Situating defaunation in an operational framework to advance biodiversity conservation.

ABSTRACT: Anthropogenic pressures are causing the widespread loss of wildlife species and populations, with adverse consequences for ecosystem functioning. This phenomenon has been widely but inconsistently referred to as defaunation. A cohesive, quantitative framework for defining and evaluating defaunation is necessary for advancing biodiversity conservation. Likening defaunation to deforestation, we propose an operational framework for defaunation that defines it and related terms, situates defaunation relative to intact communities and faunal degradation, and encourages quantitative, ecologically reasonable, and equitable measurements. We distinguish between defaunation, the conversion of an ecosystem from having wild animals to not having wild animals, and faunal degradation

SUBMITTER: Poulsen JR 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC10580966 | biostudies-literature | 2023 Oct

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature