ESR 18:247-254 (2012)  -  DOI: https://doi.org/10.3354/esr00449

ABSTRACT: Red lists are important tools applied worldwide to species conservation, but disagreements between lists can affect their implementation and credibility. We searched global, national and local threatened species lists for Brazilian reef fish species and compared the differences between them with respect to categories and criteria applied. Of 559 Brazilian reef fish species, 125 have been evaluated against threat criteria at different scales; a total of 43 are listed as threatened with extinction. Of 43 threatened species, 32 are mentioned in the global IUCN Red List, 11 are referred to in the national inventory, and state lists also cite 11. Six endemic species are threatened; of these, 3 are listed by the IUCN, 5 at the national level and 2 are threatened in Espírito Santo state. This highlights a mismatch between species lists: 84.8% of the species listed as globally threatened do not appear in the national list, whereas 54.5% of the species mentioned on the Brazilian list are not in the IUCN Red List. Moreover, we found disagreements in the set of categories and criteria applied in the different red listing processes. The same categories and quantitative criteria must be applied in all regional red lists, so that conservation actions are more effective and lists are trustworthy. This is imperative to attract financial support for threatened species management and recovery. Management plans must be developed for those species already listed as threatened in Brazil. In addition, a review of the national list and the inclusion of threatened Brazilian endemic fishes in the IUCN Red List are needed.

KEY WORDS: Conservation · Red lists · Reef fish · Threatened species