Of the species in the IUCN Red List of endangered species that have not been assessed due to lack of ecological data, 56% are likely to be endangered. This study, published in the British Journal communication biology on the 4th, shows that such "data deficient species" may face greater extinction risk than other species assessed by IUCN, suggesting that there is a potential deviation in the current conservation priority. (more than half of the species that have not been assessed may have extinction risk. Screenshot source: online related papers of communication Biology) researchers from the Norwegian University of science and Technology (NTNU) trained a machine learning algorithm to calculate the extinction risk of 26363 species previously assessed in the IUCN Red List. The calculations are based on published data on the areas where these species live, as well as various factors known to affect biodiversity, such as climate change, human land use, and the threat posed by invasive species. The authors then used this algorithm to predict the extinction risk of all 7699 species lacking data. The researchers estimated that 4336 (56%) species lacking data may be at risk of extinction. In contrast, only 28% of the species assessed in the IUCN Red List are at risk of extinction. The extinction risk of species with lack of data varies according to the population and geographical region. Among them, 85% of amphibians, 40% of radial fin fish, 61% of mammals, 59% of reptiles and 62% of insects may be at risk of extinction. There is a lack of data on the risk of extinction. Terrestrial species usually live in small geographical areas in Central Africa, South Asia and Madagascar. It is predicted that 1 / 3 to half of the world's coastlines lack data and marine species are at risk of extinction. The above results highlight the importance of conservation for a large number of species that are at risk of extinction but are not listed as endangered by IUCN. The research team points out that a more accurate assessment of these species may help shift conservation priorities and integrate them into the sustainable development goals and biodiversity conservation targets more quickly. (news agency)