The aesthetic value of reef fishes is globally mismatched to their conservation priorities.

ABSTRACT: Reef fishes are closely connected to many human populations, yet their contributions to society are mostly considered through their economic and ecological values. Cultural and intrinsic values of reef fishes to the public can be critical drivers of conservation investment and success, but remain challenging to quantify. Aesthetic value represents one of the most immediate and direct means by which human societies engage with biodiversity, and can be evaluated from species to ecosystems. Here, we provide the aesthetic value of 2,417 ray-finned reef fish species by combining intensive evaluation of photographs of fishes by humans with predicted values from machine learning. We identified important biases in species' aesthetic value relating to evolutionary history, ecological traits, and In

SUBMITTER: Langlois J 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC9173608 | biostudies-literature | 2022 Jun

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature