Vulnerable animals

VU · IUCN Red List data, updated August 9, 2026

567 of the 6036 mammal species mapped on Animal World Map are listed as Vulnerable on the IUCN Red List — 9% of the dataset. They are recorded across 6 continents, most of them in Asia.

The species faces a high risk of extinction in the wild. It is the first of the three threatened categories: numbers are falling, the range is shrinking, or the population is small enough that a single bad event could do lasting damage.

Where Vulnerable sits on the scale

Vulnerable species by continent

A species is counted on every continent where its Red List range description places it, so a wide-ranging animal appears more than once. The totals below therefore add up to more than 567.

How many are left

Population estimates are quoted as the assessments word them, hedges included. Most species in this category have no reliable count at all, and the ones that do are usually stated as a bound rather than a figure — which is why they are not turned into a ranking here.

Aders' Duiker Cephalophus adersi
Total population estimated at fewer than a few thousand individuals, with the Zanzibar population possibly numbering only a few hundred.
African Manatee Trichechus senegalensis
Estimated at fewer than 10,000 mature individuals, with a declining population trend across most of its range.
Amazonian Manatee Trichechus inunguis
Estimated at fewer than 10,000 mature individuals, with a continuing declining trend across much of its range.
Andaman Spiny Shrew Crocidura hispida
No reliable population estimate exists.
Andean Bear Tremarctos ornatus
Estimated total population is between 2500 and 10000 mature individuals, with a decreasing population trend across most of its range.
Angolan Colobus Colobus angolensis
Exact global population figures are not well documented, but overall numbers are believed to be declining.
Aoudad Ammotragus lervia
The native wild population is poorly quantified but estimated at fewer than 10,000 mature individuals, with a declining trend.
Arabian Oryx Oryx leucoryx
Approximately 1,220 mature individuals in the wild as of recent assessments, with total population including captive and semi-captive herds exceeding 7,000-8,000 individuals.