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A rare species is an organism
Organism

In biology, an organism is any life thing . In at least some form, all organisms are capable of response to stimulus , reproduction, growth and developmental biology, and maintenance of homeostasis as a stable whole....
 which is very uncommon or scarce. This designation may be applied to either a plant or animal taxon, and may be distinct from the term "endangered
Endangered species

An endangered species is a population of an organism which is at risk of becoming extinct because it is either few in numbers, or threatened by changing environmental or predation parameters....
" or "threatened species
Threatened species

Threatened species are any species which are vulnerable to extinction in the near future.World Conservation Union is the foremost authority on threatened species, and treats threatened species not as a single category, but as a group of three categories: Vulnerable species, endangered species, and Critically endangered species, depending...
". Designation of a rare species may be made by an official body such as a national government, state or province. However, the term is used more commonly without reference to a specific criteria. The IUCN does not normally make such designations but may use the term in its scientific discussions.

The concept of rarity is established from having a very small number of organisms worldwide, usually a number less than 10,000; however, the concept is also influenced by having a very narrow endemic
Endemic (ecology)

Endemism is the ecological state of being unique to a particular geographic location, such as a specific island, Habitat type, nation, or other defined zone....
 range and/or fragmented habitat
Habitat fragmentation

Habitat fragmentation is a process of Natural environmental change important in evolution and conservation biology. As the name implies, it describes the emergence of discontinuities in an organism's preferred environment ....
.

A species may be endangered or vulnerable, but not considered rare if, for example, it has a large, dispersed population but its numbers are declining rapidly or predicted to do so.






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Encyclopedia


A rare species is an organism
Organism

In biology, an organism is any life thing . In at least some form, all organisms are capable of response to stimulus , reproduction, growth and developmental biology, and maintenance of homeostasis as a stable whole....
 which is very uncommon or scarce. This designation may be applied to either a plant or animal taxon, and may be distinct from the term "endangered
Endangered species

An endangered species is a population of an organism which is at risk of becoming extinct because it is either few in numbers, or threatened by changing environmental or predation parameters....
" or "threatened species
Threatened species

Threatened species are any species which are vulnerable to extinction in the near future.World Conservation Union is the foremost authority on threatened species, and treats threatened species not as a single category, but as a group of three categories: Vulnerable species, endangered species, and Critically endangered species, depending...
". Designation of a rare species may be made by an official body such as a national government, state or province. However, the term is used more commonly without reference to a specific criteria. The IUCN does not normally make such designations but may use the term in its scientific discussions.

The concept of rarity is established from having a very small number of organisms worldwide, usually a number less than 10,000; however, the concept is also influenced by having a very narrow endemic
Endemic (ecology)

Endemism is the ecological state of being unique to a particular geographic location, such as a specific island, Habitat type, nation, or other defined zone....
 range and/or fragmented habitat
Habitat fragmentation

Habitat fragmentation is a process of Natural environmental change important in evolution and conservation biology. As the name implies, it describes the emergence of discontinuities in an organism's preferred environment ....
.

A species may be endangered or vulnerable, but not considered rare if, for example, it has a large, dispersed population but its numbers are declining rapidly or predicted to do so. Rare species are generally considered threatened simply because the inability of small population size
Small population size

Populations with small population size behave differently from larger populations. Often this has various harmful consequences for the survival of that population....
s to recover from stochastic events, and the potential for a rapid decline in population.

Examples of rare species


Animals


Plants


See also

  • Biodiversity Action Plan
    Biodiversity Action Plan

    This article is about a conservation biology topic. For other uses of BAP, see BAP .A 'Biodiversity Action Plan' is an internationally recognized program addressing threatened species and habitats and is designed to protect and restore biological systems....
  • Critical depensation
    Critical depensation

    In population dynamics, depensation is the effect on a population whereby, due to certain causes, a decrease in the breeding population leads to reduced survival and production of eggs or offspring....
  • Recovery Plan
    Recovery Plan

    Recovery Plan is a program in the USA to develop protocols for protecting and enhancing rare species and endangered species populations.The United States Environmental Protection Agency, under authority of the U.S....
  • Common species
    Common species

    Common species and uncommon species are designations used in ecology to describe the population status of a species. Commonness is closely related to abundance ....
  • Abundance (ecology)
    Abundance (ecology)

    Abundance is an ecology concept referring to the relative representation of a species in a particular ecosystem. It is usually measured as the large number of individuals found per sample....