An estimated 30,000 species live in New Brunswick (not including bacteria and viruses). Every five years, the Department of Natural Resources (DNR) works with the Atlantic Canada Conservation Data Centre and local experts to assess the general status of New Brunswick species, as part of the National Assessment of species across Canada (General status of wild species - Canada.ca). General Status ranks are assigned to species to show how secure their populations are. These assessments help track population changes over time and identify possible threats. So far, over 13,400 species have been assessed in New Brunswick.
General status assessments can help inform which New Brunswick species will be examined more thoroughly by the Committee on the Status of Species at Risk (COSSAR). COSSAR is an independent volunteer committee that reviews species to see if they should be listed under New Brunswick`s Species at Risk Act.
Recovery planning and protection assessments are required for species listed under the Species at Risk Act to help safeguard their populations. The Act also allows DNR to work with researchers, conservation groups and others to support these efforts. Progress in assessments, recovery and protection of listed species is tracked in the provincial Species at Risk Public Registry.