Biodiversity: "Only 43% of threatened species are protected by law in France" (AXA Climate)

"Only 43% of threatened species, assessed using IUCN (International Union for Conservation of Nature) methodology, are protected in France and its overseas territories. This figure is only 34% in mainland France and Corsica, making it the 3^rd lowest protection rate among French territories", according to a study by AXA Climate, published on 06/05/2026.

Species protection increases with the risk of extinction, reaching 39% for "vulnerable" species, 43% for "endangered" species and 51% for "critically endangered" species.

This discrepancy reflects "a wider structural problem", according to the study. Indeed, while scientific knowledge is evolving rapidly, "with new species assessments and status revisions regularly reflecting emerging threats, legal protection is part of a slower political and administrative timetable".

"Our study shows that regulatory compliance alone does not guarantee that risks to biodiversity are managed", explain the authors.

They therefore advocate an approach centred on the protection of species that play a structuring role in ecosystems, "keystone" species…