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    Species Coverage by Marine Protected Areas 2024

    Measures the extent to which marine species are included within protected aquatic zones. This statistic is critical for evaluating the effectiveness of MPAs in safeguarding marine biodiversity, particularly vulnerable or endangered species. It highlights how these protected areas comprehensively encompass essential marine life habitats, including breeding grounds, feeding areas, and migratory routes.

    Understanding this metric helps identify where gaps in protection exist, allowing for targeted enhancements in MPA design and management. Expanding and effectively managing MPAs to increase species coverage is essential for conserving marine ecosystems. Such efforts are crucial not only for protecting marine biodiversity but also for maintaining the health of ocean ecosystems that provide vital services such as carbon sequestration, coastal protection, and sustaining fisheries, which are crucial for global food security and economic stability.

    The higher the score, the better the country ranks for this parameter.

    The table is sorted from the highest score to the lowest:

    Rank Country Score Change
    1
    Albania    		 100 N/A
    1
    Antigua and Barbuda    		 100 N/A
    1
    Azerbaijan    		 100 N/A
    1
    Belgium    		 100 N/A
    1
    Belize    		 100 N/A
    1
    Bosnia and Herz.    		 100 N/A
    1
    Bulgaria    		 100 N/A
    1
    Cameroon    		 100 N/A
    1
    Canada    		 100 N/A
    1
    Dominican Republic    		 100 N/A
    1
    East Timor    		 100 N/A
    1
    Ecuador    		 100 N/A
    1
    Estonia    		 100 N/A
    1
    Finland    		 100 N/A
    1
    France    		 100 N/A
    1
    Georgia    		 100 N/A
    1
    Germany    		 100 N/A
    1
    Greece    		 100 N/A
    1 Italy 100 N/A
    1
    Latvia    		 100 N/A
    1
    Lithuania    		 100 N/A
    1
    Marshall Islands    		 100 N/A
    1
    Nicaragua    		 100 N/A
    1
    Poland    		 100 N/A
    1
    Portugal    		 100 N/A
    1
    Congo    		 100 N/A
    1
    Romania    		 100 N/A
    1
    Seychelles    		 100 N/A
    1
    Slovenia    		 100 N/A
    1
    Sweden    		 100 N/A
    1
    Turkmenistan    		 100 N/A
    1
    Ukraine    		 100 N/A
    1
    United Kingdom    		 100 N/A
    34
    Australia    		 98 N/A
    35
    Bangladesh    		 98 N/A
    36
    Comoros    		 98 N/A
    37
    Costa Rica    		 98 N/A
    38
    Fiji    		 98 N/A
    39
    Honduras    		 98 N/A
    40
    Maldives    		 98 N/A
    41
    Oman    		 98 N/A
    42
    South Africa    		 98 N/A
    43
    Tanzania    		 98 N/A
    44
    Bahrain    		 97 N/A
    45
    Colombia    		 97 N/A
    46
    Gabon    		 97 N/A
    47
    Kuwait    		 97 N/A
    48
    Philippines    		 97 N/A
    49
    Saudi Arabia    		 97 N/A
    50
    United States    		 97 N/A
    51
    Algeria    		 96 N/A
    52
    Cyprus    		 96 N/A
    53
    Egypt    		 96 N/A
    54
    El Salvador    		 96 N/A
    55
    Eritrea    		 96 N/A
    55
    Kenya    		 96 N/A
    57
    Lebanon    		 96 N/A
    58
    Peru    		 96 N/A
    58
    Sudan    		 96 N/A
    60
    Madagascar    		 95 N/A
    61
    New Zealand    		 95 N/A
    62
    Spain    		 95 N/A
    63
    Haiti    		 94 N/A
    64
    Malaysia    		 94 N/A
    65
    Mexico    		 94 N/A
    66
    Saint Lucia    		 94 N/A
    67
    Venezuela    		 94 N/A
    68
    Malta    		 93 N/A
    69
    Vanuatu    		 93 N/A
    70
    Croatia    		 92 N/A
    71
    Equatorial Guinea    		 92 N/A
    72
    Papua New Guinea    		 92 N/A
    73
    Panama    		 91 N/A
    74
    Sierra Leone    		 91 N/A
    75
    Bahamas    		 90 N/A
    76
    Brunei    		 90 N/A
    77
    Cuba    		 90 N/A
    78
    Norway    		 90 N/A
    79
    Solomon Islands    		 90 N/A
    80
    Tunisia    		 90 N/A
    81
    Indonesia    		 89 N/A
    82
    Japan    		 89 N/A
    83
    Chile    		 88 N/A
    84
    Guinea    		 88 N/A
    84
    Jamaica    		 88 N/A
    86
    Netherlands    		 88 N/A
    87
    Sri Lanka    		 88 N/A
    87
    Turkey    		 88 N/A
    89
    Brazil    		 87 N/A
    90
    Qatar    		 87 N/A
    91
    Tonga    		 87 N/A
    92
    Cambodia    		 86 N/A
    93
    Guatemala    		 86 N/A
    94
    Guinea-Bissau    		 86 N/A
    94
    St. Vincent and the Grenadines    		 86 N/A
    96
    Senegal    		 85 N/A
    97
    Suriname    		 85 N/A
    98
    Israel    		 84 N/A
    98
    Namibia    		 84 N/A
    100
    Sao Tome and Principe    		 84 N/A
    101
    Vietnam    		 84 N/A
    102
    Djibouti    		 83 N/A
    103
    Iran    		 83 N/A
    104
    Thailand    		 83 N/A
    105
    Ireland    		 82 N/A
    106
    Mozambique    		 82 N/A
    107
    Montenegro    		 81 N/A
    108
    Samoa    		 80 N/A
    109
    Pakistan    		 79 N/A
    110
    United Arab Emirates    		 79 N/A
    111
    Taiwan    		 77 N/A
    112
    Cape Verde    		 76 N/A
    113
    Uruguay    		 76 N/A
    114
    Gambia    		 75 N/A
    115
    DR Congo    		 74 N/A
    116
    Grenada    		 74 N/A
    117
    Iceland    		 73 N/A
    118
    Mauritius    		 72 N/A
    119
    Myanmar    		 71 N/A
    120
    Denmark    		 70 N/A
    121
    Liberia    		 70 N/A
    122
    Trinidad and Tobago    		 70 N/A
    123
    Angola    		 68 N/A
    124
    Mauritania    		 68 N/A
    125
    Russia    		 68 N/A
    126
    Barbados    		 66 N/A
    127
    Jordan    		 66 N/A
    128
    Morocco    		 65 N/A
    129
    Niger    		 62 N/A
    130
    Dominica    		 60 N/A
    131
    Argentina    		 58 N/A
    132
    China    		 19 N/A
    133
    Kiribati    		 14 N/A
    134
    Benin    		 0 N/A
    134
    Ghana    		 0 N/A
    134
    Guyana    		 0 N/A
    134
    India    		 0 N/A
    134
    Iraq    		 0 N/A
    134
    Ivory Coast    		 0 N/A
    134
    Kazakhstan    		 0 N/A
    134
    Micronesia    		 0 N/A
    134
    Singapore    		 0 N/A
    134
    South Korea    		 0 N/A
    134
    Togo    		 0 N/A

    Source and Calculation


    Marine Protected Area shapefiles are sourced from the World Database on Protected Areas through Protected Planet. Shapefiles of marine species’ extent of occurrence are sourced from the IUCN Red List, and used to create country lists of marine species. Global Red List assessments are sourced from the IUCN Red List.

    The proportion of each country’s threatened marine species that are covered by at least one marine protected area is then calculated. A minimum score is given to a country that has 50% or less its threatened species represented in marine protected areas, whereas a maximum score is awarded to a country that has achieved 100% coverage of its threatened species by marine protected areas.

    *Different sources offer varying data, as datasets may be subject to changes due to recent updates and revisions.