IUCN SPECIES SURVIVAL COMMISSION

The IUCN Red List of Threatened SpeciesTM is the most effective tool for information global species conservation priorities. Here is an introduction to the specialist groups and task forces that comprise the IUCN Species Survival Commission (SSC), some of which contribute to the "Red Listing" of species. For more information, and a complete directory of specialist groups, visit the IUCN website.

African Elephant Specialist Group
Chair: Dr. Holly Dublin
The African Elephant Specialist Group (AfESG) aims to promote the long-term conservation of Africa’s elephants and, where possible, the recovery of their population to viable levels. AfESG continues to provide sound, interdisciplinary scientific information to aid in decision making and action across Africa.
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African Rhino Specialist Group
Chair: Dr. Peter Martin Brooks

Afrotheria Specialist Group
Chair: Dr. Galen Rathbun

Amphibian Specialist Group
Chairs: Dr. Claude Gascon and Dr. Jim Collins
The Amphibian Specialist Group strives to conserve biological diversity by stimulating, developing, and executing practical programs to conserve amphibians and their habitats around the world.
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Antelope Specialist Group
Chairs: Dr. Philippe Chardonnet and Dr. David Paul Mallon

Arabian Plant Specialist Group
Chair: Prof. Abdulaziz Abuzinada

Arctic Plant Specialist Group
Chair: Dr. Stephen Talbot

Asian Elephant Specialist Group
Chair: Mr. Ajay Desai
The Asian Elephant SG facilitated the first-ever Asian Elephant Range States' Meeting in Malaysia in 2006 and continues to create and secure funding for an Asian Elephant Database.
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Asian Rhino Specialist Group
Chair: Dr. Bibhab Talukdar

Asian Wild Cattle Specialist Group
Chair: Dr. James Burton
The Asian Wild Cattle SG facilitated the first Regional Strategic Planning workshop for Asian wild cattle and buffaloes in Southeast Asia and conducted a Range-wide Status Review of these species in June 2008.
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Bear Specialist Group
Chairs: Dr. David Garshelis and Dr. Bruce McLellan

Bison Specialist Group
Chairs: Dr. C. Cormack Gates and Prof. Wanda Olech

Bryophyte Specialist Group
Chair: Dr. Thomas Hallingbäck

Cactus and Succulent Specialist Group
Chair: Dr. Héctor Hernández Macias
The Cactus and Succulent SG is currently involved in the Global Cactus Assessment and recently made great progress in Red Listing species of succulent plants from South Africa, Brazil and Mexico.
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Canid Specialist Group
Chair: Dr. Claudio Sillero-Zubiri

Caprinae Specialist Group
Chair: Prof. Marco Festa-Bianchet

Caribbean Island Plant Red List Authority
Chair: Dr. Eugenio Santiago

Cat Specialist Group
Chairs: Dr. Christine Breitenmoser and Dr. Urs Max Breitenmoser
The Cat SG is involved in the conservation of the Iberian lynx, Arabian leopard, Caucasus leopard and cheetah in Africa. It has produced a Digital Cat Library for capacity development and the Cat News website for information.
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Caucasus Plant Red List Authority
Chair: Dr. George Nakhutsrishvili

Central African Plant Red List Authority
Chair: Mr. David Kenfack

Cetacean Specialist Group
Chair: Dr. Randall R. Reeves

China Plant Specialist Group
Chair: Dr. Qin Hai-ning

Chiroptera Specialist Group
Chairs: Prof. Paul A. Racey and Dr. Rodrigo A. Medellín

Conifer Specialist Group
Chair: Mr. Alijos Farjon

Conservation Breeding Specialist Group
Chair: Dr. Robert Lacy
CBSG has established eight regional networks, each with a team of facilitators and population modelers, to promote effective conservation for threatened species worldwide. The SG is involved in linking situ and ex situ conservation, as well as establishing a "biocomplexity network" to better understand interactions within bio-physical-social systems that underlie conservation problems.
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Coral Reef Fish Specialist Group
Chair: Dr. Terry J. Donaldson

Cormorant Specialist Group
Chair: Mr. Mennobart Van Eerden

Crane Specialist Group
Chair: Dr. George Archibald

Crocodile Specialist Group
Chair: Prof. Graham Webb

Crop Wild Relative Specialist Group
Chairs: Dr. Ehsan Mohammad Dulloo and Dr. Nigel Maxted
The CWRSG is developing strategies for gathering, documenting and disseminating baseline information on crop wild relatives, as well as increasing awareness of the importance to agriculture and the environment of crop wild relatives among various stakeholders.
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Cuban Plant Specialist Group
Chair: Dr. Angela Leiva Sánchez

Cycad Specialist Group
Chair: Dr. John Donaldson

Deer Specialist Group
Chair: Dr. Susana González
The Deer Specialist Group (DSG) is responsible for collecting and updating baseline information for 64 deer species distributed worldwide. Half of the deer species of the world have populations with certain degrees of threats. Deer play a vital role in vulnerable ecosystems as ecological keystones critical to seed dispersal, structuring habitat, and maintaining wild food chains.
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Diver & Loon Specialist Group
Chair: Dr. Joseph Kerekes

Duck Specialist Group

Eastern African Plant Red List Authority
Chair: Mr. Quentin Luke

Edentate Specialist Group
Chair: Dr. Gustavo Fonseca
The Edentate SG supports field research on threatened edentates through small grants to students and scientists in habitat countries and developed a field-based consensus of edentate threat status and distribution for the most recent Red List assessment.
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Equid Specialist Group
Chair: Dr. Patricia Moehlman
The Equid SG is responsible for the stabilization and growth of African wild ass populations in Eritrea and Ethiopia and continues to focus on conservation of these species and the Grevy's zebra in Ethiopia. It participated in the Red List assessment of all seven species of wild equids.
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European Plant Red List Authority
Chair: Dr. Stephen L. Jury

Flamingo Specialist Group
Chair: Dr. Brooks Childress

Freshwater Fish Specialist Group
Chair: Prof. Gordon McGregor Reid
The Freshwater Fish SG provides a vital source of status and distribution information on freshwater fishes worldwide and implements training and capacity building initiatives for budding fish taxonomists involved in conservation.
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Fungi Specialist Group
Chair: Dr. Anders Dahlberg

Galapagos Plant Specialist Group
Chair: Dr. Alan Tye

Global Tree Specialist Group
Chair: Ms. Sara Felicity Oldfield

Goose Specialist Group
Chair: Dr. B.S. Ebbinge

Grebe Specialist Group
Chair: Dr. Bruce Eichhorst

Grouper & Wrasse Specialist Group
Chair: Assistant Prof. Yvonne Sadvoy
The Grouper & Wrasse SG is responsible for promoting sustainable use of the Napoleon wrasse in the Indo-Pacific and creating awareness and understanding of vulnerable species of commercially valuable groupers and wrasses worldwide.
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Grouse Specialist Group
Chair: Prof. Ilse Storch

Hawaiian Plant Specialist Group
Chair: Ms. Marie Bruegmann

Heron Specialist Group
Chair: Dr. James Kushlan

Hyaena Specialist Group
Chair: Dr. Gus Mills

Iguana Specialist Group
Chairs: Dr. Allison Alberts and Mr. Rick Hudson
The Iguana SG celebrated the rediscovery, rescue and recovery of the Jamaican iguana as its flagship program and is involved in the active conservation and mobilization of support for all species of endangered Caribbean rock iguanas.
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Indian Ocean Island Specialist Group
Chair: Mr. Vincent Florens

Indian Subcontinent Plant Specialist Group
Chair: Dr. Mohammed Ahmedullah
The Indian Subcontinent Plant SG helped influence policy for expanding the scope of the Wildlife Protection Act to include some prioritized endangered plants and implemented restoration programmes for several critically endangered species in the western Ghats hotspot.
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Invasive Species Specialist Group
Chair: Prof. Mick Clout

Japanese Plant Red List Authority
Chair: Dr. Tetsukazu Yahara

Korean Plant Specialist Group
Chair: Dr. Yong-Shik Kim

Lagomorph Specialist Group
Chair: Dr. Andrew T. Smith

Large Carnivore Initiative for Europe Working Group
Chair: Prof. Luigi Boitani

Lichen Specialist Group
Chair: Dr. Christoph Scheidegger

Macaronesian Island Plant Specialist Group
Chair: Dr. Angel Banares-Baudet

Madagascar Plant Specialist Group
Chair: Prof. Charlotte Rajeriarison
The Madagascar Plant SG helped reintroduce Angraecum longicalcar in central Madagascar and discovered that Eulophiella roempleriana is no more restricted to one single host. It is currently working to assess and validate the conservation status of the country's 12,000 vascular plants.
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Marine Invertebrate Red List Authority
Chair: Dr. Alex Rogers

Marine Turtle Specialist Group
Chairs: Dr. Roderic Mast and Dr. Nicolas James Pilcher
The Marine Turtle SG is involved in Red Listing the seven species of marine turtle and developing conservation priorities for them. It recently launched a global database of marine turtle nesting sites (SWOT).
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Medicinal Plant Specialist Group
Chair: Dr. Danna Leaman
The Medicinal Plant SG aims to support and promote efforts leading to medicinal plant conservation and sustainable use. Its approach is to provide information, tools, and policy advice, focusing particularly on actions that reduce threats to endangered species and habitats.
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Mediterranean Island Plant Specialist Group
Chair: Dr. Bertrand de Montmollin

Megapode Specialist Group
Chair: Dr. René W.R.J. Dekker

Mollusc Specialist Group
Chair: Dr. Mary Seddon
Long important to humans for food, freshwater and even currency: 70% of the 300 North American freshwater mussel species are now threatened, declining or extinct. Their threats are invasive species, habitat loss and pollution. The Mollusc SG works to conserve mollusc species and stop the decline.
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Non-volant Mammal Red List Authority
Chair: Dr. Giovanni Amori

North American Plant Specialist Group
Chair: Ms. Peggy Olwell

Odonata Specialist Group
Chair: Dr. Vincent Kalkman

Orchid Specialist Group
Chair: Dr. Mike Fay

Otter Specialist Group
Chair: Mr. Jim Conroy

Palm Specialist Group

Partridge, Quail and Francolin Specialist Group
Chairs: Dr. Richard Fuller and Dr. John Carroll

Pelican Specialist Group
Chair: Dr. Alain Crivelli

Pheasant Specialist Group
Chairs: Dr. Rahul Kaul and Dr. Peter Garson
Pheasants are large, ground-based birds, widely over-hunted as a food crop. They live in forests, requiring dense ground cover and are susceptible to habitat degradation. Several species have a sacred or ceremonial relationship with people and are used as flagships for integrated conservation and development projects.
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Philippine Plant Specialist Group

Pig, Peccary and Hippo Specialist Group
Chair: Dr. William Oliver

Polar Bear Specialist Group
Chair: Prof. Andrew E. Derocher

Primate Specialist Group
Chair: Dr. Russell Mittermeier
The Primate SG recently helped produce a biennial report on the 25 Most Endangered Primates to draw attention to the plight of primates worldwide and established a Primate Action Fund, which has supported hundreds of small primate projects over the past 30 years.
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Re-introduction Specialist Group
Chair: Dr. Frederic Launay

Restructuring Task Force
Chair: Prof. Luigi Boitani

Salmonid Specialist Group
Chairs: Dr. Xanthippe Augerot and Dr. Frederick Whoriskey
The Salmonid SG recently completed two range-wide assessments for Sakhalin taimen and sockeye salmon; it also supported the establishment of the UNESCO Shiretoko World Heritage Site in Japan.
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Sciaenid Red List Authority
Chair: Dr. Ning Labbish

Seaduck Specialist Group
Chair: Dr. Stefan Pihl

Shark Specialist Group
Chairs: Ms. Sarah Fowler and Walter Andrés Domingo Balestra
The Shark SG has completed a series of 11 regional and thematic Red List workshops, bringing together 194 shark experts from 59 countries, as well as the first IUCN Global Shark Assessment.
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Sirenia Specialist Group

Small Carnivore Specialist Group
Chair: Dr. Jerry Belant

South American Camelid Specialist Group
Chair: Dr. Gabriela Lichtenstein
The Camelid SG successfully implemented wild management projects for vicuna and guanaco, including the assessment of their effects by group members, and made a significant contribution towards the demise of unsustainable captive use initiatives.
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South Atlantic Island Plant Specialist Group
Chair: Dr. Rebecca Cairns-Wicks

Southern African Plant Specialist Group
Chair: Ms. Domitilla Raimondo

Species Conservation Planning Task Force
Chair: Dr. Robert Lacy

Stork, Ibis and Spoonbill Specialist Group
Chairs: Dr. Malcolm Coulter and Mr. Wim Van Den Bossche

Sturgeon Specialist Group
Chair: Dr. Mohammad Poukazemi

Sustainable Use Specialist Group
Chair: Dr. Johnathan Hutton

Swan Specialist Group
Chair: Dr. Jan Beekman

Tapir Specialist Group
Chair: Ms. Patrícia Medici
The Tapir SG has successfully organized and carried out Population Habitat Viability Assessments (PHVA) Workshops for all four tapir species, resulting in the development of new, updated and prioritized action plans for each of them.
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Temperate South American Plant Specialist Group
Chair: Dr. Carlos Villamil

Terrestrial and Aquatic Invertebrate Red List Authority
Chair: Dr. Sacha Spector

Threatened Waterfowl Specialist Group
Chair: Dr. Baz Hughes

Tortoise and Freshwater Turtle Specialist Group
Chair: Dr. Anders G. J. Rhodin
The Tortoise and Freshwater Turtle SG is responsible for identifying and documenting threats for the 200+ species of tortoises and freshwater turtles worldwide and providing new and updated Red List assessments for them.
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Wader Specialist Group
Chair: Mr. David Stroud

Wildlife Health Specialist Group
Chairs: Dr. Richard Kock and Dr. William Karesh

Wolf Specialist Group
Chair: Dr. L. David Mech

Woodcock Snipe Specialist Group
Chair: Dr. Yves Ferrand