Global priorities for conservation across multiple dimensions of mammalian diversity.
Fernanda T Brum, Catherine H Graham, Gabriel C Costa, S Blair Hedges, Caterina Penone, Volker C Radeloff, Carlo Rondinini, Rafael Loyola, Ana D Davidson
Author Information
Fernanda T Brum: Conservation Biogeography Laboratory, Departamento de Ecologia, Universidade Federal de Goiás, 74680-900 Goiania, Brasil; ftbrum@gmail.com. ORCID
Catherine H Graham: Department of Ecology and Evolution, Stony Brook University, NY 11794.
Gabriel C Costa: Department of Biology, Auburn University at Montgomery, Montgomery AL 36124.
S Blair Hedges: Center for Biodiversity, Temple University, Philadelphia, PA 19122.
Caterina Penone: Institute of Plant Sciences, University of Bern, 3013 Bern, Switzerland.
Volker C Radeloff: SILVIS Lab, Department of Forest and Wildlife Ecology, University of Wisconsin-Madison, WI 53706.
Carlo Rondinini: Global Mammal Assessment Program, Department of Biology and Biotechnologies, Sapienza University of Rome, Rome 00185, Italy.
Rafael Loyola: Conservation Biogeography Laboratory, Departamento de Ecologia, Universidade Federal de Goiás, 74680-900 Goiania, Brasil. ORCID
Ana D Davidson: Department of Ecology and Evolution, Stony Brook University, NY 11794.
Conservation priorities that are based on species distribution, endemism, and vulnerability may underrepresent biologically unique species as well as their functional roles and evolutionary histories. To ensure that priorities are biologically comprehensive, multiple dimensions of diversity must be considered. Further, understanding how the different dimensions relate to one another spatially is important for conservation prioritization, but the relationship remains poorly understood. Here, we use spatial conservation planning to () identify and compare priority regions for global mammal conservation across three key dimensions of biodiversity-taxonomic, phylogenetic, and traits-and () determine the overlap of these regions with the locations of threatened species and existing protected areas. We show that priority areas for mammal conservation exhibit low overlap across the three dimensions, highlighting the need for an integrative approach for biodiversity conservation. Additionally, currently protected areas poorly represent the three dimensions of mammalian biodiversity. We identify areas of high conservation priority among and across the dimensions that should receive special attention for expanding the global protected area network. These high-priority areas, combined with areas of high priority for other taxonomic groups and with social, economic, and political considerations, provide a biological foundation for future conservation planning efforts.
