IUCN - The World Conversation Union

Status: Vulnerable

Historically the range of the Giant Gartersnake (Thamnophis gigas) included much of the floor of the Central Valley (Sacramento and San Joaquin valleys) of California, USA. This Vulnerable species apparently is now extirpated from most of the range in the San Joaquin Valley due to loss and fragmentation of wetland habitats. Habitat loss and degradation remain the greatest threat to the survival of this snake. In some areas, predation by and competition with introduced species, parasitism, and road kills may also be serious threats.

Status: Vulnerable

The Panamint Alligator Lizard (Elgaria panamintina) is known only from California in the United States. It is known several locations in desert mountains of Inyo and Mono counties, California. The known area of occupancy is very small (probably less than 5 km²). Most known locations are in canyon riparian zones below permanent springs. All but a few of the known populations occur on private lands and are currently at risk from mining, feral and domestic livestock grazing, and increasing off-road vehicle activity.

Status: Endangered

This lizard is endemic to California in the United States. The historical range encompassed the San Joaquin Valley and adjacent foothills of southern California, from Stanislaus County to extreme northern Santa Barbara and Ventura counties, at elevations below 800 m (2,600 feet). The currently known occupied range includes scattered parcels of undeveloped land on the floor of the San Joaquin Valley and in the foothills of the Coast Range. There are not many more than a few dozen distinct populations. The total population size is unknown but probably includes more than 1,000 adults. The species had been eliminated from 94% of the original range since the mid-1800s. Its distribution and abundance have been greatly reduced, and populations are now severely fragmented, due primarily to loss of habitat to urbanization, water development projects, and agricultural development; intensive mineral development, off-road vehicle activity, pesticide application (for ground squirrels), overgrazing, and flooding also have been detrimental. These lizards use mammal burrows for shelter, so activities that compact soil or crush burrows should be avoided. Habitat disturbance, destruction, and fragmentation continue as the greatest threats to Blunt-nosed Leopard Lizard populations.

Status: Endangered

The great hammerhead shark is found in tropical waters throughout the world, including in the Atlantic and Pacific oceans, parts of the Mediterranean and the coastlines of India, southeast Asia and Australia. It is a solitary and large shark, with adults commonly reaching 4 meters or 13 feet long, making it highly prized for its fins which are being sold primarily in Asian markets. The fin market and accidental catch by other types of fisheries is impacting this shark species, which in previous years was listed as Data Deficient because information was not available throughout its range. Recent assessments indicate a population decline of more than 50% however, and so the great hammerhead moves into the Endangered category on the 2007 IUCN Red List. IUCN will be working with its members to collect more information on this species, communicate with fisheries on methods to conserve it and work to ban shark finning, thus preventing the harvesting of hammerhead sharks for their fins alone.

Status: Endangered

The total Manatee population size is currently estimated to number less than 10,000 (based on combined estimates for the Florida and Antillean subspecies). Both subspecies (T. m. latirostris and T. m. manatus) are listed as Endangered based on their small population sizes (fewer than 2,500 for each subspecies) and ongoing declines. Florida manatees (T. m. latirostris) are found only in the United States, although a few vagrants have been known to reach the Bahamas. Their year-round distribution is restricted to peninsular Florida because they need warm water to survive the winter. During the non-winter months (March to November), some manatees disperse to adjoining states. The Antillean Manatee (T. m. manatus) inhabits riverine and coastal systems in the tropical and subtropical Western Atlantic Coastal Zone from the Bahamas to Brazil, including the Caribbean Sea and Gulf of Mexico.

Threats to the manatee encompass catastrophic natural events and anthropogenic factors that could cause declines in reproductive and survival rates or declines in the carrying capacity of the environment. About half of adult mortality range-wide is attributable to human-related causes, primarily watercraft collisions. The future of the Florida manatee is also jeopardized by the predicted loss and deterioration of warm-water habitat, including retirement or deregulation of aging power plants and reduction in natural spring flows. Other direct threats include entanglement (in fishing gear or debris), entrapment in water-control structures and pipes, exposure to contaminants, incidental ingestion of debris, and crushing (in flood-control structures, in canal locks, or between large ships and docks).

Naturally occurring catastrophic threats to manatees include prolonged periods of very cold temperatures, hurricanes, harmful algal blooms (i.e., “red tide”), and the potential for disease.