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Phylogenetically informed spatial planning is required to conserve the mammalian tree of life.

ABSTRACT: In the face of the current extinction crisis and severely limited conservation resources, safeguarding the tree of life is increasingly recognized as a high priority. We conducted a first systematic global assessment of the conservation of phylogenetic diversity (PD) that uses realistic area targets and highlights the key areas for conservation of the mammalian tree of life. Our approach offers a substantially more effective conservation solution than one focused on species. In many locations, priorities for PD differ substantially from those of a species-based approach that ignores evolutionary relationships. This discrepancy increases rapidly as the amount of land available for conservation declines, as does the relative benefit for mammal conservation (for the same area protected). This benefit is equivalent to an additional 5900 Myr of distinct mammalian evolution captured simply through a better informed choice of priority areas. Our study uses area targets for PD to generate more realistic conservation scenarios, and tests the impact of phylogenetic uncertainty when selecting areas to represent diversity across a phylogeny. It demonstrates the opportunity of using rapidly growing phylogenetic information in conservation planning and the readiness for a new generation of conservation planning applications that explicitly consider the heritage of the tree of life's biodiversity.

SUBMITTER: Rosauer DF

PROVIDER: S-EPMC5666089 | biostudies-literature | 2017 Oct

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature

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Phylogenetically informed spatial planning is required to conserve the mammalian tree of life.

Rosauer Dan F DF Pollock Laura J LJ Linke Simon S Jetz Walter W

Proceedings. Biological sciences 20171001 1865

In the face of the current extinction crisis and severely limited conservation resources, safeguarding the tree of life is increasingly recognized as a high priority. We conducted a first systematic global assessment of the conservation of phylogenetic diversity (PD) that uses realistic area targets and highlights the key areas for conservation of the mammalian tree of life. Our approach offers a substantially more effective conservation solution than one focused on species. In many locations, p ...[more]

PMID: 29070718

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Project description:Ex situ conservation in germplasm and living collections is a major focus of global plant conservation strategies. Prioritizing species for ex situ collection is a necessary component of this effort for which sound strategies are needed. Phylogenetic considerations can play an important role in prioritization. Collections that are more phylogenetically diverse are likely to encompass more ecological and trait variation, and thus provide stronger conservation insurance and richer resources for future restoration efforts. However, phylogenetic criteria need to be weighed against other, potentially competing objectives. We used ex situ collection and threat rank data for North American angiosperms to investigate gaps in ex situ coverage and phylogenetic diversity of collections and to develop a flexible framework for prioritizing species across multiple objectives. We found that ex situ coverage of 18,766 North American angiosperm taxa was low with respect to the most vulnerable taxa: just 43% of vulnerable to critically imperiled taxa were in ex situ collections, far short of a year-2020 goal of 75%. In addition, species held in ex situ collections were phylogenetically clustered (P < 0.001), i.e., collections comprised less phylogenetic diversity than would be expected had species been drawn at random. These patterns support incorporating phylogenetic considerations into ex situ prioritization in a manner balanced with other criteria, such as vulnerability. To meet this need, we present the 'PIECES' index (Phylogenetically Informed Ex situ Conservation of Endangered Species). PIECES integrates phylogenetic considerations into a flexible framework for prioritizing species across competing objectives using multi-criteria decision analysis. Applying PIECES to prioritizing ex situ conservation of North American angiosperms, we show strong return on investment across multiple objectives, some of which are negatively correlated with each other. A spreadsheet-based decision support tool for North American angiosperms is provided; this tool can be customized to align with different conservation objectives.

Dataset Information

Phylogenetically informed spatial planning is required to conserve the mammalian tree of life.

Publications

Phylogenetically informed spatial planning is required to conserve the mammalian tree of life.

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