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Using the IUCN Red List to map threats to terrestrial vertebrates at global scale

Harfoot, MBJ; Johnston, A; Balmford, A; Burgess, ND; Butchart, SHM; Dias, MP; Hazin, C; ... Geldmann, J; + view all (2021) Using the IUCN Red List to map threats to terrestrial vertebrates at global scale. Nature Ecology and Evolution 10.1038/s41559-021-01542-9. (In press). Green open access

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Abstract

The Anthropocene is characterized by unparalleled human impact on other species, potentially ushering in the sixth mass extinction. Yet mitigation efforts remain hampered by limited information on the spatial patterns and intensity of the threats driving global biodiversity loss. Here we use expert-derived information from the International Union for Conservation of Nature Red List on threats to 23,271 species, representing all terrestrial amphibians, birds and mammals, to generate global maps of the six major threats to these groups: agriculture, hunting and trapping, logging, pollution, invasive species, and climate change. Our results show that agriculture and logging are pervasive in the tropics and that hunting and trapping is the most geographically widespread threat to mammals and birds. Additionally, current representations of human pressure underestimate the overall pressure on biodiversity, due to the exclusion of threats such as hunting and climate change. Alarmingly, this is particularly the case in areas of the highest biodiversity importance.

Type: Article
Title: Using the IUCN Red List to map threats to terrestrial vertebrates at global scale
Open access status: An open access version is available from UCL Discovery
DOI: 10.1038/s41559-021-01542-9
Publisher version: https://doi.org/10.1038/s41559-021-01542-9
Language: English
Additional information: This is an open access article under the CC BY license (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/), which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited.
UCL classification: UCL
UCL > Provost and Vice Provost Offices > School of Life and Medical Sciences
UCL > Provost and Vice Provost Offices > School of Life and Medical Sciences > Faculty of Life Sciences
UCL > Provost and Vice Provost Offices > School of Life and Medical Sciences > Faculty of Life Sciences > Div of Biosciences
UCL > Provost and Vice Provost Offices > School of Life and Medical Sciences > Faculty of Life Sciences > Div of Biosciences > Genetics, Evolution and Environment
URI: https://discovery.ucl.ac.uk/id/eprint/10134184
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