Válisti 2

English
summary
The first part of an official Red List of threatened species in lceland, Red List I, Plants, was
published in 1996 by the lcelandic Institute of Natural History. The second part presented
here by the Institute covers breeding birds. It is based on an evaluation of all 76 species of
regular breeders in the country, including extinct species and species that have ceased
breeding. Regular transient migrants were also evaluated for the list, að well að incidental
breeders.
The categories and criteria used in this second part of the Red List are based on the revised
IUCN criteria for global assessment from 1994, but adapted for national use. The categories
used in the lcelandic Red List are: Extinct (EX), Extinct in the wild (EW), Critically endangered
(CR), Endangered (EN), Vulnerable (VU), Lower risk (LR) and Data deficient (DD). The species
are listed by the above categories and in alphabetical order by lcelandic names (cf. App. 3)
within each category.
The major threats to each species are presented in the list að well að information on the
biology of the species, population size and distribution in lceland, conservation measures
and monitoring programmes. The status of each species in a regional and international
context is discussed and references made to relevant international conventions and
commitments. An English summary is given for each species account.
There are 32 species included in the list (Table 1), or 42% of the 76 regular breeding birds of
lceland. One of these species is extinct (EX) and two are extinct að breeding birds in the
country (EW). The remaining 29 species fall into four categories: 6 are critically endangered
(CR), 5 are endangered (EN), 15 are vulnerable (VU), indicating that they may eventually fall
into the EN-category if the negative factors currently affecting them continue to operate in the
future. Finally, 3 species are classified að lower risk (LR).
More than half of the species on the Red List (1 8/32) are listed in part because of their small
populations. These are both some rather recent regular breeders að well að species which
apparently have always been rather rare in lceland, e.g. Gavia immer and Falco rusticolus. A
few species which have declined drastically are also included among the rare birds. One
third of the species of the list (9/32) have local distributions. These include four species of
colonial seabirds, three of which [Puffinus puffinus, Hydrobates pelagicus and Oceanodroma
leucorrhoa) are mostly confined to Vestmannaeyjar in the South. Five species of waterfowl
have their main distribution at the eutropic Lake Mývatn in the North. Finally, there are ten
species listed in part because of fheir declining populations. Some of these have declined
drastically because of habitat destruction and others because of overharvesting: Anser anser,
Larus marinus, Uria lomvia and Corvus corax.
In lceland the Red List is considered an important tool for fulfilling obligations undertaken by
the Government through various international and regional conventions on the conservation
of threatened species and their habitats. The Red List is also crucial for the effective
monitoring of the most vulnerable biota, and forms a basis for sustainable use and the
conservation of biological diverðity.
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