The South Atlantic Invasive Species project, funded by the European Union and managed by the RSPB (BirdLife in the UK), has rediscovered a plant not seen for two centuries on the UK Overseas Territory island of St Helena.

The tiny plant, named by its rediscoverers the 'Neglected Tuft Sedge', Bulbostylis neglecta, was found in a remote, western part of the island, known as High Hill. Prior to its rediscovery, it was last seen in 1806, nine years before Napoleon was exiled on the island for six years after his defeat at the Battle of Waterloo.

The Neglected Tuft Sedge is not listed on the 2007 IUCN Red List Of Threatened Species because it has not been assessed under the new Red List Categories and Criteria. But it was previously listed as Extinct on the 1997 IUCN Red List of Threatened Plants.

One third of reef-building corals around the world are threatened with extinction, according to the first-ever comprehensive global assessment to determine their conservation status. The study findings were published on July 10th 2008 by Science Express.

Leading coral experts joined forces with the Global Marine Species Assessment (GMSA) – a joint initiative of the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) and Conservation International (CI) – to apply the IUCN Red List Categories and Criteria to this important group of marine species.

The results of the coral species assessment will be included on the 2008 update of the IUCN Red List of Threatened Species to be released in October 2008.

Over 40 delegates from across South-east Asia met last week and agreed a new regional conservation strategy aimed at reversing the dramatic decline of Asian wild cattle and buffalo species. The landmark meeting was held over six days in Vinh Phúc Province, Viet Nam.

All nine species of Asian wild cattle and buffaloes are threatened with extinction, according to the IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. The worst affected is the Kouprey (Bos sauveli), a large forest-dwelling ox, about the same size as a Water Buffalo. Last seen in Cambodia in 1969, it has not been located since and may now be extinct in the wild.

Life on Earth is disappearing fast and will continue to do so unless urgent action is taken. There are now 41,415 species on the IUCN Red List and 16,306 of them are threatened with extinction, up from 16,118 last year. The total number of extinct species has reached 785 and a further 65 are only found in captivity or in cultivation.