Photo/Illutration Himetatsu on the Red List in Minamata, Kumamoto Prefecture (Provided by Makoto Morishita)

The International Union for Conservation of Nature and Natural Resources (IUCN) will publish the latest version of its Red List of wildlife species in danger of extinction on Oct. 29.

The organization, headquartered in Switzerland, revised the list to coincide with the Conference of the Parties to the Convention on Biological Diversity (COP 16), which is being held in Cali, Colombia.

According to the latest version of the list, about 46,000 of the 166,000 assessed species are facing danger of extinction.

Among them are broad-billed sandpipers, migratory birds that breed in northeastern Siberia and visit Japan.

These birds had previously been classified as a species of “least concern,” but have now been assessed as “vulnerable,” the third most critical status for endangered species.

This is because the population is estimated to have decreased by more than 30 percent over the past three generations, a span of 13 years.

The development of coastal areas in their breeding grounds, migration stopover sites and wintering habitats, along with the spread of invasive non-native plant species that degrade tidal flats, pose a threat to the species.

Giant clams, which live on the seabed of the Pacific coral reefs, have risen from “vulnerable” to “critically endangered,”—only one step from extinction in the wild.

Giant clams appear in the popular Nintendo game “Animal Crossing: New Horizons,” and its shell measures over a meter long. Overfishing has threatened the species.

Hippocampus haema, known as “Himetatsu” in Japanese, is a species of seahorse that was newly identified in 2017.

They are found in the waters of Japan and South Korea, and were assessed for the first time and classified as “vulnerable” on the updated Red List.

The Red List reported that their habitats of eelgrass and seaweed are decreasing due to land reclamation and ocean pollution.

Himetatsu are known for residing in waters off the coast of Minamata in Kumamoto Prefecture, which has recovered from organic mercury contamination. 

The city uses Himetatsu on its logo to advertise its restored waters. 

A marine facility named after Himetatsu also opened in the city this summer, where it holds events to observe the seahorse species.

Several coral reefs off the coast of Japan have also been added to the red list.

The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) forecasts that as temperatures rise two degrees above pre-industrial revolution levels, 99 percent of coral reefs will die.

On the other hand, Pryer’s woodpeckers, which are found on Okinawa’s main island, have been downgraded by one level, from “critically endangered” to “endangered.”

The species had been decreasing in number due to the destruction of their forest habitats.

However, because Yambaru forest was designated as a national park in 2016, and also as a UNESCO Natural World Heritage site in 2021, the IUCN believe that the deforestation is unlikely to continue.

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