Australian Biological Resources Study
A.D.Chapman
Australian Biodiversity Information Services, Toowoomba, Australia
A Report for the Department of the Environment and Heritage, September 2005
ISBN (printed) 978 0 642 56849 6
ISBN (online) 978 0 642 56850 2
Online html version with updates (April 2007)
Many of the figures supplied in this report are estimates only. Details of how the estimates were arrived at can be seen in the bulk of the paper. Estimates for total world species in many of the groups are difficult or impossible to find. Rather than make guestimates, ‘unknown’ is inserted where no information could be obtained. Estimates of total species in Australia were also often not easy to find, as were estimates of percentage endemism for many of the invertebrate groups and non plant and animal phyla.
Estimates for the total number of species in the world vary from 5 million to over 50 million (May 1998). I have settled on a figure of between 8 and 9 million with about 600 000–700 000 for Australia.
Brusca and Brusca (2003) estimated that there were 49 693 published vertebrates for the world, while Groombridge and Jenkins (2002) gave an estimate of 52 000 published vertebrate species and an estimate of about 55 000 species in total. Adding up the individual estimates as documented in this report, a much higher figure of 60 979 has been determined for published species. The area of most uncertainty is within the fishes.
In this report, the estimate of total species for the world has been calculated by adding estimates where cited to published numbers and rounding to the nearest 1 000.
| Taxon | World Described | Australia Described | Australia Described % of World Described | Estimate World | Estimate Australia | World Threatened7 | World Threatened % | Australia Threatened8 | Australia Threatened % | Australia Threatened % of World Threatened | Australia % Endemic |
| Mammals | 5 416 | 378 | 7.0% | unknown | ~378 | 1 101 | 20% | 75 | 20% | 6.8% | 83% |
| Birds | 9 917 | 828 | 8.4% | ~10 000 | ~828 | 1 213 | 12% | 65 | 8% | 5.3% | 45% |
| Reptiles | 8 300 | 869 | 10.5% | ~10 000 | ~900 | 304 | 4% | 42 | 5% | 13.8% | 89% |
| Amphibia | 5 743 | 219 | 3.8% | ~7 500 | ~220 | 1 770 | 31% | 30 | 14% | 1.7% | 93% |
| Fishes | 28 900 | 4 500 | 15.6% | ~35 000 | ~5 250 | 800 | 3% | 35 | 1% | 4.4% | 24% |
| Agnatha | 114 | 5 | 4.4% | unknown | ~10 | 0 | — | 0 | — | — | 40% |
| Cephalochordata | 23 | 8 | 34.8% | unknown | ~8 | 0 | — | 0 | — | — | 50% |
| Tunicata | 2 566 | 754 | 29.4% | unknown | ~850 | 0 | — | 0 | — | — | 25–30% |
| TOTAL | 60 979 | 7 561 | 12.4 | ~71 000 | ~8 444 | 5 188 | 8.5% | 247 | 3.3% | 4.8% | 39% |
| Taxon | World Described | Australia Described | Australia Described % of World Described | Estimate World | Estimate Australia | World Threatened9 | World Threatened % | Australia Threatened | Australia Threatened %10 | Australia Threatened % of World Threatened | Australia % Endemic |
| Hemichordata | 106 | 17 | 16.0% | unknown | 22 | 0 | — | 0 | — | — | 25–30% |
| Echinodermata | 7 000 | 1 165 | 16.6% | ~14 000 | ~1 406 | 0 | — | 0 | — | — | 31% |
| Insecta | 950 000 | ~80 000 | 8.4% | ~4 000 000 | ~95 000–204 74311 | 559 | 0.06% | 4 | 0.01% | 0.7% | unknown |
| Arachnida | 98 000 | 5 711 | 6.0% | 166 000–600 000 | ~27 960 | 0 | — | 0 | — | — | unknown |
| Myriapoda | 12 200 | 405 | 3.3% | >85 000 | ~2 800 | 0 | — | 0 | — | — | unknown |
| Crustacea | 40 000 | 7 130 | 17.8% | 150 000 | ~9 500 | 429 | 1.1% | 7 | 0.1% | 1.6% | unknown |
| Onychophora | 165 | 71 | 43.0% | 220 | ~80 | 0 | — | 0 | — | — | unknown12 |
| Mollusca | 70 000 | ~8 700 | 12.4% | 120 000 | ~12 250 | 974 | 1.4% | 213 | 0.02% | 0.2% | 90% |
| Annelida | 15 000 | 2 300 | 15.3% | 25 000–30 000 | ~4 230 | 0 | — | 1 | 0.04% | — | 67% |
| Nematoda | <25 000 | ~2 060 | 8% | ~500 000 | ~30 000 | 0 | — | 0 | — | — | unknown |
| Acanthocephala | 1 000 | 56 | 5.6% | ~1 600 | ~160 | 0 | — | 0 | — | — | unknown |
| Platyhelminthes | 20 000 | 1 593 | 8.0% | ~80 000 | ~10 000 | 0 | — | 0 | — | — | unknown |
| Cnidaria | 9 000 | 1 705 | 18.9% | unknown | ~2 200 | 0 | — | 0 | — | — | unknown |
| Porifera | 5 500 | 1 416 | 25.7% | ~18 000 | ~3 500 | 0 | — | 0 | — | — | 56% |
| Others | 10 573 | 2 213 | 20.9% | ~20 000 | ~5 015 | 30 | 0.03% | 0 | — | 0% | unknown |
| TOTAL (rounded) | 1 263 700 | 114 600 | 9.1% | ~5 500 000 | ~250 00014 | 1 992 | 0.17% | 14 | 0.01% | 0.7% | unknown |
| Taxon | World Described | Australia Described | Australia Described % of World Described | Estimate World | Estimate Australia | World Threatened15 | World Threatened % | Australia Threatened16 | Australia Threatened % | Australia Threatened % of World Threatened | Australia % Endemic |
| Bryophyta | 16 600 | 1 852 | 11.1% | ~22 000 | ~2 200 | 80 | 0.5% | 1 | 0.05% | 1.2% | 25% |
| Vascular Plants | 272 400 | 18 140 | 6.7% | ~422 000 | ~20 500 | 8 241 | 3% | 1 194 | 7.0% | 14.5% | 90% |
| Ferns and allies | (12 838) | (446) | (3.5%) | (~15 000) | (~500) | (140) | (1%) | (35) | (7.8%) | (25%) | (40%) |
| Gymnosperms | (~930) | (113) | (12.2%) | (~1 000) | (113) | (305) | (32%) | (20) | (17.7%) | (6.5%) | (96%) |
| Magnoliophyta | (258 650) | (17 580) | (6.8%) | (~320 000) | (19 000–21 000) | (7 796) | (3%) | (1 139) | (6.6%) | (14.6%) | (91%) |
| TOTAL | 289 000 | ~20 000 | 6.9% | ~444 000 | 23 000 | 8 321 | 2.9% | 1 195 | 6.0% | 14.4% | 84% |
| Taxon | World Described | Australia Described | Australia Described % of World Described | Estimate World | Estimate Australia | World Threatened17 | World Threatened % | Australia Threatened18 | Australian Threatened % | Australia Threatened % of World Threatened | Australia % Endemic |
| Lichens | 17 000 | 3 227 | 19.0% | ~25 000 | ~5 000 | 2 | 0.01% | 0 | 0 | 0 | 34% |
| Fungi | 72 000 | 5 672+ | 7.8% | 1 500 000 | 160 000–250 000 | 0 | — | 0 | — | — | 90% |
| Bacteria | 5 422 | ~40 | 0.7% | 400 000–1 000 000 | 40 000 | 0 | — | 0 | — | — | unknown |
| Cyanophyta | 2 371 | ~50 | 1.7% | unknown | 270 | 0 | — | 0 | — | — | unknown |
| Algae | ~35 000 | ~10 000 | 28.5% | 200 000 | 12 000+ | 0 | — | 1 | 0.01% | — | unknown |
| Viruses | ~2 000 | ~400 | 25% | 400 000 | unknown | 0 | — | 0 | — | — | unknown |
| Protoctista | 42 540 | ~10 000 | 23.5% | <600 000 | ~65 000 | 0 | — | 0 | — | — | unknown |
| TOTAL | ~176 000 | ~30 000 | 17% | 3–4 million | 300 000–400 000 | 2 | 0.001% | 1 | 0.003% | 0.5% | unknown |
| Taxon | World Described | Australia Described | Australia Described % of World Described | Estimate World | Estimate Australia | World Threatened19 | World Threatened % | Australia Threatened20 | Australian Threatened % | Australia Threatened % of World Threatened | Australia % Endemic |
| Vertebrates | 60 979 | 7 558 | 12.4% | ~71 000 | ~8 444 | 5 188 | 8.5% | 365 | 4.8% | 7.0% | 39% |
| Invertebrates | 1 261 000 | 114 600 | 9.1% | 5 500 000 | 250 000 | 1 992 | 0.16% | 13 | 0.001% | 0.7% | unknown |
| Plants | 289 000 | 20 000 | 6.9% | ~444 000 | 23 000 | 8 321 | 2.9% | 1 195 | 6.0% | 14.4% | 84% |
| Others | ~176 000 | ~30 000 | 17% | 3–4 million | 300 000–400 000 | 2 | 0.001% | 1 | 0.003% | — | unknown |
| GRAND TOTAL | 1 786 000 | 172 200 | 9.6% | 8–9 million | 580 000–680 000 | 15 503 | 1% | 1 574 | 0.9% | 10% | unknown |