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Global change is currently impacting ecosystems and their contributions to people (i.e. ecosystem services). These impacts have consequences for societies and human well-being, especially in Africa. Historically, efforts have focused on assessing global change from a social or biophysical perspective, treating them as separate entities. Yet, our understanding of impacts to social-ecological systems remains limited, particularly in the Global South, due to a lack of data, tools, and approaches accounting for social and ecological aspects of ecosystem services. This is especially relevant for cultural ecosystem services as they are less tangible. We use a simple indicator and important provider of a multitude of cultural ecosystem services, birding, to understand how climate, biodiversity, and land use change will impact cultural ecosystem services across Africa. We explore how emerging tools and data can overcome limitations in mapping and modeling cultural ecosystem services, particularly in analyzing human preferences and behavior at large spatiotemporal scales and in data-poor regions. Leveraging crowdsourced data from eBird and using machine learning techniques we map and model recreational birding to assess the underlying social-ecological relationships and the impact of future climate and environmental change. We show that bird species richness, protected areas, accessibility, and max temperature contribute most to birding suitability across the continent. Further, we show spatial shifts in the suitability of birding under three future climate scenarios (SSP126, 370, and 585). Models suggest climate and biodiversity change will increasingly constrain the flow of birding related cultural ecosystem services across Africa. This has implications for human-nature interactions, development of countries, management of protected areas, and overall human well-being in the future. More generally, we highlight opportunities for crowdsourced datasets and machine learning to integrate non-material ecosystem services in models and thus, enhance the understanding of future impacts to ecosystem services and human well-being.

Addressing the ongoing biodiversity crisis requires identifying the winners and losers of global change. Species are often categorized based on how they respond to habitat loss; for example, species restricted to natural environments, those that most often occur in anthropogenic habitats, and generalists that do well in both. However, species might switch habitat affiliations across time and space: an organism may venture into human-modified areas in benign regions but retreat into thermally buffered forested habitats in areas with high temperatures. Here, we apply community occupancy models to a large-scale camera trapping dataset with 29 mammal species distributed over 2,485 sites across the continental United States, to ask three questions. First, are species responses to forest and anthropogenic habitats consistent across continental scales? Second, do macroclimatic conditions explain spatial variation in species responses to land use? Third, can species traits elucidate which taxa are most likely to show climate-dependent habitat associations? We found that all species exhibited significant spatial variation in how they respond to land-use, tending to avoid anthropogenic areas and increasingly use forests in hotter regions. In the hottest regions, species occupancy was 50% higher in forested compared to open habitats, whereas in the coldest regions, the trend reversed. Larger species with larger ranges, herbivores, and primary predators were more likely to change their habitat affiliations than top predators, which consistently affiliated with high forest cover. Our findings suggest that climatic conditions influence species space-use and that maintaining forest cover can help protect mammals from warming climates.

In the course of land‐use change, especially since the mid‐20th century, the area of semi‐natural (unimproved) grasslands has dramatically decreased. One way to counteract this process is to designate nature reserves. However, the effectiveness of nature reserves is controversial. The aim of our study was to evaluate the environmental drivers of species richness and biomass of Orthoptera (hereinafter termed ‘grasshoppers’) in grasslands inside nature reserves and within the intensively used agriculture landscape (hereinafter termed ‘wider countryside’). For this purpose, we sampled the grasshoppers at the landscape scale in 45 randomly selected plots. Each plot had a size of 5 ha. The abundance of grasshoppers, as a basis for the biomass calculation, was recorded at the habitat scale in 20 meadow patches (500 m2 each). In addition, various environmental parameters such as habitat diversity, mowing intensity and vegetation structure were determined at the landscape and habitat scale. Our results illustrate the importance of nature reserves for the conservation of grasshoppers. Control plots in the wider countryside harboured fewer species than plots within nature reserves. The differences were even clearer among threatened species. On average, plots in nature reserves had almost twice as many threatened species than control plots in the wider countryside. The comparison revealed similar patterns at the habitat scale: both the number of species and biomass were higher in nature reserves. At the landscape scale, number of species were best explained by the amount of wet grassland and habitat diversity. We identified mowing intensity and to a lower extend the degree of drainage as the key drivers of species richness and biomass at the habitat scale. Synthesis and applications: To preserve biodiversity in nature reserves, we recommend (i) leaving uncut refuges during mowing and (ii) blocking drainage to stabilise the water level. Both measures contribute to a high species number and abundance of grasshoppers and many other insects. An effective conservation measure to promote species richness in the wider countryside would be to increase habitat diversity. This can be done by creating or restoring fallow islands, field margins, fringes and hedgerows. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Environmental Education (EE) is key for biodiversity conservation. We aimed to evaluate the effect of an EE activity on students by evaluating their drawings. The EE activity was part of the Blonde Capuchin Project actions, which focuses on the research and conservation of the endangered blonde capuchin monkey, Sapajus flavius. The activity was comprised of four steps and lasted four hours in each school. We analysed 348 drawings made by children from eight schools in rural areas close to forest fragments inhabited by Blonde Capuchins in two municipalities in Northeast Brazil, Igarassu-PE and Mataraca-PB. The children made the drawings during the intervention in each school, specifically in steps 1 and 4 of the activity. We scored the drawings using a rubric to account for the presence of components (biotic and abiotic) and interactions (e.g., human-environment and non-human animal interactions). As an outcome of the EE activity, we found a possible increase in knowledge and awareness through the evaluation of the drawings. Thus, when resources are limited, we encourage the performance of short-term EE activities and the analysis of drawings as a tool to measure their immediate effect. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Understanding the extent to which people and wildlife overlap in space and time is critical for the conservation of biodiversity and ecological services. Yet, how global change will reshape the future of human-wildlife overlap has not been assessed. We show that the potential spatial overlap of global human populations and 22,374 terrestrial vertebrate species will increase across ~56.6% and decrease across only ~11.8% of the Earth's terrestrial surface by 2070. Increases are driven primarily by intensification of human population densities, not change in wildlife distributions caused by climate change. The strong spatial heterogeneity of future human-wildlife overlap found in our study makes it clear that local context is imperative to consider, and more targeted area-based land-use planning should be integrated into systematic conservation planning. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Aims Location Methods Results Main Conclusions Primary forests provide critical habitat and diverse ecological niches for bird species, which are being seriously threatened by massive anthropogenic activities in the Anthropocene. Conversion from primary forests to secondary forests and plantation forests results in biodiversity loss, reducing ecosystem functioning and services. However, few studies have evaluated bird diversity patterns in different forest types caused by anthropogenic activities at both pantropics and regional scales, especially from taxonomic, phylogenetic and functional perspective simultaneously, as well as from the perspective of both alpha and beta diversity.Pantropics.We analysed patterns of bird diversity in primary forests, secondary forests and plantation forests at pantropics and regional scales. Number of threatened species, rare species, and generalist species in the three forest types were summarized. Taxonomic, phylogenetic and functional diversity, as well as phylogenetic and functional structure of bird communities among the three forest types, were evaluated through multiple comparisons. Beta diversity of bird communities in the three forest types was also calculated and decomposed into turnover and nestedness‐resultant components, and correlations between environmental factors and beta diversity were examined.The results showed that primary forests harboured more threatened species, more large species and specialist species than secondary forests and plantation forests. In addition, plantation forests had lower phylogenetic alpha diversity but higher functional alpha diversity, and had more clustered phylogenetic structure but more over‐dispersed functional structure. Notably, taxonomic, phylogenetic and functional beta diversity of bird communities was significantly higher in primary forests than in plantation forests, and turnover components showed similar patterns and accounted for major parts of overall beta diversity.These findings suggest that primary forests play an important role in protecting bird taxonomic, phylogenetic and functional diversity, and emphasize that future conservation efforts should focus on the strict protection of primary forests. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Nature‐based solutions (NbS) have emerged at the science, policy and practitioner interface to address environmental challenges facing society. NbS involve people working with nature to protect, restore or manage ecosystems. Yet NbS vary to the extent they support biological diversity which has implications for ecological resilience. We reviewed how ecological resilience has been conceptualised in the NbS literature. The literature included reference to both resilience to specific disturbances and general resilience to future environmental change. We found reporting of resilience mechanisms was limited except for afforestation efforts where there is increasing recognition of the role of species diversity in contributing to resilience. Reporting was limited for resilience mechanisms that operate within species and populations (e.g. genetic diversity) and at the landscape scale (e.g. connectivity). Resistance was overlooked despite the prevalence of NbS intended to address climate change. From the broader ecological literature, we distilled resilience mechanisms that have been identified for native and experimental ecosystems and suggested interventions for the emergence of resilience mechanisms in NbS. Synthesis. Interventions to conserve biodiversity such as retaining and restoring ecosystems, are critical given that biodiversity, within and across scales of biological organisation, underpins several ecological resilience mechanisms in NbS. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Conservation triage is an evolving strategy designed to allocate limited resources to address pressures that require urgent actions due to their consequences on biodiversity and essential ecosystem services for human well‐being. This perspective proposes a structured, ethical and inclusive conservation triage‐based framework for efficiently addressing socio‐ecological requirements in biodiversity conservation, leveraging limited resources. Based on three main pillars—conservation planning, policy and governance and co‐production of knowledge—our goal is to promote conservation triage as a pragmatic and comprehensive approach. We explore the application of conservation triage principles in Chile, following the recent establishment of the Conservation and Human Well‐being programme, a science‐based initiative promoting the conservation of Chile's unique biodiversity and informing the development of conservation policies. Synthesis and applications. This perspective offers guidance to scientists and practitioners on how to prioritize conservation efforts while taking resource constraints into account when navigating conservation triage. It emphasizes how crucial it is to integrate ethical issues, fostering a decision‐making process enriched by diverse perspectives and collaborative knowledge co‐production. Through the alignment of strategic resource allocation with socio‐ecological aspects, this approach offers insights for developing equitable and well‐balanced conservation outcomes that are transferable to other geographical and environmental settings. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Peat is the main constituent of cultivation substrates and a precious non-renewable fossil material. Peatlands provide important ecosystem services and allow the absorption and storage of carbon. Protecting peatlands helps tackle climate change and contributes to biodiversity conservation. Due to its importance, it is necessary to implement strategies to reduce the use of peat, such as replacing it with biomass-based alternative growing media constituents, such as Sphagnum moss. In this study, we compared the metal release and binding properties at two different pH, antioxidant activity, and total phenolic content of peat and Sphagnum moss from the Tierra del Fuego (TdF) region of southern Patagonia. Levels of the elements were determined by inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry (ICP-MS), while the types and amounts of functional groups were characterized and compared using Fourier transform infrared (FTIR) spectroscopy. The total phenol level and antioxidant capacity were assessed using the Folin-Ciocalteu method and 2,2-diphenyl-1-picrylhydrazyl test. There are generally higher concentrations of leachable elements in peat than in Sphagnum moss at pH = 2, except Cs, Rb, Ti, and Zr. In contrast, at pH = 5, levels of all leached elements are highest in Sphagnum moss. Sphagnum moss shows a higher metal adsorption capacity than peat, except for Be, Mn, Tl, and Zn. Finally, the results showed that both matrices contained similar total phenolic contents: 0.018 ± 0.011 mg gallic acid equivalent (GAE) per gram dry sample for peat and 0.020 ± 0.007 mg GAE g-1 for Sphagnum moss. Instead, Sphagnum moss extracts showed a significantly higher antioxidant activity [0.026 ± 0.028 mmol Trolox equivalents (TE) g-1] than that estimated in peat (0.009 ± 0.005 mmol TE g-1). Humic acids, carboxylic acids, and phenolic and lignin groups were identified as the functional groups that mainly determined the antioxidant activity of the Sphagnum moss compared to peat. The present study resulted in an advancement of knowledge of these materials for more thoughtful future use and possible replacements. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Protected areas are typically considered a cornerstone of conservation programs and play a fundamental role in protecting natural areas and biodiversity. Human‐driven land‐use and land‐cover (LULC) changes lead to habitat loss and biodiversity loss inside protected areas, impairing their effectiveness. However, the global dynamics of habitat quality and habitat degradation in protected areas remain unclear. We used the Integrated Valuation of Ecosystem Services and Trade‐offs (InVEST) model based on global annual remotely sensed data to examine the spatial and temporal trends in habitat quality and degradation in global terrestrial protected areas. Habitat quality represented the ability of habitats to provide suitable conditions for the persistence of individuals and populations, and habitat degradation represented the impacts on habitats from human‐driven LULC changes in the surrounding landscape. Based on a linear mixed‐effects modeling method, we also explored the relationship between habitat degradation trends and protected area characteristics, biophysical factors, and socioeconomic factors. Habitat quality declined by 0.005 (0.6%) and habitat degradation increased by 0.002 (11%) from 1992 to 2020 globally, and similar trends occurred even in remote or restrictively managed protected areas. Habitat degradation was attributed primarily to nonirrigated cropland (62%) and urbanization (27%) in 2020. Increases in elevation, gross domestic production per capita, and human population density and decreases in agricultural suitability were associated with accelerated habitat degradation. Our results suggest that human‐induced LULC changes have expanded from already‐exploited areas into relatively undisturbed areas, and that in wealthy countries in particular, degradation is related to rapid urbanization and increasing demand for agricultural products. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The influence of fragmentation per se on biodiversity is hotly debated, with evidence of negative, neutral, or even positive effects after controlling for habitat amount. Principles from this debate are often used to inform biodiversity conservation in remnant habitat fragments but are rarely considered in a restoration context. Habitat restoration is essential to work alongside conservation and reverse biodiversity declines. Although restored habitats vary along a similar fragmentation gradient to remnant patches, the importance of different processes likely varies. Communities in remnant patches are largely determined by existing populations, while communities in restored patches are shaped by colonization from nearby populations. We illustrate how fragmentation per se can have variable outcomes for biodiversity depending on whether habitat is conserved or restored. The fragmentation debate, in its current form, has limited application for restoration ecology, and we emphasize the need for ecologists and conservationists to consider the directionality of the fragmentation process. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Aims Location Taxa Methods Results Main Conclusions The relationship between habitat area and species evenness quantifies species relative abundance distribution changes across habitat fragments, providing more information than considering only the species richness to predict biodiversity distribution patterns in fragmented landscapes. However, unlike the species‐area relationships (SARs), the Species Evenness‐Area Relationship (SEARs) has yet to be explored across taxa at a large spatial scale. Here, we resolved how the relationship between species evenness and fragment area varies among taxonomic groups and environmental factors.Global.Insecta, Aves, Amphibians and Squamata, Plantae, Arachnida, Mammalia, Mollusca.We compiled 67 datasets from the FragSAD database, including information on fragments area, species richness, and species abundance of six taxa worldwide. We calculated the species evenness index for each fragment, which is independent of species richness, and tested the relationship between species evenness and fragment area across taxonomic groups. We also used the power model to fit SEAR for each dataset and identified landscape variables with a detectable impact on the occurrence of significant SEARs.In contrast to the positive relationship between species richness and fragment area, species evenness was negatively affected by fragment area when controlling for other environmental factors and the relationships varied significantly among taxonomic groups. Specifically, there were significant negative associations between species evenness and fragment area for insects, birds, spiders, and mammals but not for plants and amphibians. Meanwhile, the occurrence of significant SEARs depends on the number of fragments and total fragment area.The contrasting patterns of SEARs and SARs among taxonomic groups highlight the complexity of the mechanisms regulating biodiversity patterns. Although the number of species increases with the increase of fragment area, the decreased evenness implies community instability on larger fragments. Therefore, understanding the prevalence and underlying mechanisms in determining SEARs has critical implications for biodiversity conservation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Introduction: Since 1990, there has been a global decline in forest areas. Between 2010 and 2020, the greatest annual net loss of forests was on the African continent. Despite South African indigenous forests and trees being protected under the National Forests Act of 1998 (Act No. 84 of 1998), the country has also shown an increased annual net loss of forests. Although the Vhembe District Municipality in South Africa has lost forest owing to humaninduced deforestation and other land use activities, sacred forests have not been affected. According to traditional beliefs, exploitation of such indigenous patches of sacred forests is taboo. This study aims to explore the role of taboos in the protection of the remaining patches of sacred forest. Methods: The study relies on data collected between December 2022 and December 2023. Semi-structured interviewswere conductedwith key informants (n = 61) and local communities in Tshidzivhe and Duthuni villages (n = 60). Observations were used as a further data collection tool. The interview questions were prepared to assess the role of taboos in the protection and management of sacred forests. Data collected through interviews were analysed using thematic content analysis, while field observations helped to corroborate the results from the interviews. Results and discussion: The study identified two main taboos - one that restricts entry into the sacred forests (i.e. preventing entry into the sacred forests, and harvesting, hunting and hiking in these areas), and another that prohibits noise or activities that disrespect sacred forests. The study found that believers and nonbelievers alike, for fear of retribution by the spirits, still obey these taboos and their relatedmyths. This has allowed these areas to develop dense stands of closed-canopy evergreen forest that support more diverse flora and fauna than found in surrounding areas. Although sacred forests are not meant for biodiversity conservation, they offer opportunities to be integrated into global conservation targets of "30x30" and "Half-Earth" by 2030. They also offer the opportunity of serving as carbon sinks which is key to climate change mitigation. Recommendations for protecting sacred forests and associated taboos are drawn up based on these results. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Real-estate prices have soared since the start of the COVID-19 pandemic amid historically low mortgage rates and limited supply. The external shock observed in the real-estate market through relief measures may trigger changes in optimal conservation portfolios. The objective of this research is to identify the impacts of the real-estate market shock triggered by the pandemic through low-interest rates and limited real-estate supply on risk-diversification strategies for land conservation investment and to understand the implications of these impacts. We use a case study involving biodiversity conservation in the central and southern Appalachian region of the US by comparing modern portfolio theory (MPT) outputs using future conservation cost predictions with and without the shock. We find that the financial burden to fund the same level of risk-diversifying conservation benefits increases due to the shock and increases at an increasing rate as the return on investment (ROI) objective rises. This finding is alarming since higher conservation costs triggered by the shock decrease the cost-effectiveness of risk diversification, and this effect exacerbates with the goal of achieving higher ROI. Spatial diversification strategies with and without the shock offer risk-diversification information to help conservation organizations determine effective investment strategies. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Climate and land‐use change pose unprecedented threats to ecosystems, economies, and communities worldwide. To help mitigate the climate crisis, restoration is a rapidly growing industry used to offset carbon emissions. The most common approach is to plant fast‐growing monocultures with the aim of sequestering as much carbon as possible in the shortest time. However, there has been little economic analysis of planting options that explicitly address short and long‐term ecological risks such as fire, disease, and environmental change. Here we develop a method for quantifying ecological risks from fire to sequestration investments and show how these risks can be factored into an analysis of long‐term financial returns relative to opportunity costs. In the case study presented, we find that the apparent advantage of fast‐growing monoculture plantations is likely to be outweighed by the long‐term fire risks to the carbon stored in them. Our analytical framework provides a widely applicable approach to comparing planting options against each other and other land uses, considering key uncertainties. With climate change already manifesting through extreme weather events, rising sea levels, and shifting wildlife populations, our framework can be used to make informed decisions about the best solutions to increase carbon sequestration, reduce ecological risks, and reduce climate impacts with greater certainty. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Summary More than 15% of all vascular plant species may remain scientifically undescribed, and many of the > 350 000 described species have no or few geographic records documenting their distribution. Identifying and understanding taxonomic and geographic knowledge shortfalls is key to prioritising future collection and conservation efforts. Using extensive data for 343 523 vascular plant species and time‐to‐event analyses, we conducted multiple tests related to plant taxonomic and geographic data shortfalls, and identified 33 global diversity darkspots (those ‘botanical countries’ predicted to contain most undescribed and not yet recorded species). We defined priority regions for future collection according to several socio‐economic and environmental scenarios. Most plant diversity darkspots are found within global biodiversity hotspots, with the exception of New Guinea. We identify Colombia, Myanmar, New Guinea, Peru, Philippines and Turkey as global collection priorities under all environmental and socio‐economic conditions considered. Our study provides a flexible framework to help accelerate the documentation of global plant diversity for the implementation of conservation actions. As digitisation of the world's herbaria progresses, collection and conservation priorities may soon be identifiable at finer scales. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

More efficient methods for extensive biodiversity monitoring are required to support rapid measures to address the biodiversity crisis. While environmental DNA (eDNA) metabarcoding and quantitative PCR (qPCR) methods offer advantages over traditional monitoring approaches, their large‐scale application is limited by the time and labour required for developing assays and/or for analysis. CRISPR (clustered regularly interspaced short palindromic repeats) diagnostic technologies (Dx) may overcome some of these limitations, but they have been used solely with species‐specific primers, restricting their versatility for biodiversity monitoring. Here, we demonstrate the feasibility of designing species‐specific CRISPR‐Dx assays in silico within a short metabarcoding fragment using a general primer set, a methodology we term ‘ampliscanning’, for 18 of the 22 amphibian species in Switzerland. We sub‐selected nine species, including three classified as regionally endangered, to test the methodology using eDNA sampled from ponds at nine sites. We compared the ampliscanning detections to data from traditional monitoring at these sites. Ampliscanning was successful at detecting target species with different prevalences across the landscape. With only one visit, we detected more species per site than three traditional monitoring visits (visual and acoustic detections by trained experts), in particular more elusive species and previously undocumented but expected populations. Ampliscanning detected 25 species/site combinations compared to 12 with traditional monitoring. Sensitivity analyses showed that larger numbers of field visits and PCR replicates are more important for reliable detection than many technical replicates at the CRISPR‐Dx assay level. Given the reduced sampling and analysis effort, our results highlight the benefits of eDNA and CRISPR‐Dx combined with universal primers for large‐scale monitoring of multiple endangered species across landscapes to inform conservation measures. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Surf breaks are increasingly recognized as socio‐environmental phenomena that provide opportunities for biodiversity conservation and sustained benefits for local communities. Here, we examine an additional benefit from improved conservation of the ecosystems that host and surround surf breaks—their coincidence with carbon dense coastal ecosystems. Using global spatial datasets of irrecoverable carbon (defined as carbon stocks that, if lost today, could not be recovered within 30 years' time), surf break locations, ecosystem types, protected areas, and Key Biodiversity Areas, we identified 88.3 million tonnes of irrecoverable carbon held in surf ecosystems. Of this total, 17.2 million tonnes are found in Key Biodiversity Areas without formal measures of protection. These results highlight surf conservation as a potential avenue to simultaneously mitigate climate change, protect biodiversity, and promote sustainable development in coastal communities. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Much research and media attention has revolved around the environmental impacts of growing global human populations. While the conclusions remain contested, these assessments have largely neglected the ecological and conservation impacts of other key regional processes such as declining populations, ageing demographics and rural‐to‐urban migration. These demographic shifts are increasingly prevalent across many regions of the world, and will have significant direct effects on natural resource management and biodiversity conservation by altering individual consumption patterns, land use, land stewardship and natural disturbances. Given that the scientific foundation around this topic is still developing, we first present an initial examination of some of the key environmental impacts, aiming to elevate awareness and encourage further research in these areas. Beyond the ecological implications, declining populations, ageing demographics and rural‐to‐urban migration carry intricate social and cultural consequences that can affect people and nature interactions. Ecological studies that focus on single dimensions of biodiversity or ecosystem responses often overlook these complexities. Demographic changes are likely to be accompanied by shifts in environmental attitudes and connections with nature, all of which will influence our capacity to adapt to or mitigate environmental changes. Finally, environmental policy and practice frameworks are potentially unprepared and their success could be sensitive to these socio‐cultural and demographic shifts. Synthesis and applications: This brief overview demonstrates that population decline, ageing and rural‐to‐urban migration can have extensive implications for biodiversity and the socio‐cultural relationships between people and nature. However, the significance, dynamics and consequences of these processes are still largely overlooked. We believe that these changes warrant specific attention from the research, policy and practice communities, as understanding the outcomes and feedbacks associated with depopulation, ageing populations, loss of culture and tradition and ecological change could aid in designing landscapes and informing management that enhances both human well‐being and biodiversity conservation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A good knowledge of the evolutionary history of organisms and an accurate taxonomic framework are keys for efficient biodiversity conservation measures. This is particularly relevant for European butterflies, which are often used as bioindicator organisms and umbrella species for conservation. The Holarctic butterfly genus Agriades includes seven European arctic‐alpine species of which several have a debated taxonomic status. They are localized and allopatric, and at least two of them are of high conservation concern, namely A. aquilo (in Europe, restricted to northern Scandinavia) and A. zullichi (endemic to southern Spain). Despite high conservation value and taxonomic uncertainty, molecular studies on these taxa are limited to DNA barcodes. We investigated the evolutionary history and species delimitation of West Palearctic Agriades using double‐digest RAD sequencing (ddRADseq). Various analyses using genomic data suggested the presence of one species in the glandon species group and one or two in the pyrenaicus species group. The differentiation within the former group (i.e., glandon, aquilo, zullichi) appears to be relatively recent, although the main allopatric populations represent evolutionary significant units (ESUs). Notable geographic structure was found within the pyrenaicus species group, with four allopatric ESUs detected. Wolbachia screening highlighted the presence of several allele combinations, some associated with particular Agriades populations. Genomic data revealed the evolutionary trajectory of European Agriades and a tendency for taxonomic oversplitting within this genus. These findings aid conservation by providing genetic background for region or population prioritization (including ESUs), and for the management of potential population reinforcement or reintroductions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In modified production landscapes, biodiversity faces unprecedented pressures from human actions, resulting in significant species declines of plant and animal taxa, including birds. Understanding the underlying mechanisms responsible for such declines is essential to counteract further loss and support practitioners in conserving biodiversity and associated ecosystem function. In this study, we used standardized bird monitoring data collected over 6 years in managed forest and grassland areas across different regions in Germany, Central Europe. We combined these data with morphometric, ecological, behavioral, and acoustic trait data and detailed information on local land use management practices to understand how management decisions affect species and functional diversity, as well as ecological processes shaping local species composition. Our results reveal that the ecosystem and regional context must be considered to understand how management practices affect bird diversity aspects and composition. In forests, regional management decisions related to tree species and stand age affected bird diversity, as well as community and functional composition, and indicated environmental sorting due to ecological and behavioral requirements, biotic interactions, and morphometric constraints. In grasslands, independent of local management practices, increased intensity of land use resulted in an overall loss in bird species richness and functional diversity. Predominantly, constraints due to ecological or behavioral requirements affected bird species assemblage composition. In addition, our results indicated the importance of woody vegetation near managed grasslands and of considering environmental conditions beyond the local scale to support bird diversity and associated ecosystem functions. Our results highlighted that local management decisions can support bird diversity and maintain ecological function. However, this needs a view beyond the local scale of management units. It also demands a joint effort of biologists and land managers to integrate targeted conservation actions into regional management practices and create a network of habitats within production landscapes to protect nature, guard against biotic and functional homogenization, and prevent further degradation of ecosystems in production landscapes. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Urban green infrastructure (UGI) is pivotal in reconciling biodiversity conservation with sustainable urban development through adaptive management approaches. This paper introduces a comprehensive conceptual framework integrating ecological principles, urban planning strategies, and adaptive management methodologies to nurture resilient and biodiverse urban landscapes. The essence of UGI lies in its capacity to bolster ecological connectivity, restore ecosystem functions, and provide habitats for diverse flora and fauna within urban settings. Fundamental principles governing UGI design underscore its multifunctionality, connectivity, diversity, and accessibility, emphasizing the importance of adaptive management marked by its iterative and participatory nature. Despite challenges posed by urbanization, such as habitat loss, pollution, and climate change, UGI interventions offer promising avenues for enhancing habitat quality, connectivity, and ecosystem resilience. Global case studies demonstrate the effectiveness of UGI in biodiversity conservation, leveraging initiatives like green roofs, urban forests, and community gardens. UGI significantly contributes to sustainable urban development by offering diverse ecosystem services across various domains. Adaptive management is critical for effective UGI planning and implementation, ensuring flexibility amidst evolving environmental conditions. However, UGI encounters hurdles, including funding constraints, institutional fragmentation, and equity issues. Addressing these challenges necessitates innovative financing mechanisms, community involvement, and policy innovations. UGI presents a transformative pathway towards fostering resilient, biodiverse, and sustainable urban landscapes, imperative for cities to thrive in the 21st century. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this review and synthesis, we argue that California is an important test case for the nation and world because terrestrial biodiversity is very high, present and anticipated threats to biodiversity from climate change and other interacting stressors are severe, and innovative approaches to protecting biodiversity in the context of climate change are being developed and tested. We first review salient dimensions of California's terrestrial physical, biological, and human diversity. Next, we examine four facets of the threat to their sustainability of these dimensions posed by climate change: direct impacts, illustrated by a new analysis of shifting diversity hotspots for plants; interactive effects involving invasive species, land-use change, and other stressors; the impacts of changing fire regimes; and the impacts of land-based renewable energy development. We examine recent policy responses in each of these areas, representing attempts to better protect biodiversity while advancing climate adaptation and mitigation. We conclude that California's ambitious 30 × 30 Initiative and its efforts to harmonize biodiversity conservation with renewable energy development are important areas of progress. Adapting traditional suppression-oriented fire policies to the reality of new fire regimes is an area in which much progress remains to be made. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Understanding how species respond to environmental changes, particularly in the context of climate change, is crucial for biodiversity conservation. This study focuses on the plastic responses of canyon tree frog (Dryophytes arenicolor) larvae to variations in temperature and pond‐drying, examining potential consequences of climate change. Frog larvae serve as an excellent model due to their high responsiveness to environmental cues during development. We analysed the impact of temperature and pond‐drying on morphological and life‐history traits, via a common garden experiment with individuals from three distinct populations with different ecological conditions. The experiments revealed significant differences in responses among populations, indicating geographic variation in plasticity. Pond‐drying treatments led to reduced survival and reduction of morphological traits and growth, challenging the assumption that tadpoles have adaptive responses to drying conditions. In contrast, temperature treatments showed variable effects, with elevated temperatures generally favouring growth rates, reducing metamorphosis time, and having population‐specific morphological shifts. We emphasize the importance of considering both morphological and life‐history traits, as well as geographic variation, in assessing species' vulnerability to climate change. Furthermore, the integration of environmental standardized plasticity index (ESPI) and relative distances plasticity index (RDPI) in amphibian developmental plasticity will allow to quantify and compare plastic responses among populations and even other amphibian species in which these metrics are obtained in the future. Our results underscore the complexity of phenotypic plasticity, revealing genotype–environment interactions. These findings contribute valuable insights into the potential adaptability of D. arenicolor populations to ongoing climate changes, highlighting the need for comprehensive inter‐population studies for a more nuanced understanding of species' responses to environmental change, and suggest that certain populations may be more vulnerable to extinction or better equipped to handle climate change based on their ability to adapt to environmental change. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The rapid decline of global biodiversity has engendered renewed debate about the social, economic, and political factors contributing to it. Specifically, there is little understanding of the role that political ideology within a country (e.g., nationalism, conservatism, socialism) plays in determining biodiversity outcomes. We used negative binomial generalized linear models to investigate the importance of national regime ideology in predicting threatened animal species and protected area establishment compared with other factors that affect biodiversity outcomes, such as gross domestic product, inequality, and democracy. For threatened animals, the model with the highest Akaike weight suggested adverse biodiversity outcomes arose from larger gross domestic product (β = 0.120, p < 0.001). However, nationalism (β = 0.371, p < 0.01) and socialism (β = 0.293, p < 0.05) were also significantly associated with increased proportions of threatened species. For protected areas, the model with the highest Akaike weight suggested increases in democracy (β = 0.880, p < 0.001) led to a rise in relative protected area estate. Conservative regime ideology was also associated with greater protected area estate, although this did not increase the weight of evidence in support of the best models. These findings highlight the relevance of political ideology for predicting biodiversity outcomes at a national scale and illustrate opportunities to tailor policies and advocacy to promote biodiversity conservation more effectively. By targeting appropriate messaging and political advocacy, conservationists can improve the likelihood that politicians and their nations will participate in positive biodiversity actions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Grasslands support a variety of herbivores that profoundly impact biodiversity and ecosystem functioning at local and regional scales. Understanding how different herbivores influence plant diversity across multiple scales is crucial for effective biodiversity conservation. However, most studies have focussed on the effects of grazing intensity on plant diversity, neglecting the impacts and associated mechanisms of different herbivores across scales. Based on a 7‐year grazing experiment with 16 plots in Inner Mongolia's typical steppe, we compared the scale‐dependent effects of different herbivores (cattle, sheep and goats) on plant diversity at moderate grazing intensity. We used the species–area relationship (SAR) and linear mixed models to analyse the changes in species richness across multiple scales (1, 16, 32, 64, 128, 256, 512 and 1024 m2). To understand SAR slope changes, we examined four potential mechanisms: overall species richness, total number of individuals, species abundance distribution and species aggregation. We found that grazing had scale effects on plant diversity, as indicated by a significant decrease in the SAR slope. This decrease in slope suggests that the negative impacts of grazing were more pronounced at larger scales. Additionally, the scale effects of different herbivores on plant diversity varied. Cattle had stronger positive impacts on diversity than sheep and goats at both small (1 m2) and large (1024 m2) scales. Conversely, sheep and goats had stronger negative effects on diversity than did the control at the large scale (1024 m2). The decrease in the SAR slope was mainly caused by changes in overall species richness and species abundance distribution. This was primarily because cattle had a stronger impact on dominant species, whereas sheep and goats had a stronger impact on rare species. Synthesis: Our results demonstrate that even at the same intensity, the grazing effects on species diversity vary with the study scale, herbivore type and their interaction. This finding has important implications for the conservation of grassland biodiversity given that grazing typically occurs at larger scales than in studies with quadrats and involves various herbivores with distinct effects on plant diversity. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The challenge of managing aquatic connectivity in a changing climate is exacerbated in the presence of additional anthropogenic stressors, social factors, and economic drivers. Here we discuss these issues in the context of structural and functional connectivity for aquatic biodiversity, specifically fish, in both the freshwater and marine realms. We posit that adaptive management strategies that consider shifting baselines and the socio‐ecological implications of climate change will be required to achieve management objectives. The role of renewable energy expansion, particularly hydropower, is critically examined for its impact on connectivity. We advocate for strategic spatial planning that incorporates nature‐positive solutions, ensuring climate mitigation efforts are harmonized with biodiversity conservation. We underscore the urgency of integrating robust scientific modelling with stakeholder values to define clear, adaptive management objectives. Finally, we call for innovative monitoring and predictive decision‐making tools to navigate the uncertainties inherent in a changing climate, with the goal of ensuring the resilience and sustainability of aquatic ecosystems. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

There is a biodiversity crisis, and to prevent extinctions the most important sites to be effectively conserved must be identified. Key Biodiversity Areas (KBAs) include sites of importance for species survival. Alliance for Zero Extinction (AZE) sites, a subset of KBAs, contain ≥95% of the population of highly threatened species. Currently, only 47 tree species have been identified using the AZE criteria. The Global Tree Assessment, assessing the extinction risk of the world's tree species, has enabled trees to be incorporated into KBA and AZE sites. Here we present a methodology to utilize data from the IUCN Red List to identify potential AZE species for trees. This 10‐part methodology identified 2909 tree species as potential AZE species across the world, representing at least 5% of described tree species. As further tree species are assessments are published on the IUCN Red List, this methodology will be important for identifying potential AZE species. The methodology can be applied and adapted to any taxa on the IUCN Red List. This analysis serves as a prioritization mechanism for identifying species in urgent need of conservation action to prevent extinctions. The species identified can feed into national KBA identification efforts. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Recovery planning is considered an important policy instrument for the management of threatened species. While recovery planning has led to improvements in the conservation status of some species, the degree of success can vary substantially across different contexts and is dependent on multiple factors. Institutional and organizational factors such as insufficient funding, weak policies, underspecified goals, and lack of knowledge impact the success of recovery planning. But recovery planning can be fall short in achieving desired outcomes even in the absence of these constraints. Recovery planning is also highly reliant on collaboration efforts between local agencies, community organizations, and research institutions—yet studies examining the diversity of factors influencing the success of recovery planning are rare. To address this gap, we take a multilevel perspective that situates recovery planning inside nested layers of institutional, organizational, team, and action‐level processes. We apply this framework and utilize in‐depth interviews and thematic analysis to analyze barriers and enablers in the recovery of two threatened Australian species. Our analysis reveals how team‐level processes interact with their organizational and institutional contexts to influence outcomes. Key findings emphasize the indispensable role of committed individuals, collaboration, and strategic utilization of specialist knowledge in fostering effective teamwork. Furthermore, our findings also emphasize the critical importance of a shared purpose within the team and the need for equilibrium between personal agendas and team objectives. We highlight the need for more studies to deliver a nuanced understanding of how team‐level processes drive successful recovery planning, even when institutional factors, such as appropriate funding and knowledge, are present. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Simple Summary: The Medog region in southeastern Tibet harbors diverse wildlife, yet our understanding of these mammals' species diversity, distribution, and conservation status remains inadequate. To address this, a camera-trapping survey was conducted in Gedang, Medog, spanning from April 2023 to May 2024. The study revealed 25 mammalian species across five orders and 14 families, including Endangered and Vulnerable species. Notably, the Gongshan muntjac's underrepresentation in the IUCN was addressed, and new insights into the coexistence of Himalayan red pandas and Chinese red pandas were documented. The White-cheeked macaque, Gongshan muntjac, and Himalayan serow were frequently detected with high RAI. However, the high detection of domestic dogs, livestock, and human disturbances may pose threats to wildlife. Conservation efforts are crucial to protect these mammals and maintain ecological balance in the region. The Medog in southeastern Tibet is home to a diverse range of wild animals. However, research on these mammals' species directories, distribution, and conservation status remains insufficient, despite their crucial role in maintaining ecological balance. The study carried out a camera-trapping survey to assess mammal biodiversity and the significance of mammal protection in their natural habitats in Gedang, Medog. Future directions and application prospects of the study for wildlife conservation in the southeastern Tibetan mountains were also discussed. The survey, spanning from April 2023 to May 2024, with 19,754 camera trap days, revealed 25 mammalian species across five orders and 14 families. Among these, four classified as Endangered, five as Vulnerable, two as Near Threatened on the IUCN Red List, nine were categorized as Critically Endangered or Endangered on the Red List of China's Vertebrates, and seven were China's national first-class key protected wildlife. The order Carnivora exhibited the highest diversity, comprising 12 species. Furthermore, the study filled the knowledge gap regarding the underrepresentation of Gongshan muntjac Muntiacus gongshanensis in IUCN and provided new insights into the recorded coexistence of the Himalayan red panda Ailurus fulgens and Chinese red panda Ailurus styani along the Yarlung Zangbo River for the first time, and also documented new upper elevation limits for four large to medium-sized species. Regarding the relative abundance indices (RAI) captured by camera traps, the most prevalent species identified was the White-cheeked macaque Macaca leucogenys, followed by the Gongshan muntjac and Himalayan serow Capricornis thar. The monitoring also captured a number of domestic dogs and livestock, as well as human disturbances. These findings underscore the importance of conserving these mammals and emphasize the need for conservation efforts to protect their habitats and reduce human activities that threaten their survival, thereby maintaining the ecological balance of the region. Additionally, the research highlighted Gedang's significance to global conservation efforts for mammalian diversity, providing essential data for effective wildlife conservation strategies. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Conflicts arising from human activities and biodiversity value affect the conservation efficacy of protected areas. Resolving these conflicts requires conservation‐compatible livelihoods, such as through agroecology. Here, we built a comprehensive social–psychological framework to explore and understand farmers' intentions to adopt agroecological approaches in tea management in Wuyishan National Park, China.We extended the theory of planned behaviour (TPB) by integrating household livelihood assets (LAs) as a material precondition for the social–psychological decision‐making process. We proposed geographical location (GL) and livelihood strategy (LS) as moderating factors for this agroecology intention. We collected 369 valid household samples through structured interviews. We then used partial least square‐structural equation (PLS‐SEM) modelling to explore the determinants that affect tea farmers' agroecological intentions.Livelihood assets were a material foundation influencing the intention to adopt agroecology and were also mediated by three psychological constructs to take effect. Perceived behavioural control explained the largest proportion of the variance for intention and exerted the most significant mediation effects. Subjective norm was another vital independent predictor and exerted a positive influence on both perceived behavioural control and attitude. The direct and mediating impacts of attitude on the intention were weaker but showed that farmers' ecological rationality outweighed value rationality.Livelihood strategies measured by operational scale and livelihood diversity were able to moderate farmers' psychology. Subjective norm had positively significant influence on perceived behavioural control and attitude, indicating that social support to farmers enhanced their feeling of control over adopting agroecology and that important referent groups as sources of information helped farmers' attitude formation. Perceived behavioural control positively and significantly influences farmers' attitudes as well.Synthesis and applications. Our findings provide evidence of the necessity to optimise rural farmers' livelihood assets to enhance their confidence and control over agroecology. Resolving the conservation‐development dilemma in protected areas through agroecology should aim at comprehensive support that respects bioculture and improves farmers' ability. We suggest knowledge co‐production of traditional wisdom and modern technologies, reducing management costs and risks, strengthening park‐people communication and diversifying incentives to farmers with different livelihood strategies. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Forests are crucial for supporting various ecosystem functions and biodiversity, but they are vulnerable to global change drivers such as climate change and land use change. The special issue "How belowground biodiversity affects ecosystem functions of forests" explores the relationship between belowground biodiversity and ecosystem functions in forests. The papers in the special issue cover topics such as the potential drivers of soil microbial biodiversity, the effects of belowground biodiversity on multiple ecosystem functions, and the implications for future research. The findings highlight the importance of belowground biodiversity in maintaining ecosystem functions and provide insights for forest management and biodiversity conservation. [Extracted from the article]

Background and aims: Windblown sand movements, i.e., wind denudation and sand burial, pose a strong selective pressure on dune vegetation. Dune plants commonly receive repeated wind denudation or sand burial. Therefore, simultaneously examining the role of sand movement intensity and frequency in shaping dune vegetation is critical for dune biodiversity conservation and ecological restoration. However, studies of this nature are rare. Methods: We studied the integrated effects of sand movement intensity and frequency on the seedling performance of a dominant semi-shrub, Artemisia ordosica, in the Mu Us sandland. We subjected A. ordosica seedlings to a total intensity of 10 cm wind denudation or sand burial treatments conducted once, twice or four times. Key results: We found, given that the total intensity of sand movement remains the same, increasing frequency and decreasing intensity per time largely improved seedling survival. Furthermore, increasing frequency and decreasing intensity per time significantly alleviated the negative effects of wind denudation, although such alleviation effect was not detected for sand burial. Seedlings of A. ordosica increased specific leaf area, root length, and biomass allocation to root to adapt to wind denudation, while they developed adventitious roots to adapt to sand burial. Conclusions: Our results demonstrate that a single heavy sand movement is more detrimental than multiple light ones to the performance of A. ordosica seedlings. Our findings suggest that windproof measures to prevent severe sand movements is necessary to allow the establishment of A. ordosica during the dune restoration process. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Epilithic green algae play crucial roles in aquatic ecosystems. While traditional morphological approaches have provided valuable insights into these algae, their limitations in resolving cryptic species and fully capturing the extent of diversity have impeded a comprehensive understanding. The diversity and phylogenetic relationships of these algae largely remain unexplored. In the present study, single molecular real-time (SMRT) sequencing of the full-length 18S rDNA was employed to investigate the molecular diversity and phylogenetic relationships of epilithic green algae in biodiversity conservation hotspots. A total of 79 709 algal reads were generated, yielding 169 amplicon sequence variants (ASVs) from 21 epilithic riverine green algal assemblages classified in the Ulvophyceae, Chlorophyceae and Trebouxiophyceae. The 10 families in which the greatest number of unique ASVs (diversity) were observed were the Ulvellaceae, Protosiphonaceae, Chlorococcaceae, Watanabeaceae, Chlorellaceae, Neochloridaceae, Chaetophoraceae, Hazeniaceae, Tupiellaceae and Scenedesmaceae. Unique clades formed by a substantial number of sequences of green algae were detected within the Ulvales/Ulotrichales (Ulvophyceae) and the Chlorococcaceae/Protosiphonaceae (Chlorophyceae). This study has unveiled hidden diversity within epilithic green algae, expanding our knowledge of their evolutionary relationships and providing fundamental data for taxonomic investigations within this group, as well as contributing to the assessment of algal diversity in biodiversity conservation hotspots. This study suggests that these epilithic green algal assemblages may be significantly more diverse than previously recognized, but we acknowledge the limited ecological and temporal scope of our sampling effort and the resulting effects on which taxa are identified, warranting further research. Molecular analysis shows high hidden diversity of epilithic green algae The families Ulvellaceae and Protosiphonaceae had the greatest number of unique ASVs Many unique clades within the Ulvales/Ulotrichales and Chlorococcaceae/Protosiphonaceae [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The global threat posed by biodiversity loss has increased recently. Ecosystem destruction puts human beings in peril, exacerbates climate change, and endangers food security. Similar issues exist in the Mekong Delta, also known as the mega diversity region. Potential threats to this region's biodiversity include increasing populations, expanding agriculture with increased pesticide and fertilizer usage, and shifting water levels during flood and salinization seasons. Human conduct is one aspect that threatens biodiversity richness. Given the interdependence of humans and nature, biodiversity conservation must be given top priority if we are to maintain our ability to interact with the natural world. Therefore, the purpose of this study is to examine how university students perceive biodiversity conservation in light of the Theory of Planned Behaviour (TPB). A survey of 387 students in universities in the Mekong Delta of Vietnam was conducted for this study. The results of this study demonstrate how awareness, knowledge, and attitude significantly influence behaviors related to biodiversity protection. The study also uncovered important concerns like the disparities in behavior among majors, the common information sources used to learn about biodiversity and the favorable and obstacles factors that students must deal with. Simultaneously, potential recommendations are put forth to support the development of students' biodiversity protection behaviors. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The article focuses on integrating nature into policy-making across various sectors to improve governance and sustainability. Topics include the need for holistic approaches that connect health, national security, and the economy with nature, criteria for mainstreaming nature in decision-making processes, and examples of recent policy changes and their implications for future research and governance.

Evolutionary processes span multiple hierarchical levels, with nested causality. Punctuated evolutionary changes occur unevenly as a result of environmental conditions and multiscale feedback across hierarchical levels. Slow evolution among interconnected units (e.g., molecules and organisms) can trigger abrupt changes at higher organizational levels (e.g., species and ecosystems). Punctuated evolution is evident in biological and cultural evolution, abrupt extinctions, biodiversity crashes, evolution of the pathogens, and technological change. Understanding punctuated evolution aids in developing more effective strategies for the conservation of biodiversity in the face of significant anthropogenic impacts. For five decades, paleontologists, paleobiologists, and ecologists have investigated patterns of punctuated equilibria in biology. Here, we step outside those fields and summarize recent advances in the theory of and evidence for punctuated equilibria, gathered from contemporary observations in geology, molecular biology, genetics, anthropology, and sociotechnology. Taken in the aggregate, these observations lead to a more general theory that we refer to as punctuated evolution. The quality of recent datasets is beginning to illustrate the mechanics of punctuated evolution in a way that can be modeled across a vast range of phenomena, from mass extinctions hundreds of millions of years ago to the possible future ahead in the Anthropocene. We expect the study of punctuated evolution to be applicable beyond biological scenarios. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Agriculture is the main cause of the biodiversity crisis. Recent suggestions to narrow biodiversity conservation to land sparing are misguiding. Intensifying farming does not lead to sparing more biodiversity-rich land, because higher yields are a major incentive to expand agriculture. Protected reserves are a cornerstone of global biodiversity, while enhancing spillover between on- and off-field habitats reduces extinctions and promotes a wealth of species, including providers of major ecosystem services. Hence, on- and off-field mixing of conservation measures is required. Biodiversity-friendly farming needs a focus on practices allowing high biodiversity at best without compromising yield, such as diversified and small-scale farming. Further, food trade must recognize and enforce high socioecological standards for production conditions worldwide. The continuing biodiversity losses through agricultural expansion and intensification are dramatic. We argue that a mix of on- and off-field measures is needed, overcoming the false dichotomy of the land sharing-sparing debate. Protected land is essential for global biodiversity, while spillover between farmed and natural land is key to reducing species extinctions. This is particularly effective in landscapes with small and diversified fields. Focusing only on protected land fails to conserve a wealth of species, which often provide major ecosystem services such as pest control, pollination, and cultural benefits. On-field measures must minimise yield losses to prevent increased demand for food imports from biodiversity-rich regions, requiring enforcement of high social–ecological land-use standards to ensure a good life for all. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Protected areas (PAs) are pivotal to biodiversity conservation, yet their efficacy is compromised by insufficient funding and management. So‐called other effective area‐based conservation measures (OECMs) present a paradigm shift and address PA limitations. Such measures can expand conservation areas, enhance connectivity, and improve the existing system. To assess the conservation status of biodiversity in Tibetan cultural areas in China, we investigated the spatial distribution of wildlife vulnerable to human disturbance (large‐ and medium‐sized mammals and terrestrial birds) in Xinlong, a traditional Tibetan cultural area. In particular, we compared a PA (Xionglongxi Nature Reserve) and OECMs targeting species conservation. We also investigated the relationship of wildlife with human temporal and spatial activities. The OECMs complemented areas not covered by PA, especially in rich understory biodiversity regions. More species in OECMs tolerated human presence than species in the PA. Existing biodiversity reserves failed to cover areas of high conservation value in Tibet and offered limited protection capacity. Expanding PAs and identifying OECMs improved Xinlong's system by covering most biodiversity hotspots. Building on the tradition of wildlife conservation in Tibet, harnessing OECMs may be an effective means of augmenting biodiversity conservation capacity. We recommend further evaluation of OECMs effectiveness and coverage in Tibetan area as a way to enhance the current PA system. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

We examined the entanglement of biodiversity conservation, human–animal interactions, zootherapy, and local beliefs among Sumatran Healers and their local community by completing an ethnography of 43 Indigenous Healers across 8 tribes in Bengkulu Province, Sumatra, Indonesia. Data collection tools were interviews, observations, videos, photographs, and a researcher journal. Of the 43 Healers, 30 used animals and mentioned 62 species. Of the animals identified, the International Union for Conservation of Nature Red List lists 34% (n = 21) as endangered, decreasing, or vulnerable, including Sumatran tiger (Panthera tigris sumatrae), Sumatran elephant (Elephas maximus sumatranus), and Sumatran rhinoceros (Dicerorhinus sumatrensis). Of the 30 Healers using animals, 50% (n = 15) practiced healing with at least one endangered, decreasing, or vulnerable animal. We defined 3 personas: Healer self‐persona, Healer‐imposed persona, and community‐imposed persona. A persona represented a group's opinions and sentiments related to Healers killing animals for medicinal purposes. Using an iterative data analysis process, we grouped the data across the 3 personas into 5 themes: ease of killing and preparing animals, emotions related to killing animals, animal value, relationship to religion, and Healers are tricksters. The complexity of merging the identities of Healers and the community within an actor‐network embodies the relationality of actions, interactions, and feelings among Healers, between Healers and animals, and between Healers and the community. Conservationists should be cognizant of Healers' medicinal use of animals, views of human–animal interactions, and zootherapy from all social and emotional perspectives. The data led to defining Indigenous Healer ecological knowledge components of zootherapy, human–animal interactions, and biodiversity conservation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Threat mapping is a necessary tool for identifying and abating direct threats to species in the ongoing extinction crisis. There are known gaps in the threat mapping literature for particular threats and geographic locations, and it remains unclear if the distribution of research effort is appropriately targeted relative to conservation need. We aimed to determine the drivers of threat mapping research effort and to quantify gaps that, if filled, could inform actions with the highest potential to reduce species' extinction risk. We used a negative binomial generalized linear model to analyze research effort as a function of threat abatement potential (quantified as the potential reduction in species extinction risk from abating threats), species richness, land area, and human pressure. The model showed that threat mapping research effort increased by 1.1 to 1.2 times per standardized unit change in threat abatement potential. However, species richness and land area were stronger predictors of research effort overall. The greatest areas of mismatch between research effort and threat abatement potential, receiving disproportionately low research effort, were related to the threats to species of agriculture, aquaculture, and biological resource use across the tropical regions of the Americas, Asia, and Madagascar. Conversely, the threat of linear infrastructure (e.g., roads and rails) across regions, the threat of biological resource use (e.g., hunting or collection) in sub‐Saharan Africa, and overall threats in North America and Europe all received disproportionately high research effort. We discuss the range of methodological and sociopolitical factors that may be behind the overall trends and specific areas of mismatch we found. We urge a stronger emphasis on targeting research effort toward those threats and geographic locations where threat abatement activities could make the greatest contribution to reducing global species extinction risk. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Target 3 in the Kunming–Montreal Global Biodiversity Framework (GBF) calls for protecting at least 30% of the world's lands and waters in area‐based conservation approaches by 2030. This ambitious 30×30 target has spurred great interest among policy makers, practitioners, and researchers in defining and measuring the effectiveness of these types of approaches. But along with this broad interest, there has also been a proliferation of terms and their accompanying abbreviations used to describe different types of conservation areas and their governance, planning, management, and monitoring. The lack of standard terms is hindering the use and assessment of area‐based approaches to conserve the world's biodiversity. It is difficult to track progress toward GBF Target 3 or to share learning with other practitioners if different groups of people are using different words to describe the same concept or similar words to talk about different concepts. To address this problem, the International Union for Conservation of Nature's World Commission on Protected Areas commissioned a task force to review existing terms and recommend a standard English‐language lexicon for this field based on key criteria. The results were definitions of 37 terms across 6 categories, including types of protected and additional conservation areas (e.g., protected area, additional conservation area), sets of these areas (protected area network, protected area system), their governance and management (governance, rightsholders), assessment (effectiveness, equitability), spatial planning (key biodiversity area), and action planning (value, outcome, objective). Our standard lexicon can provide a common language for people who want to use it and a shared reference point that can be used to translate various terms used by different groups. The common understanding provided by the lexicon can serve as a foundation for collaborative efforts to improve the policies, implementation, assessments, research, and learning about this important set of conservation approaches. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Amid a global infrastructure boom, there is increasing recognition of the ecological impacts of the extraction and consumption of construction minerals, mainly processed as concrete, including significant and expanding threats to global biodiversity. We investigated how high‐level national and international biodiversity conservation policies address mining threats, with a special focus on construction minerals. We conducted a review and quantified the degree to which threats from mining these minerals are addressed in biodiversity goals and targets under the 2011–2020 and post‐2020 biodiversity strategies, national biodiversity strategies and action plans, and the assessments of the Intergovernmental Science–Policy Platform on Biodiversity and Ecosystem Services. Mining appeared rarely in national targets but more frequently in national strategies. Yet, in most countries, it was superficially addressed. Coverage of aggregates mining was greater than coverage of limestone mining. We outline 8 key components, tailored for a wide range of actors, to effectively mainstream biodiversity conservation into the extractive, infrastructure, and construction sectors. Actions include improving reporting and monitoring systems, enhancing the evidence base around mining impacts on biodiversity, and modifying the behavior of financial agents and businesses. Implementing these measures could pave the way for a more sustainable approach to construction mineral use and safeguard biodiversity. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Because global anthropogenic activities cause vast biodiversity loss, human dimensions research is essential to forming management plans applicable to biodiversity conservation outside wilderness areas. Engaging public participation is crucial in this context to achieve social and environmental benefits. However, knowledge gaps remain in understanding how a balance between conservation and public demands can be reached and how complicated sociocultural contexts in the Anthropocene can be incorporated in conservation planning. We examined China's nationwide conflict between free‐ranging cats (owned cats that are allowed to go outdoors or homeless cats living outdoors) and wildlife to examine how a consensus between compassion and biodiversity conservation can help in decision‐making. We surveyed a random sample of people in China online. Over 9000 questionnaires were completed (44.2% response). In aggregate, respondents reported approximately 29 million free‐ranging owned cats and that over 5 million domestic cats per year become feral in mainland China. Respondents who were cat owners, female, and religious were more likely to deny the negative impacts of cats on wildlife and ongoing management strategies and more supportive of stray cat shelters, adoption, and community‐based fund raising than nonowners, male, and nonreligious respondents (p < 0.05). Free‐ranging cat ownership and abandonment occurred less with owners with more knowledge of biodiversity and invasive species than with respondents with less knowledge of these subjects (p < 0.05). We recommend that cat enthusiasts and wildlife conservationists participate in community‐based initiatives, such as campaigns to keep cats indoors. Our study provides a substantially useful framework for other regions where free‐ranging cats are undergoing rapid expansion. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Aim: Understanding how species' traits mediate environmental responses provides a mechanistic perspective on community assembly processes. Although traits that influence the response of multicellular organisms to environments have been studied, the identification of such traits in unicellular organisms, like ciliates, is underexplored. Since ciliates are dominant animals in coastal sandy sediments and contribute significantly to interstitial community respiration, identifying links between their occurrence and sandy‐coast characteristics is crucial for conserving biodiversity and protecting coastal habitats. Location: Coasts of China. Methods: We used Hierarchical Modelling of Species Communities, a trait‐based joint species distribution model, to analyse ciliate community data collected from 344 sites belonging to 31 beaches across the Chinese coastline. Results: We found that physical variables play the most important role in determining ciliate occurrence. The beach index combines the tidal range, sediment grain size and beach slope of beach‐selected species based on body size as well as feeding type, while sediment grain size constrained different mobility types, with swimming species favouring fine sandy sediments. The significant contribution of phylogeny in explaining the residual variation among species responses indicates that there are phylogenetically conserved but unmeasured traits too that influence species' responses. Species richness of benthic ciliates was higher in dissipative beaches with high primary productivity. Main Conclusions: Based on our research, ciliate occurrence in coastal beaches is mediated by their traits which are filtered by local environmental variables. The beach index is essential in predicting distribution patterns and species richness of benthic ciliates. Nevertheless, further research is needed to identify additional traits that will enhance the accuracy of predicting ciliate niches. Our study provides insights into the mechanisms driving ciliate community assembly processes and has implications for the conservation of biodiversity in sandy coastal habitats. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Owing to the rapid and ongoing anthropogenic changes impacting ecosystem functions and their interplay with biodiversity, there is a growing focus on assessing insect functional diversity. This emphasis helps to unravel key roles of insects on ecosystem processes and to identify the assembly mechanisms that regulate species coexistence.The ecological functions of phytophagous scarab beetles (Scarabaeidae) have been relatively unexplored, and potential functional traits are scattered throughout the literature. Species within this group exhibit diverse lifestyles, forms and sizes. They exploit various resources such as decomposing wood, foliage, roots and flowers, with a small subset identified as predators. Although many of their representatives are significant agricultural pests, information on their contributions in natural ecosystems has not been consolidated.This study reviews the ecological functions potentially carried out by phytophagous scarab beetles and proposes functional traits to be incorporated into studies of functional diversity. Through this, the goal is to integrate the scattered information, stimulate the generation of questions that go beyond classical ecological theory and contribute to advancing our knowledge of their ecosystem functions, as well as the foundations for understanding community structure. We propose to use trophic groups to define functions such as bioturbation, organic matter decomposition, biological control and potential pollination.A simplified list of functional traits was obtained by conducting correlation analyses using a trait matrix from a region in northern Colombia. This represents a significant advance for the study of traits within the framework of functional ecology, applicable to territorial planning and biodiversity conservation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Anthropogenic habitat loss is widely recognized as a primary environmental concern. By contrast, debates on the effects of habitat fragmentation persist. To facilitate overcoming these debates, here we: (i) review the state of the literature on habitat fragmentation, finding widespread confusion and stigma; (ii) identify consequences of this for biodiversity conservation and ecosystem management; and (iii) suggest ways in which research can move forward to resolve these problems. Confusion is evident from the 25 most‐cited fragmentation articles published between 2017 and 2021. These articles use five distinct concepts of habitat fragmentation, only one of which clearly distinguishes habitat fragmentation from habitat area and other factors ('fragmentation per se'). Stigmatization is evident from our new findings that fragmentation papers are more charged with negative sentiments when compared to papers from other subfields in the environmental sciences, and that fragmentation papers with more negative sentiments are cited more. While most empirical studies of habitat fragmentation per se find neutral or positive effects on species and biodiversity outcomes, which implies that small habitat patches have a high cumulative value, confusion and stigma in reporting and discussing such results have led to suboptimal habitat protection policy. For example, government agencies, conservation organizations, and land trusts impose minimum habitat patch sizes on habitat protection. Given the high cumulative value of small patches, such policies mean that many opportunities for conservation are being missed. Our review highlights the importance of reducing confusion and stigma in habitat fragmentation research. To this end, we propose implementing study designs in which multiple sample landscapes are selected across independent gradients of habitat amount and fragmentation, measured as patch density. We show that such designs are possible for forest habitat across Earth's biomes. As such study designs are adopted, and as language becomes more precise, we expect that confusion and stigma in habitat fragmentation research will dissipate. We also expect important breakthroughs in understanding the situations where effects of habitat fragmentation per se are neutral, positive, or negative, and the reasons for these differences. Ultimately this will improve efficacy of area‐based conservation policies, to the benefit of biodiversity and people. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Aquatic plants play an important role in aquatic systems. A comprehensive understanding of their spatial distribution may help to develop biodiversity conservation plans. This work investigated the spatial distribution of aquatic plants across China, including the invasive, threatened, and province-endemic species. Correlation analysis was used to evaluate the effects of environmental variables on richness pattern and variation partitioning was used to reveal the pure and shared effects of four explanatory variable groups: energy-water availability, geographical location, habitat heterogeneity, and human impact on species richness. Results showed that aquatic plants were unevenly distributed in China and they decreased from southern China toward northern China. Yunnan Province was the hotspot of aquatic plants. The number of invasive species was more in southeast China and less in northwest China. The endemism of aquatic plants in each province was not obvious. Aquatic plant richness across China tended to be higher in areas where the energy and water supply are adequate and actual evapotranspiration was the strongest correlate for total species richness (r = 0.630). Among the three growth forms, the correlation between submerged species richness and environmental factors was weak, while that of floating plants was strong. According to variation partitioning, the shared effect of energy-water availability and geographical location was dominant in aquatic plant richness pattern across China (R2 = 0.47 for total species richness). Pure spatial factors had a weak effect in shaping the richness pattern, suggesting that dispersal limitations have no significant effect on the distribution pattern of aquatic plants for their relatively strong dispersal capacity. Moreover, the effects of habitat heterogeneity and human impact on total aquatic plant richness pattern were also weak. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Faced with pollinator declines, cities could serve as refuges for biodiversity conservation by managing floral resources in public green spaces. Ornamental plants could play an important role in attracting pollinators because they form part of urban floral management. However, knowledge of how their floral traits respond to drought is lacking, and it is unknown whether they will be suitable for pollinators under future climates. The main objective of this study was to determine the covariation of floral traits of ornamental plant species and effects of drought on them. To this end, in a city greenhouse we measured floral traits of eight ornamental species commonly used in urban green spaces in France. We subjected the plants to a control treatment or a drought treatment, reducing the volume and frequency of watering. We observed interspecific variability in floral traits among these species and a change in covariation between the traits pollen quantity and nectar quantity in the drought treatment. Drought influenced morphological traits related to floral display more than other floral traits, with mean decreases of 28 % in floral height, 35 % in floral area and 58 % in the number of floral units. Ornamental plants seemed attractive to different morphotypes of pollinators depending on their floral unit number, nectar sugar concentration or nectar tube depth, with most visits made by Hymenoptera. These results are expected to encourage green-space managers to select urban plants according to their functional characteristics and adapt their choice of plants to climate change. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]