RT info:eu-repo/semantics/article
T1 Geographic patterns of vertebrate diversity and identification of relevant areas for conservation in Europe
A1 Teixeira Assunçao de Albuquerque, María José
A1 Rey Benayas, José María
A1 Rodríguez Fernández, Miguel Ángel
A1 Suzart De Albuquerque, Fábio
K1 Value biodiversity areas
K1 Human influence
K1 Richness
K1 Rarity
K1 Vulnerability
K1 Medio Ambiente
K1 Environmental science
AB The 'EU Council conclusions on biodiversity post&-2010' re&-enforced Europe's commitment to halt biodiversity loss by 2020. Identifying areas of high&-value for biodiversity conservation is an important issue to meet this target. We investigated the geographic pattern of terrestrial vertebrate diversity status in Europe by assessing the species richness, rarity, vulnerability (according to IUCN criteria), and a combined index of the three former for the amphibians, reptiles, bird and mammals of this region. We also correlated the value of all indices with climate and human influence variables. Overall, clear geographic gradients of species diversity were found. The combined biodiversity index indicated that high&-value biodiversity areas were mostly located in the Mediterranean basin and the highest vulnerability was found in the Iberian peninsula for most taxa. Across all indexes, the proportion of variance explained by climate and human influence factors was moderate to low. The results obtained in this study have the potential to provide valuable support for nature conservation policies in Europe and, consequently, might contribute to mitigate biodiversity decline in this region.
SN 1578-665X
YR 2012
FD 2012
LK http://hdl.handle.net/10017/38389
UL http://hdl.handle.net/10017/38389
LA eng
NO Ministerio de Ciencia y Educación
DS MINDS@UW
RD 24-abr-2024