France

Note: The following account covers only the European portion of France (metropolitan France). The five overseas regions (French Guiana, Guadeloupe, Martinique, Mayotte, and Reunion) each have their own account. See also Clipperton Island, French Polynesia, French Southern and Antarctic Lands, New Caledonia, Saint Barthelemy, and Wallis and Futuna.

The Corsican Nuthatch (eBird) is France's only endemic bird species.

The Corsican Myotis Myotis nustrale (BioOne) is a recently described endemic bat.

Amphibians unique to France include the Corsican Painted Frog Discoglossus montalenti (iNaturalist), the Corsican Brook Newt Euproctus montanus (AmphibiaWeb) (iNaturalist), and the Corsican Fire Salamander Salamandra corsica (iNaturalist).

Freshwater fish found only in France include the Aquitanian Pike (flickr), the Auverne Gudgeon (iNaturalist), the Languedoc Minnow (iNaturalist), the Garonne Minnow (INPN), the Loire Minnow Phoxinus fayollarum (GBIF) (iNaturalist), the Lez Sculpin (iNaturalist), the Dordogne Sculpin (iNaturalist), the Savoy Sculpin (iNaturalist), the Hérault Sculpin (iNaturalist), the Beaked Dace (INPN), the Bearn Beaked Dace (INPN), the Long-snout Dace (Ittiofauna WM), the Poitou Stickleback (INPN) (iNaturalist), the Leopard Stone Loach (iNaturalist) (ResearchGate), the Loire Grayling (INPN) (ResearchGate), and an extinct whitefish Coregonus bezola (Ittiofauna WM).

Insects unique to France include the Corsican Gold Moth Axia napoleona (lepinet.fr), the moths Nola dresnayi (lepinet.fr) and Hylaea pinicolaria (leps.it) and Pareulype casearia (leps.it), the katydids Rhacocleis poneli (pyrgus.de WM) and Corsteropleurus chopardi (INPN), the grasshoppers Arcyptera kheili (IUCN) and Prionotropis rhodanica (IUCN), a cave-cricket Dolichopoda cyrnensis (IUCN), the ants Formica corsica (INPN) and Lasius casevitzi (AntWiki), the bees Bombus pereziellus (IUCN) and Andrena corssubalpina (INPN), the ground beetles Carabus hispanus (Bernard Van Elegem WM) and Percus corsicus (iNaturalist), the cave-dwelling ground beetles Trichaphaenops gounellei (INPN) and Aphaenops ehlersi (ResearchGate), a jewel beetle Agrilus lacus (iNaturalist), a cave-dwelling water beetle Siettitia avenionensis (ResearchGate), the longhorn beetles Brachyta borni (INPN) and Chaetocnema bergeali (ResearchGate), a firefly Lampyris lareynii (iNaturalist), a cicada Cicadetta fangoana (iNaturalist), a cave-dwelling planthopper Coframalaxius bletteryi (Subterr. Biol.), a stonefly Dictyogenus muranyii (GBIF), and a dance fly Chelipoda puschae (ZooKeys).

Other endemic invertebrates include the millipede families Cyrnosomatidae (MilliBase) and Galliobatidae (Entoflorachne WM) (p. 18 of CEN pdf), a centipede Lithobius raffaldii (ResearchGate), the spiders Nemesia corsica (Norbert Verneau WM) and Palliduphantes sanctivincenti (Les araignées de Belgique et de France) and Leptoneta convexa (INPN), the harvestmen Kalliste pavonum (ResearchGate) (iNaturalist) and Arbasus caecus (galerie-insecte.org), a scorpion Buthus balmensis (HAL pdf) (iNaturalist), a pseudoscorpion Neobisium tuzeti (INPN), the isopods Porcellio provincialis (iNaturalist) and Caecosphaeroma virei (INPN), a fairy shrimp Chirocephalus spinicaudatus (ARKive WM), a cave-dwelling freshwater shrimp Gallocaris inermis (galerie-insecte.org), the amphipods Niphargus renei (p. 7 of National Red List WM pdf) and Ingolfiella thibaudi (fig. 7 at MDPI), and the earthworms Gatesona rutena (ResearchGate) and Scherotheca portcrosana (ResearchGate),

Endemic molluscs inclug a slug Deroceras chevallieri (INPN) and several snails: Solatopupa cianensis (INPN), the Corsican Snail Helix ceratina (INPN), Corneola crombezi (iNaturalist), Tacheocampylaea raspailii (iNaturalist), Marstoniopsis armoricana (ARKive WM), Bythinella padiraci (idscaro.net WM), Moitessieria vidourlensis (fig. 3c at MDPI), Paladilhia pleurotoma (IUCN), and Xerosecta cespitum (INPN).

Among the plant species that occur solely in France are the Rouen Pansy Viola hispida (ARKive WM), a cinquefoil Potentilla delphinensis (florealpes.com), a broom Cytisus ardoini (floralpes.com), a mouse-ear chickweed Cerastium soleirolii (iNaturalist), a columbine Aquilegia litardierei (flickr), a rock jasmine Androsace chaixii (florealpes.com), a leopard's bane Doronicum corsicum (iNaturalist), a toadflax Linaria thymifolia (INPN), a sea pink Armeria leucocephala (Tela Botanica), a buttercup Ranunculus marschlinsii (BioLib), Saxifraga giziana (iNaturalist), a snowflake Acis longifolia (iNaturalist), the orchids Dactylorhiza angustata (florealpes.com) and Ophrys aveyronensis (Orchids in France WM), Angelica heterocarpa (INPN), Romulea arnaudii (iNaturalist), Centranthus trinervis (IUCN), Potentilla delphinensis (iNaturalist), Biscutella rotgesii (IUCN), Erodium rodiei (INPN), Scabiosa corsica (INPN), Artemisia insipida (floralpes.com), Echium montenielluense (GBIF), Pinguicula corsica (iNaturalist), a whitebeam Karpatiosorbus latifolia (iNaturalist), and a fern Asplenium jahandiezii (INPN).

Endemic lichens include Variospora epierodens (AFL) and Acarospora ubayensis (AFL). Endemic fungi include Chromosera ambigua (mycocharentes.fr pdf) and Russula vinosoflavescens (ResearchGate). Endemic mosses include Arvernella microclada (ResearchGate) and Leptodon corsicus (mobot.org pdf).

Portions of France are included in the Mediterranean Basin biodiversity hotspot (Biodiversity Hotspots WM). Important terrestrial ecoregions include the Corsican Montane Broadleaf and Mixed Forests (EoE) and the Alps Conifer and Mixed Forests (EoE). France can also claim five of the world's most important caves for biodiversity (caves.org WM pdf). Lists of French endemic species can be found at (fr.wikipedia) or generated from the database of the Inventaire National du Patrimoine Naturel (INPN for animals and INPN for plants).