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549 results for “species extinction”

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dryad32/100

Data from: Niche width predicts extinction from climate change and vulnerability of tropical species

Climate change may be a major threat to global biodiversity, especially to tropical species. Yet, why tropical species are more vulnerable to climate change remains unclear. Tropical species are thought to have narrower physiological tolerances to temperature, and they have already experienced a higher estimated frequency of climate-related local extinctions. These two patterns suggest that tropical species are more vulnerable to climate change because they have narrower thermal niche widths. However, no studies have tested whether species with narrower climatic niche widths for temperature have experienced more local extinctions, and if these narrower niche widths can explain the higher frequency of tropical local extinctions. Here, we test these ideas using resurvey data from 538 plant and animal species from 10 studies. We found that mean niche widths among species and the extent of climate change (increase in maximum annual temperatures) together explained most variation (>75%) in the frequency of local extinction among studies. Surprisingly, neither latitude nor occurrence in the tropics alone significantly predicted local extinction among studies, but latitude and niche widths were strongly inversely related. Niche width also significantly predicted local extinction among species, as well as among and (sometimes) within studies. Overall, niche width may offer a relatively simple and accessible predictor of the vulnerability of populations to climate change. Intriguingly, niche width has the best predictive power to explain extinction from global warming when it incorporates coldest yearly temperatures.

opencc-zeroNov 2022View details →

dryad32/100

Data from: Can body mass and skull morphology predict seed and fruit ingestion potential for mammal species? A test using extant species and its application to extinct species

Larger animals are assumed to ingest larger seeds and consume larger fruits, but empirical studies reveal inconsistent trends between body mass and the average size of fruits and seeds ingested. Further, no studies have explored seed size relationships with morphological traits, such as skull dimensions. Such characteristics might provide more reliable estimates of ingestion ability and allow for accurate predictions of seed dispersal capacity in species for which we lack empirical data, especially extinct species. To determine whether (i) mammalian skull dimensions are better predictors of the maximum size of ingested seeds and fruits, compared to body mass and (ii) body mass are the better predictors of mean fruit and seed sizes, we studied these relationships across three mammalian orders: Chiroptera, Primates, and Carnivora. We collected novel data on skull dimensions and collated available data on body mass and maximum and mean sizes of ingested fruits and seeds for mammals (N=100) across the Neotropics, Asia, Africa, and Madagascar. We explored the relationships between anatomical traits and fruit and seed sizes of extant species and made predictions for five extinct species. Our results revealed that body mass and skull dimensions are essential determinants of ingested fruit and seed size in mammals. The latter traits can generate predictions for extinct species, especially coronoid height and maximum jaw gape. Nevertheless, body mass predicted larger ingested fruits and seeds than skull dimensions and explained a greater part of the variance for both maximum and mean sizes in our dataset. Our results show how body mass and cranial anatomy constrain seed size and reinforce the importance of maintaining functional diversity in seed dispersers to maintain tropical forest structure. We also show that scientists can use morphological characteristics to predict the seed dispersal potential of extinct mammals allowing better inferences on past and future consequences of frugivore extinctions within tropical forests.

opencc-zeroFeb 2023View details →

dryad32/100

Multiple co-occurring bioeconomic drivers of overexploitation can accelerate rare species extinction risk

1. The unsustainable harvest of species for the global wildlife trade is a major cause of vertebrate extinction. Through the Anthropogenic Allee Effect, overexploitation to extinction can occur when a species' rarity drives up its market price, enabling profitable harvest of all remaining individuals. Even in the absence of rarity value, however, the harvest of other species can subsidize the overexploitation of a rare species to the point of extinction, a phenomenon termed opportunistic exploitation. These two pathways to extinction have only been considered independently, but many traded species experience them simultaneously. 2. In this study, we develop a simple model that incorporates these mechanisms simultaneously and demonstrate that including multiple harvest strategies with market-based feedbacks fundamentally alters rare species extinction risk and the rate at which overexploitation occurs. As a pertinent case study, we consider the harvest of ground pangolins (Smutsia temminckii). 3. Our results show that pangolin extinction was generally associated with high rarity value, the use of multiple harvest strategies, and the simultaneous harvest of a common species that has a fast life-history. Pangolin population depletion and short-term extinction risk were greatest when harvesters used a combination of pursuit and opportunistic (i.e. multi-species) harvest strategies. 4. Policy implications. Our results suggest that feedbacks between multiple financial incentives to overharvest can exacerbate the risk of extinction of rare species. As a result, continuing to address AAE and opportunistic exploitation as separate extinction pathways may insufficiently capture extinction risk for many exploited species. Criteria for assessing extinction risk or harvest sustainability of exploited species should incorporate multiple drivers of harvest pressure, with an expanded focus on including species with high rarity value that are exploited in multi-species harvest regimes.

opencc-zeroFeb 2023View details →

dryad32/100

First demographic insights reveal high extinction risk of an endemic raptor species: the Reunion harrier

Gathering demographic information on rare species is critical to understanding their population dynamics and implementing efficient conservation measures. Using integrated models, we jointly analyzed multiple data sets, including capture-recapture, GPS tracking, and nest monitoring data collected over the last 10 years, to provide the first demographic insights for one of the world's rarest raptors, the endemic Reunion harrier Circus maillardi. We estimated key demographic rates including annual survival and breeding parameters (clutch size, hatching and fledging success), and used population projection models to assess population growth rate and quasi-extinction risk. In order to guide future conservation actions for the population, we evaluated the effects of different management scenarios that improve survival, fecundity, or both, on population growth and quasi-extinction risk. Comparison of the estimated annual survival (juvenile and subadult survival: 0.66; adult survival: 0.71) and breeding parameters (clutch size: 2.3; hatching success: 0.47; fledging success: 0.74) with those of other harrier species suggests that adult survival and breeding parameters of Reunion harriers are low. A small data set collected 40 years ago suggests that the probability of an egg producing a fledgling was higher and has declined to the current low level. The population models project that the Reunion harrier population is declining and faces a high risk of quasi-extinction in the next 40 years. Only management measures that simultaneously improve adult survival and fecundity could lead to a recovery of the population. These alarming results call for immediate conservation action aimed at rapidly improving the demographic rates.

opencc-zeroMay 2023View details →

zenodo32/100

FIGURES 7–10. Semanopterus kingstoni new species, holotype. 7 in A new, but possibly extinct, species of Semanopterus Hope, 1847 from Lord Howe Island, in the southwestern Pacific Ocean (Coleoptera: Scarabaeidae: Dynastinae)

FIGURES 7–10. Semanopterus kingstoni new species, holotype. 7, ventral habitus; 8, prothoracic leg; 9, metathoracic leg; 10, posterior.

opennotspecifiedJun 2023View details →

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FIGURE 4. a in A new species of Lethrinops (Cichliformes: Cichlidae) from a Lake Malawi satellite lake, believed to be extinct in the wild

FIGURE 4. a. Lower pharyngeal bones of Lethrinops lethrinus, 128mm SL, BMNH 2023.1.11.49-50 (left); Lethrinops lethrinus 84mm SL (unregistered, bottom right); Lethrinops chilingali 69mmSL (unregistered, top right); b. Distribution of Lethrinops lethrinus specimens examined (●), unconfirmed records: juveniles or not examined (Q) and Lethrinops chilingali (●).

opennotspecifiedJul 2023View details →

zenodo32/100

FIGURE 2. Lethrinops chilingali. a. Holotype, BMNH 2023.1.11.1 in A new species of Lethrinops (Cichliformes: Cichlidae) from a Lake Malawi satellite lake, believed to be extinct in the wild

FIGURE 2. Lethrinops chilingali. a. Holotype, BMNH 2023.1.11.1; female 70.9mm SL. b. Paratype, BMNH 2023.1.11.2-21; mature male, 81.2mm SL.

opennotspecifiedJul 2023View details →

zenodo32/100

FIGURE 3 in A new species of Lethrinops (Cichliformes: Cichlidae) from a Lake Malawi satellite lake, believed to be extinct in the wild

FIGURE 3. Comparisons of Lethrinops lethrinus and Lethinops chilingali. a. holotype of L. lethrinus, BMNH 1893.15.15., 118.5mm SL. b. paratype of L. chilingali, BMNH 2023.1.11.2-21, female, 60.7mm SL; c. L. lethrinus apparent female alive in aquarium. d. L. chilingali apparent immature male alive in aquarium. e. mature male L. lethrinus. f. mature male L. chilingali. The shorter snout L. chilingali is evident, and the more broken midlateral stripe can be seen in the live specimens.

opennotspecifiedJul 2023View details →

dryad32/100