidas y Corredores
Biológicos “Kenton Miller”. CATIE, Turrialba, Costa Rica.
Abstract: Costa Rica is a country of 51,000 km2 with approximately 5% of the known
biodiversity of the world. It presents a large diversity of ecosystems due to its high variability
of biophysical conditions. In 2013-2014, CATIE carried out a national assessment of the
collapse risk of ecosystems. Phytogeographic units of Zamora (2006) were used and updated
for this project. Data of vegetation coverage in 1960 were used, and reviewed and adapted
using aerial photographs of the same year. The map of forest coverage of 2010 was also used
for the assessment, which was classified from 30m resolution LandsatETM images de 30m. A
map of national threats was additionally prepared, which was used as supplementary data
according to the criteria of the IUCN Red List of Ecosystems. Criteria A1, B1, and B2 were
applied. Other criteria were not applied due to lack of data for their estimation.
From a total of 41 assessed ecosystems, 16 were classified as threatened, which represents 39%
of the total of ecosystems. Nine out of the sixteen threatened ecosystems are “critically
endangered”, three “endangered”, and four “vulnerable”.
These results are relevant because they represent information that allows to determine and
complement priorities of conservation of the biodiversity in the frame of the efforts of the
country to accomplish the Aichi goals established by the Convention of Biodiversity.
Reference: Herrera-F. B. (2015). Lista Roja de los Ecosistemas Terrestres de Costa Rica: Informe
final de proyecto. CATIE. 75 p. Turrialba, Costa Rica.