‘A precarious position’: almost 3,000 species at risk of disappearing from Wales, report finds

The high brown fritillary butterfly is one of the many species identified as at risk in the ‘Species in Peril’ report. Photograph: Dom William/Butterfly Conservation

Almost 3,000 species ranging from glorious birds to tiny lichen are in peril in Wales because they are clinging on in a handful of locations or even fewer, a groundbreaking report has revealed.

The report from Natural Resources Wales (NRW) highlights that, since the millennium, 11 species have already been lost to Cymru, including the turtle dove and belted beauty moth. It warns that 2,955 other terrestrial or freshwater species are at serious risk because they are confined to five locations or fewer.