Endangered Species in Canada

We put together a tool that helps you to understand how many species are endangered in Canada — by making you guess your way to it. Drag the line to the opposite side to find out how your guesses compare to actual data from Environment Canada. (This data is determined by COSEWIC, The Committee on the Status of Endangered Wildlife in Canada , ).

Number of Endangered Species in Canada

Draw your answer above.

The number of endangered species is rising yearly due to loss of native habitat and pollution.

A species is assigned to one of these categories:

  • Not at risk -- A species that has been evaluated and found to be not at risk.
  • Special concern -- A species of special concern because of characteristics that make it particularly sensitive to human activities or natural events.
  • Threatened -- A species likely to become endangered if limiting factors are not reversed.
  • Endangered (*) A species facing imminent extirpation or extinction.
  • Extirpated -- A species no longer existing in the wild in Canada, but occurring elsewhere.
  • Extinct -- A species that no longer exists.

Note: The total number of species monitored by COSEWIC has also risen in this span of years, so the apparent trend might be considered overly alarming. We should keep in mind that this is not the proportion of species, but the absolute number. The following graphic makes this clearer.

Note: Data is published in the spring and fall. We are showing the spring data only.