- 'Draconian' Vietnam internet law heightens free speech fears
- Israeli women mobilise against ultra-Orthodox military exemptions
- Asian markets track Wall St rally as US inflation eases rate worries
- Tens of thousands protest in Serbian capital over fatal train station accident
- Trump vows to 'stop transgender lunacy' as a top priority
- Daniels throws five TDs as Commanders down Eagles, Lions and Vikings win
- 'Who's next?': Misinformation and online threats after US CEO slaying
- Only 12 trucks delivered food, water in North Gaza Governorate since October: Oxfam
- Langers edge Tiger and son Charlie in PNC Championship playoff
- Explosive batsman Jacobs gets New Zealand call-up for Sri Lanka series
- Holders PSG edge through on penalties in French Cup
- Slovak PM Fico on surprise visit to Kremlin to talk gas deliveries
- Daniels throw five TDs as Commanders down Eagles
- Atalanta fight back to take top spot in Serie A, Roma hit five
- Mancini admits regrets over leaving Italy for Saudi Arabia
- Run machine Ayub shines as Pakistan sweep South Africa
- Slovak PM Fico on surprise visit to Kremlin
- Gaza rescuers say Israeli strikes kill 35
- 'Incredible' Liverpool must stay focused: Slot
- Maresca 'absolutely happy' as title-chasing Chelsea drop points in Everton draw
- Salah happy wherever career ends after inspiring Liverpool rout
- Three and easy as Dortmund move into Bundesliga top six
- Liverpool hit Spurs for six, Man Utd embarrassed by Bournemouth
- Netanyahu vows to act with 'force, determination' against Yemen's Huthis
- Mbappe back from 'bottom' as Real Madrid down Sevilla
- Ali hat-trick helps champions Ahly crush Belouizdad
- France kept on tenterhooks over new government
- Salah stars as rampant Liverpool hit Spurs for six
- Syria's new leader says all weapons to come under 'state control'
- 'Sonic 3' zips to top of N.America box office
- Rome's Trevi Fountain reopens to limited crowds
- Mbappe strikes as Real Madrid down Sevilla
- 'Nervous' Man Utd humiliated by Bournemouth
- Pope again condemns 'cruelty' of Israeli strikes on Gaza
- Lonely this Christmas: Vendee skippers in low-key celebrations on high seas
- Troubled Man Utd humiliated by Bournemouth
- 2 US pilots shot down over Red Sea in 'friendly fire' incident: military
- Man Utd embarrassed by Bournemouth, Chelsea held at Everton
- France awaits fourth government of the year
- Germany pledges security inquest into Christmas market attack
- Death toll in Brazil bus crash rises to 41
- Joshua bout only fight left for beaten Fury says promoter Hearn
- Odermatt stays hot to break Swiss World Cup wins record
- Neville says Rashford's career at Man Utd nearing 'inevitable ending'
- Syria's new leader vows not to negatively interfere in Lebanon
- Germany pledges security inquest after Christmas market attack
- Putin vows 'destruction' on Ukraine after Kazan drone attack
- Understated Usyk seeks recognition among boxing legends
- France awaits appointment of new government
- Cyclone Chido death toll rises to 94 in Mozambique
One in three tree species at risk of extinction: report
More than one in three species of trees are at risk of extinction worldwide, threatening life as we know it on Earth, according to a report published Monday.
The warning came in the Global Tree Assessment, contained in an update of the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) Red List of Threatened Species.
Issued to coincide with the UN's COP16 summit on biodiversity, held in the Colombian city of Cali, the report said over 16,000 tree species are at risk of extinction.
More than 47,000 species were assessed for the study, out of an estimated 58,000 species thought to exist in the world.
Trees are felled for logging and to clear land for farming and human expansion. Climate change poses an additional threat through worsening drought and wildfires.
The numbers are not merely symbolic.
People "rely on tree species for food, timber, fuels (and) medicines," expert Emily Beech told AFP.
They also make the oxygen we breathe, and absorb heat-trapping carbon dioxide emissions from the atmosphere.
"Trees are essential to support life on Earth through their vital role in ecosystems, and millions of people depend upon them for their lives and livelihoods," said IUCN director general Grethel Aguilar.
A 2015 study estimated there are about three trillion individual trees in the world.
The study, published in the science journal Nature, estimated that over 15 billion trees are cut down each year, and the global number of trees has fallen by nearly half since the start of human civilization.
Over 5,000 of the species on the IUCN Red List are used for construction timber, and more than 2,000 species for medicines, food and fuels.
Species at risk include the horse chestnut and ginkgo, both used for medical applications, the big leaf mahogany used in furniture making, as well as several ash, magnolia and eucalypt species, said Beech, head of conservation prioritization at Botanic Gardens Conservation International (BGCI), which contributed to the tree assessment.
- Seed banks essential -
According to the IUCN report, the number of trees at risk is "more than double the number of all threatened birds, mammals, reptiles and amphibians combined."
Tree species are at risk of extinction in 192 countries, but the highest proportion is found on islands due to rapid urban development and expanding agriculture, and the introduction of invasive species, pests and diseases from elsewhere.
In South America, which boasts the greatest diversity of trees in the world, 3,356 out of 13,668 assessed species are at risk of extinction.
Many species on the continent, home to the Amazon jungle, have likely not even been discovered yet.
When they are, they are "more likely than not to be threatened with extinction," said the report.
It called for forest protection and restoration through tree planting as well as the conservation of species dying out through seed banks and botanic garden collections.
More than 1,000 experts contributed to the assessment.
O.Norris--AMWN