Overview
The IUCN Red List API provides conservation status data for over 150,000 animal, plant, and fungal species, including whether a species is Extinct, Endangered, or Least Concern. Beginners interested in wildlife, ecology, or data science can use it to pull species risk assessments, habitat information, and population trends. A free API key is required and can be requested directly from the IUCN website.
Beginner Tip
Request your free API key at https://apiv3.iucnredlist.org/api/v3/token, then append ?token=YOUR_KEY to every request URL — the token must be present on all calls.
Available Data
Example Response
{
"name": "IUCN",
"data": "IUCN-specific information and attributes",
"source": "IUCN"
} Field Reference
name Scientific (Latin) name of the species. category IUCN Red List category code — e.g. "EN" (Endangered), "VU" (Vulnerable), "LC" (Least Concern), "EX" (Extinct). criteria The criteria code used to assign the category, e.g. "A2cd". population_trend Whether the species population is "Decreasing", "Stable", "Increasing", or "Unknown". main_common_names List of common names for the species across different languages. Implementation Example
// ⚠️ Note: This URL may be a documentation page. Check official docs for actual API endpoint.
const url = "http://apiv3.iucnredlist.org/api/v3/docs";
// Replace headers or query params with the values required by this API.
const response = await fetch(url, {
headers: {
"X-API-Key": "YOUR_API_KEY"
}
});
if (!response.ok) throw new Error(`Request failed: ${response.status}`);
const data = await response.json();
console.log(data); What Can You Build?
Note: These code examples are AI-generated and unverified. Always refer to the official API documentation for accurate usage.
Common Errors & Troubleshooting
Matrix Score Breakdown
Partially tested on Apr 5, 2026
Technical Specifications
Similar APIs
View All →AdoptAPet
AdoptAPet provides pet adoption listings including breed, age, location, and photos.
Cats
⭐ Beginner's PickThe Cat API provides random cat images, breed data, and voting features.
eBird
eBird API from Cornell Lab provides real birding observation data including species sightings, locations, and notable birds by region.
Petfinder
The Petfinder API connects you to a database of adoptable pets — dogs, cats, rabbits, birds, and more — from thousands of shelters and rescue organizations across North America.
The Dog
⭐ Beginner's PickThe Dog API provides hundreds of dog breed images, searchable breed metadata like temperament and life span, and user-uploaded photo voting.