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Global tests of biodiversity concordance and the importance of endemism

Author

Listed:
  • John F. Lamoreux

    (University of Virginia)

  • John C. Morrison

    (World Wildlife Fund–US)

  • Taylor H. Ricketts

    (World Wildlife Fund–US)

  • David M. Olson

    (Wildlife Conservation Society–South Pacific)

  • Eric Dinerstein

    (World Wildlife Fund–US)

  • Meghan W. McKnight

    (University of North Carolina)

  • Herman H. Shugart

    (University of Virginia)

Abstract

Understanding patterns of biodiversity distribution is essential to conservation strategies1, but severe data constraints make surrogate measures necessary2,3,4. For this reason, many studies have tested the performance of terrestrial vertebrates as surrogates for overall species diversity, but these tests have typically been limited to a single taxon or region3,4,5,6,7,8,9,10. Here we show that global patterns of richness are highly correlated among amphibians, reptiles, birds and mammals, as are endemism patterns. Furthermore, we demonstrate that although the correlation between global richness and endemism is low, aggregate regions selected for high levels of endemism capture significantly more species than expected by chance. Although areas high in endemism have long been targeted for the protection of narrow-ranging species11,12, our findings provide evidence that endemism is also a useful surrogate for the conservation of all terrestrial vertebrates.

Suggested Citation

  • John F. Lamoreux & John C. Morrison & Taylor H. Ricketts & David M. Olson & Eric Dinerstein & Meghan W. McKnight & Herman H. Shugart, 2006. "Global tests of biodiversity concordance and the importance of endemism," Nature, Nature, vol. 440(7081), pages 212-214, March.
    • Handle: RePEc:nat:nature:v:440:y:2006:i:7081:d:10.1038_nature04291
    DOI: 10.1038/nature04291
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    Cited by:

    1. Herkt, K. Matthias B. & Barnikel, Günter & Skidmore, Andrew K. & Fahr, Jakob, 2016. "A high-resolution model of bat diversity and endemism for continental Africa," Ecological Modelling, Elsevier, vol. 320(C), pages 9-28.
    2. Christie, Mike & Fazey, Ioan & Cooper, Rob & Hyde, Tony & Kenter, Jasper O., 2012. "An evaluation of monetary and non-monetary techniques for assessing the importance of biodiversity and ecosystem services to people in countries with developing economies," Ecological Economics, Elsevier, vol. 83(C), pages 67-78.
    3. Danley, Brian & Sandorf, Erlend Dancke & Campbell, Danny, 2021. "Putting your best fish forward: Investigating distance decay and relative preferences for fish conservation," Journal of Environmental Economics and Management, Elsevier, vol. 108(C).
    4. Boyd, James & Epanchin-Niell, Rebecca & Siikamaki, Juha, 2012. "Conservation Return on Investment Analysis: A Review of Results, Methods, and New Directions," RFF Working Paper Series dp-12-01, Resources for the Future.

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