A rare species is a group of organisms that are very uncommon, scarce, or infrequently encountered. This designation may be applied to either a plant or animal taxon , and is distinct from the term endangered or threatened . Designation of a rare species may be made by an official body, such as a national government, state, or province. The term more commonly appears without reference to specific criteria. The International Union for Conservation of Nature does not normally make such designations, but may use the term in scientific discussion.
8-577: Ornithoptera aesacus , the Obi Island birdwing , is an extremely rare species of birdwing butterfly , endemic to the Island of Obira (formerly Obi), Indonesia . While being a very rare species, they are commercially bred and traded. The specific epithet of Ornithoptera aesacus , is named after Æsacus , the eldest son of Priam . The original description is: aesacus Ney, F. (Felix) 1903 as Troides priamus Form aesacus . The full reference
16-462: A brilliant turquoise-blue sheen. The classification of Ornithoptera aesacus as a species does not have full consensus, and is sometimes regarded as a subspecies of Ornithoptera priamus by some, such as Parsons (1996). The Obi Island birdwing is endemic to the Island of Obira in Indonesia . It inhabits tropical rainforest . Due to extensive logging on the Island the conservation of the species
24-436: A few individuals, are confined to a limited geographic area, or both. Certain rare plants are found sparsely distributed across a wide area. Others might have a large number of individuals that are concentrated in a very small area, such as a single county or canyon. The rarest plants typically have both a small number of individuals and a very limited geographic range. Assessments of the status of rare plants are conducted using
32-410: A large, dispersed population. IUCN uses the term "rare" as a designation for species found in isolated geographical locations. Rare species are generally considered threatened because a small population size is less likely to recover from ecological disasters . Rare plants can be classified based on the size and distribution of their populations. Some species may be rare because they consist of only
40-532: Is Ney, F. 1903 Eine neue Troides-Form von Obi. Insekten-Börse 20 (5): 36., 1903. The depository of the four syntypes collected by J. Waterstradt in May 1902 is unknown. They were once held by Hermann Rolle , whose collection, in part, was sold to Eugène Le Moult . Ornithoptera aesacus is a member of the Ornithoptera priamus species group . The two species are very similar but the male O. aesacus has
48-483: Is a concern, and has been classified as 'Vulnerable' by the IUCN Twenty years ago it was the rarest birdwing species in the world. It remains threatened, but is commercially bred. Rare species Rarity rests on a specific species being represented by a small number of organisms worldwide, usually fewer than 10,000. However, a species having a very narrow endemic range or fragmented habitat also influences
56-620: The Hornbill . They are not endangered yet, but classified as "at risk", although the frontier between these categories is increasingly difficult to draw given the general paucity of data on rare species. This is especially the case in the world Ocean where many 'rare' species not seen for decades may well have gone extinct unnoticed, if they are not already on the verge of extinction like the Mexican Vaquita . A species may be endangered or vulnerable, but not considered rare if it has
64-458: The concept. Almost 75% of known species can be classified as "rare". Rare species are species with small populations. Many will move into the endangered or vulnerable category if the negative factors affecting them continue to operate. Well-known examples of rare species - because these are large terrestrial animals - include the Himalayan brown bear , Fennec fox , Wild Asiatic buffalo , or
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