Russian Red Data Book

Russian Red Data Book
Name	Russian Red Data Book
Country	Russia
Language	Russian
Subject	Conservation biology
Genre	Reference
Publisher	Ministry of Natural Resources and Environment of the Russian Federation
Pub date	1984 (first edition)

Russian Red Data Book is the national inventory and authoritative list documenting rare and threatened species of Russia and its subordinate federal subjects. It serves as a central reference for biodiversity protection in the Russian Federation, informing policy decisions by agencies such as the Ministry of Natural Resources and Environment of the Russian Federation, the State Duma, and regional administrations like the Government of Moscow and the Administration of Saint Petersburg. The compilation links scientific research from institutions including the Russian Academy of Sciences, the Zoological Institute of the Russian Academy of Sciences, and the Komarov Botanical Institute with legal instruments such as the Law of the Russian Federation "On the Animal World" and international agreements like the Convention on Biological Diversity.

History and development

The project originated during the late Soviet period under bodies such as the USSR State Committee for Nature Protection and institutes like the Academy of Sciences of the USSR, influenced by international efforts epitomized by the IUCN and the World Wildlife Fund. Early working groups included scientists from the All-Union Institute of Experimental Botany, the Institute of Plant and Animal Ecology, and the Siberian Branch of the Russian Academy of Sciences. The first national compilation was prepared with input from regional centers in Krasnoyarsk Krai, Primorsky Krai, Khabarovsk Krai, Murmansk Oblast, and Yakutia. After the dissolution of the Soviet Union, coordination shifted to the Ministry of Natural Resources and Environment of the Russian Federation and partners such as the Russian Geographical Society, the State Research Institute for Environmental Protection, and universities including Lomonosov Moscow State University and Saint Petersburg State University.

Legal status and administration

The list is embedded in Russian statutory frameworks and intersects with instruments like the Federation Treaty (1992), regional legislation from entities such as the Krasnodar Krai Duma and the Sakha Republic (Yakutia) Constitution, and enforcement by agencies including the Federal Service for Supervision of Natural Resource Usage (Rosprirodnadzor). Administrative stewardship involves collaborative networks between the Ministry of Agriculture of the Russian Federation, the Federal Forestry Agency (Rosleskhoz), and the Russian Ministry of Emergency Situations for habitat risk management. Scientific oversight is provided by commissions drawing members from organizations such as the Russian Academy of Medical Sciences, the Kazan Federal University, the Far Eastern Federal University, and the P.P. Shirshov Institute of Oceanology, while advisory NGOs include Greenpeace Russia, WWF Russia, and the Russian Socio-Ecological Union.

Scope and classification criteria

Coverage spans flora and fauna across biogeographic regions like the European Russia, Ural Mountains, Caucasus, Siberia, and the Russian Far East, addressing taxa from vascular plants catalogued by the Komarov Botanical Institute to vertebrates studied at the Moscow Zoo and in marine contexts by the Russian Academy of Sciences' Pacific Institute of Geography. Classification adapts international models from the IUCN Red List and uses criteria shaped by research from the Institute of Ecology and Evolution, the Russian Entomological Society, and the Russian Herpetological Society. Threat categories consider pressures documented in case studies from Karelia, Altai Republic, Kaliningrad Oblast, and island contexts such as Sakhalin and the Kuril Islands, integrating population trend data from projects led by the State Darwin Museum and field surveys by the Severtsov Institute of Ecology and Evolution.

Contents and major editions

Major national editions were produced in 1984, 1997, 2001, and subsequent revisions coordinated by the Ministry of Natural Resources and Environment of the Russian Federation together with editorial boards drawn from the Russian Academy of Sciences, the Russian Botanical Society, and the Russian Zoological Society. Entries include iconic taxa such as the Amur tiger, wisent, Amur leopard, Bactrian camel, Saiga antelope, and plant taxa documented by botanists affiliated with Herbarium of the Komarov Botanical Institute. Regional supplements have been produced for entities like Moscow Oblast, Krasnoyarsk Krai, Republic of Tatarstan, Primorsky Krai, and Leningrad Oblast, often involving collaboration with conservation projects backed by the United Nations Development Programme and the World Bank.

Conservation impact and implementation

Listings inform protective measures within federal protected areas such as the Zapovednik network, including Central Sikhote-Alin and Askania-Nova-style reserves, and influence management in national parks like Losiny Ostrov National Park and Sochi National Park. Data have guided species recovery programs involving captive breeding at institutions like the Moscow Zoo and reintroduction projects coordinated with regional ministries in Kemerovo Oblast and Rostov Oblast. International cooperation has connected efforts to conventions such as the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora and bilateral initiatives with countries like China, Mongolia, and Kazakhstan, often mediated through scientific exchanges with the Russian Academy of Sciences.

Criticism and controversies

Critiques have arisen from academics at Lomonosov Moscow State University, the Severtsov Institute of Ecology and Evolution, and NGOs like Greenpeace Russia regarding transparency, taxonomic consistency, and political influence from regional administrations such as the Yamal-Nenets Autonomous Okrug government. Debates over priority setting have involved conservationists from the Russian Biodiversity Conservation Center and international reviewers associated with the IUCN and BirdLife International, with disputes centering on allocation of funds by entities like the Ministry of Finance of the Russian Federation and project selection by the Federal Agency for Scientific Organizations. Specific controversies include disagreements over listings for commercial species in regions like Khabarovsk Krai and Sakhalin, and procedural disputes during editorial revisions involving the Russian Academy of Sciences and regional scientific councils.

Category:Conservation in Russia