Rare species
Topic: Biodiversity and its Conservation · NCERT: Class 11, Ch 14 "Biodiversity and Conservation"
Meaning
A rare species has a very small world population. It is either confined to a small area or thinly scattered over a wide one. NCERT uses this as one of its three categories, taken from IUCN's scheme before 1994. "Rare" is no longer an IUCN category. Today such species are judged on population size, decline and range. Because their numbers are so small, rare species can quickly become threatened.
Example
The hangul (Kashmir stag) is India's only surviving red deer. It lives mainly in Dachigam National Park, Jammu and Kashmir. Its small, confined population fits NCERT's idea of "rare", but today IUCN lists it as Critically Endangered.
Don't confuse with
- Endemic species: a species found naturally in only one place. An endemic species can still be common there, so endemic does not mean rare.