Wild conifers listed as one of world’s most threatened species

The list, which is also known as IUCN Red list of Threatened Species, is compiled by a partnership led by the International Union for the Conservation of Nature (IUCN), which publishes the information.

A review of the records for conifers showed that several species, including the Taxus contorta, which is used for the chemotherapy drug Taxol and Glyptostrobus pensilis, which is native to China and Vietnam, are facing extinction.

Tim Entwisle, director of conservation at the Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew, said that the Red List helps to highlight critical groups.

“The Red Listing process highlights the state of knowledge for some of the critical groups, like conifers, and is the first step towards understanding and dealing with one of the biggest problems we have to face in the 21st century – species extinction,” he sai