Human population density and extinction risk in the world's carnivores.

ABSTRACT: Understanding why some species are at high risk of extinction, while others remain relatively safe, is central to the development of a predictive conservation science. Recent studies have shown that a species' extinction risk may be determined by two types of factors: intrinsic biological traits and exposure to external anthropogenic threats. However, little is known about the relative and interacting effects of intrinsic and external variables on extinction risk. Using phylogenetic comparative methods, we show that extinction risk in the mammal order Carnivora is predicted more strongly by biology than exposure to high-density human populations. However, biology interacts with human population density to determine extinction risk: biological traits explain 80% of variation in risk for car

SUBMITTER: Cardillo M 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC449851 | biostudies-literature | 2004 Jul

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature