Conservation biology articles within Nature Communications

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  • Article
    | Open Access

    International initiatives set ambitious targets for ecological restoration. Here, the authors conduct a meta-analysis to quantify the impacts of ecological restoration on greenhouse gas emissions and find that forest, grassland, and wetland restoration reduce global warming potential.

    • Tiehu He
    • , Weixin Ding
    •  & Quanfa Zhang
  • Article
    | Open Access

    Extinction threatens to erode the Tree of Life. Here, the authors calculate extinction risk for jawed vertebrates, predicting a loss of 86–150 billion years (11–19%) of evolutionary history through the next 50–500 years and indicating that cartilaginous fish, ray-finned fish, and turtles are most at risk from a phylogenetic perspective.

    • Rikki Gumbs
    • , Oenone Scott
    •  & James Rosindell
  • Article
    | Open Access

    Protected areas are meant to defend species from direct exploitation and habitat loss, but they might also reduce climate change impacts. Here, the authors show that marine protected areas mitigate the impacts of marine heatwaves on reef fish communities.

    • Lisandro Benedetti-Cecchi
    • , Amanda E. Bates
    •  & Eneko Aspillaga
  • Article
    | Open Access

    Coral diseases are commonly sediment-associated. Here the authors conduct a field experiment in French Polynesia and Palmyra Atoll showing that removal of sea cucumbers that clean reef sediments while feeding increases coral disease.

    • Cody S. Clements
    • , Zoe A. Pratte
    •  & Mark E. Hay
  • Article
    | Open Access

    Dipterocarp trees are iconic but severely threatened species in Asian rainforests. This study assembles high-quality genomes of seven dipterocarp species to reveal the molecular basis of key adaptations and identifies a recent sharp population decline coinciding with local human activity.

    • Rong Wang
    • , Chao-Nan Liu
    •  & Xiao-Yong Chen
  • Perspective
    | Open Access

    Natural climate solutions can mitigate climate change but misunderstandings about what constitutes a natural climate solution generate unnecessary confusion and controversy. This Perspective distills five foundational principles of natural climate solutions and fifteen operational principles for practical implementation.

    • Peter Woods Ellis
    • , Aaron Marr Page
    •  & Susan C. Cook-Patton
  • Article
    | Open Access

    In a first global analysis, researchers find that sandy shores are severely squeezed between human infrastructure and the rising sea, as on average, the first road or building is currently situated at just 390 meters distance from the shoreline.

    • Eva M. Lansu
    • , Valérie C. Reijers
    •  & Tjisse van der Heide
  • Article
    | Open Access

    This study shows that conserving approximately half of global land area through protection or sustainable management could provide 90% of ten of nature’s contributions to people and could meet representation targets for 26,709 species of mammals, birds, amphibians, and reptiles. This finding supports recent commitments to conserve at least 30% of global lands and waters by 2030.

    • Rachel A. Neugarten
    • , Rebecca Chaplin-Kramer
    •  & Amanda D. Rodewald
  • Article
    | Open Access

    Tree species may be vulnerable to multiple global change factors. Here, the authors find that more than 17 thousand tree species are exposed to increasing anthropogenic threats, including many species classified as data-deficient in the IUCN Red List.

    • Coline C. F. Boonman
    • , Josep M. Serra-Diaz
    •  & Jens-Christian Svenning
  • Article
    | Open Access

    Free-ranging domestic cats have major ecological impacts globally. Here, Lepczyk et al. compile records of the species consumed by cats, identifying thousands of species consumed, including hundreds of species that are of conservation concern.

    • Christopher A. Lepczyk
    • , Jean E. Fantle-Lepczyk
    •  & John C. Z. Woinarski
  • Article
    | Open Access

    Twice a year, billions of nocturnal avian migrants traverse landscapes that are changing through natural and anthropogenic forces. Here, the authors identify light pollution as an influential predictor of bird migration stopover density across the USA.

    • Kyle G. Horton
    • , Jeffrey J. Buler
    •  & Geoffrey M. Henebry
  • Article
    | Open Access

    Abrupt regime shifts could in theory be predicted from early warning signals. Here, the authors show that true critical transitions are challenging to classify in lake planktonic systems, due to mismatches between trophic levels, and reveal uneven performance of early warning signal detection methods.

    • Duncan A. O’Brien
    • , Smita Deb
    •  & Christopher F. Clements
  • Article
    | Open Access

    In this study, the authors use a dataset of stable isotope compositions of otoliths from Atlantic bluefin tuna to infer the thermal sensitivity of metabolic performance in their first year of life. They then assess the likely trajectories of tuna production until end century under differing emission scenarios in their two main spawning grounds, the western Atlantic and Mediterranean Sea.

    • Clive N. Trueman
    • , Iraide Artetxe-Arrate
    •  & Igaratza Fraile
  • Article
    | Open Access

    Elasmobranchs (sharks, rays and skates) are among the most threatened marine vertebrates, yet their global functional diversity remains largely unknown. This study uses a trait dataset of over 1,000 species to assess elasmobranch functional diversity and compare it against other previously studied biodiversity facets to identify global conservation priorities.

    • Catalina Pimiento
    • , Camille Albouy
    •  & Fabien Leprieur
  • Article
    | Open Access

    Expanding protected areas to meet conservation goals requires careful consideration of potential trade-offs. Here, by simulating conservation scenarios for Canada, the authors report that 30×30 outcomes for biodiversity depend more on how protection is coordinated at different spatial scales than on which biodiversity metrics are prioritized.

    • Isaac Eckert
    • , Andrea Brown
    •  & Laura J. Pollock
  • Article
    | Open Access

    Species that are evolutionary distinct and have geographically narrow or isolated distributions may be in particular need of conservation. Here, the authors identify global patterns of tree phylogenetic endemism and their linkages with climate and land use, and estimate future trends.

    • Wen-Yong Guo
    • , Josep M. Serra-Diaz
    •  & Jens-Christian Svenning
  • Article
    | Open Access

    Cost-effective biodiversity monitoring through time is important for evidence-based conservation. Here, the authors show that automated bioacoustics monitoring can be used to track tropical forest recovery from agricultural abandonment, suggesting its use to assess restoration outcomes.

    • Jörg Müller
    • , Oliver Mitesser
    •  & Zuzana Buřivalová
  • Article
    | Open Access

    Mangroves provide ecosystem services but are threatened by anthropogenic activities. This study identifies priority areas that maximise the protection of mangrove biodiversity and ecosystem services. The authors show that biodiversity can be protected whilst maximising ecosystem benefits, with little or no increase in the protected area required.

    • Alvise Dabalà
    • , Farid Dahdouh-Guebas
    •  & Anthony J. Richardson
  • Article
    | Open Access

    Protected areas are vital for conserving biodiversity, but their effectiveness is often unknown. A study on 638 species in Finland’s protected and unprotected sites finds mixed impacts; only a subset of species benefit from protection, mainly experiencing slower declines within protected areas.

    • Andrea Santangeli
    • , Benjamin Weigel
    •  & Marjo Saastamoinen
  • Article
    | Open Access

    Cryopreservation is one approach to conserving the genetic diversity of threatened coral reefs but has thus far been limited to difficult-to-obtain coral reproductive material. Using a new cytotechnology called isochoric vitrification, this study reports the successful cryopreservation and revival of whole mature coral fragments.

    • Matthew J. Powell-Palm
    • , E. Michael Henley
    •  & Mary Hagedorn
  • Comment
    | Open Access

    The response of aquatic and terrestrial organisms to climate change can depend on biological sex. A key challenge is to unravel the interactive effects of sex and climate change at the individual and population levels and the cascading effects on communities. This new understanding is essential to improve climate adaptation and mitigation strategies.

    • Elena Gissi
    • , Londa Schiebinger
    •  & Fiorenza Micheli
  • Article
    | Open Access

    Marine bivalves are important components of ecosystems and are exploited for food across the world. This study expands the list of marine bivalves known to be exploited worldwide and then uses a trait-based approach to identify intrinsically vulnerable species and to pinpoint regions with high levels of extinction-prone exploited species, helping to prioritize areas for conservation effort.

    • Shan Huang
    • , Stewart M. Edie
    •  & David Jablonski
  • Article
    | Open Access

    Corals living in naturally extreme environments such as mangrove lagoons have been considered as ‘super corals’ for reef conservation. However, this study shows that resistance in highly variable conditions comes with biological trade-offs that could compromise the suitability of these stress-tolerant corals for reef management under worsening climate change conditions.

    • Federica Scucchia
    • , Paul Zaslansky
    •  & Emma F. Camp
  • Article
    | Open Access

    Experimental evidence indicates that genetic diversity can promote biomass stability, but does this process occur in wild populations? Focusing on three freshwater fish species from two river basins in southwestern France, this study shows that the biomass of genetically diversified populations has been more stable in recent decades than populations that have suffered from genetic erosion.

    • Jérôme G. Prunier
    • , Mathieu Chevalier
    •  & Simon Blanchet
  • Article
    | Open Access

    Forest losses and gains are highly dynamic processes. Here, the authors present a forest fragmentation index to map distribution and temporal changes of forest fragments globally, revealing major trends and patterns during the first two decades of the 21st century.

    • Jun Ma
    • , Jiawei Li
    •  & Jiajia Liu
  • Article
    | Open Access

    Petrels are wide-ranging, highly threatened seabirds that often ingest plastic. This study used tracking data for 7,137 petrels of 77 species to map global exposure risk and compare regions, species, and populations. The results show higher exposure risk for threatened species and stress the need for international cooperation to tackle marine litter.

    • Bethany L. Clark
    • , Ana P. B. Carneiro
    •  & Maria P. Dias
  • Article
    | Open Access

    Monitoring ecosystem conditions in quantitative and standardized ways could facilitate transnational coordination of conservation and land management policies. Here, the authors use a spatially explicit ecosystem accounting approach to assess the state of European forests and recent trends.

    • Joachim Maes
    • , Adrián G. Bruzón
    •  & Fernando Santos-Martín
  • Article
    | Open Access

    The emerging fungal pathogen Bsal is a potential threat for amphibians. Here, the authors use data from dose-response experiments on 35 species to assess vulnerability of North American amphibians to Bsal and identify species and areas potentially at risk.

    • Matthew J. Gray
    • , Edward Davis Carter
    •  & Debra L. Miller
  • Article
    | Open Access

    Protected areas are important for climate change mitigation. Here, the authors use satellite data and statistical matching to show that terrestrial protected areas have higher C stocks than non-protected areas, roughly equivalent to one year of annual global fossil fuel emissions.

    • L. Duncanson
    • , M. Liang
    •  & A. Zvoleff
  • Article
    | Open Access

    From profiling the gene expression of five coral species exposed to Stony Coral Tissue Loss Disease (SCTLD), this study finds signatures of in situ degradation of Symbiodiniaceae experiencing photosystem dysfunction. These results indicate that Symbiodiniaceae may be the target of initial SCTLD infection, which subsequently induces host responses and tissue loss.

    • Kelsey M. Beavers
    • , Emily W. Van Buren
    •  & Laura D. Mydlarz
  • Article
    | Open Access

    This global analysis reveals that artificial light from cities is associated with the disruption of synchronised egg release by corals. This situation could reduce coral reproductive health, hindering conservation efforts in the face of climate change and other anthropogenic impacts.

    • Thomas W. Davies
    • , Oren Levy
    •  & Tim Smyth
  • Article
    | Open Access

    Conservation biologists have made calls for including human dimensions in wildlife conservation efforts. This quantitative synthesis of case studies from a global IUCN reintroduction program suggests that inclusion of local stakeholders in wildlife restoration programs boosts success rate.

    • Mitchell W. Serota
    • , Kristin J. Barker
    •  & Arthur D. Middleton
  • Article
    | Open Access

    The degree to which species tolerate human disturbance contributes to shape human-wildlife coexistence. Here, the authors identify key predictors of avian tolerance of humans across 842 bird species from open tropical ecosystems.

    • Peter Mikula
    • , Oldřich Tomášek
    •  & Tomáš Albrecht
  • Article
    | Open Access

    Land-use diversity can theoretically have a significant impact on biodiversity at large spatial scales but the importance and generality of this environmental component are uncertain. This study shows that regional land-use diversity constitutes a key factor associated with bird regional taxonomic and functional richness worldwide.

    • Carlos Martínez-Núñez
    • , Ricardo Martínez-Prentice
    •  & Vicente García-Navas
  • Comment
    | Open Access

    A large proportion of recent Brazilian Amazon deforestation is occurring on untitled public forestlands through land grabbing. This emerging risk demands long-term conservation strategies. Here we propose prioritizing land tenure security, technological improvement, and law enforcement.

    • Paulo Moutinho
    •  & Claudia Azevedo-Ramos
  • Article
    | Open Access

    Habitat loss and climate change are widely acknowledged as drivers of wildlife population change, but socioeconomic impacts are relatively unexplored. This study explores drivers of population change in large carnivores and reveals that socioeconomic growth is more associated with population declines than habitat loss and climate change.

    • Thomas F. Johnson
    • , Nick J. B. Isaac
    •  & Manuela González-Suárez
  • Article
    | Open Access

    Sharks and rays are vital coral reef species. This study shows that nearly two thirds (59%) of the 134 coral-reef associated species are threatened with extinction. The main cause of their decline is found to be overfishing, both targeted and unintentional, and extinction risk is greater for larger species found in nations with higher fishing pressure and weaker governance.

    • C. Samantha Sherman
    • , Colin A. Simpfendorfer
    •  & Nicholas K. Dulvy
  • Article
    | Open Access

    Predicting which species will become invasive is vital because the harm they cause cannot always be mitigated once populations establish. Street et al. show that traded and introduced species have distinctive life histories with high invasion potential, helping to identify future invasion risks.

    • Sally E. Street
    • , Jorge S. Gutiérrez
    •  & Isabella Capellini
  • Article
    | Open Access

    Desert-dwelling species are adapted to high temperatures, but further warming may push them beyond their physiological limits. Here, the authors integrate biophysical models and species distributions to project physiological impacts of climate change on desert birds globally and identify potential refugia.

    • Liang Ma
    • , Shannon R. Conradie
    •  & David S. Wilcove
  • Article
    | Open Access

    Madagascar is a threatened biodiversity hotspot. Here, using a newly assembled dataset and island biogeography models, the authors estimate how many millions of years of evolutionary history have been lost since human colonisation and may be further lost in the future for Malagasy mammals.

    • Nathan M. Michielsen
    • , Steven M. Goodman
    •  & Luis Valente
  • Article
    | Open Access

    Ungulate herbivory is an important driver of ecological change in forests. Here, the authors combine vegetation resurveys showing herbivory effects are highly dependent on soil eutrophication, promoting non-natives under high N-conditions, yet benefiting threatened species under low N-conditions.

    • Josiane Segar
    • , Henrique M. Pereira
    •  & Ingmar R. Staude
  • Article
    | Open Access

    Mangrove forests protect communities from storms and support fisheries. Here, the authors show that the association with economic growth has shifted from negatively impacting mangroves to enabling mangrove expansion, and that community forestry is promoting mangrove expansion.

    • Valerie Hagger
    • , Thomas A. Worthington
    •  & Megan I. Saunders
  • Article
    | Open Access

    Crop wild relatives’ genetic diversity is usually not considered in conservation planning. Here, the authors introduce an approach to identify conservation areas based on evolutionary and threat processes, by developing proxies of genetic differentiation, and including taxa’s habitat preferences.

    • Wolke Tobón-Niedfeldt
    • , Alicia Mastretta-Yanes
    •  & Patricia Koleff