Protected areas slow declines unevenly across the tetrapod tree of life

A. Justin Nowakowski (), James I. Watling, Alexander Murray, Jessica L. Deichmann, Thomas S. Akre, Carlos L. Muñoz Brenes, Brian D. Todd, Louise McRae, Robin Freeman and Luke O. Frishkoff
Additional contact information
A. Justin Nowakowski: Working Land and Seascapes, Smithsonian Institution
James I. Watling: John Carroll University
Alexander Murray: University of Texas at Arlington
Jessica L. Deichmann: Working Land and Seascapes, Smithsonian Institution
Thomas S. Akre: Working Land and Seascapes, Smithsonian Institution
Carlos L. Muñoz Brenes: Moore Center for Science, Conservation International
Brian D. Todd: University of California, Davis
Louise McRae: Institute of Zoology, Zoological Society of London
Robin Freeman: Institute of Zoology, Zoological Society of London
Luke O. Frishkoff: University of Texas at Arlington

Nature, 2023, vol. 622, issue 7981, 101-106

Abstract: Abstract Protected areas (PAs) are the primary strategy for slowing terrestrial biodiversity loss. Although expansion of PA coverage is prioritized under the Convention on Biological Diversity, it remains unknown whether PAs mitigate declines across the tetrapod tree of life and to what extent land cover and climate change modify PA effectiveness1,2. Here we analysed rates of change in abundance of 2,239 terrestrial vertebrate populations across the globe. On average, vertebrate populations declined five times more slowly within PAs (−0.4% per year) than at similar sites lacking protection (−1.8% per year). The mitigating effects of PAs varied both within and across vertebrate classes, with amphibians and birds experiencing the greatest benefits. The benefits of PAs were lower for amphibians in areas with converted land cover and lower for reptiles in areas with rapid climate warming. By contrast, the mitigating impacts of PAs were consistently augmented by effective national governance. This study provides evidence for the effectiveness of PAs as a strategy for slowing tetrapod declines. However, optimizing the growing PA network requires targeted protection of sensitive clades and mitigation of threats beyond PA boundaries. Provided the conditions of targeted protection, adequate governance and well-managed landscapes are met, PAs can serve a critical role in safeguarding tetrapod biodiversity.

Date: 2023
References: Add references at CitEc
Citations:

Downloads: (external link)
https://www.nature.com/articles/s41586-023-06562-y Abstract (text/html)
Access to the full text of the articles in this series is restricted.

Related works:
This item may be available elsewhere in EconPapers: Search for items with the same title.

Export reference: BibTeX RIS (EndNote, ProCite, RefMan) HTML/Text

Persistent link: https://EconPapers.repec.org/RePEc:nat:nature:v:622:y:2023:i:7981:d:10.1038_s41586-023-06562-y

Ordering information: This journal article can be ordered from
https://www.nature.com/

DOI: 10.1038/s41586-023-06562-y

Access Statistics for this article

Nature is currently edited by Magdalena Skipper

More articles in Nature from Nature
Bibliographic data for series maintained by Sonal Shukla () and Springer Nature Abstracting and Indexing ().