Boieiro, M., Ceia, H., Caramujo, M. J., Cardoso, P., Garcia‑Pereira, P., Pires, D., Reis, J., & Rego, C. (2025). The Red List of terrestrial and freshwater invertebrates of mainland Portugal – a major step for Iberian biodiversity conservation. Comunicação oral apresentada no XXI Congreso Ibérico de Entomología, Ávila, Espanha
The Red List of Invertebrates of Mainland Portugal aimed to identify endangered species across several taxonomic groups, including Bivalvia, Gastropoda, Araneae, Crustacea, and Insecta. The extinction risk of 863 species, mostly insects, was assessed using the methodology of the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN).Of these, 200 species were classified as threatened (Critically Endangered, Endangered, or Vulnerable), 16 were considered Regionally Extinct (RE), and 39 were categorized as Near Threatened (NT). For many species, the available data was insufficient to determine their conservation status, resulting in their classification as Data Deficient (DD).The main threats to the species classified as threatened include invasive species, climate change, wildfires, pollution, and human activities that lead to habitat destruction, fragmentation, and degradation. In the short term, it is crucial to advance scientific research to inform conservation strategies and support ecological restoration. Equally important is raising awareness among decision makers and the general public to value and protect the unique invertebrate biodiversity of mainland Portugal.
