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178 results for “global biodiversity”
Data from: The importance of scattered trees for biodiversity conservation: a global meta-analysis
1. Scattered trees are thought to be keystone structures for biodiversity in landscapes worldwide. However, such trees have been largely neglected by researchers and their importance for biodiversity remains unclear. 2. We completed a global meta-analysis to quantify relationships between scattered trees and the species richness, abundance and composition of vertebrates, arthropods and plants. First, we tested whether areas near scattered trees support higher levels of species richness and abundance than nearby open areas. Second, we compared levels of species richness and abundance in matrix areas with scattered trees and areas embedded within nearby habitat patches. We also compared the composition of biological communities inhabiting habitat patches, open areas and areas with scattered trees. 3. A total of 62 studies contained suitable data for our quantitative analyses. The local abundance of arthropods, vertebrates and woody plants was 60-430% greater and overall species richness was 50-100% higher in areas with scattered trees than in open areas. Conversely, for herbaceous plants, there was no consistent relationship between species abundance and the occurrence of scattered trees, although species richness was, on average, 43% lower. 4. The abundance and richness of all taxonomic groups was similar in matrix areas supporting scattered trees and habitat patches, although the species richness of epiphytes was, on average, 50% higher in habitat patches. Communities inhabiting habitat patches were more similar in composition to the communities inhabiting areas with scattered trees, and less similar to the communities of open areas. 5. Synthesis and applications. Areas with scattered trees support greater levels of biodiversity than open areas, as well as communities that are more similar to those inhabiting habitat patches. Scattered trees can be regarded as keystone structures for vertebrates, arthropods and terrestrial plants in landscapes worldwide. The maintenance of scattered trees may be compatible with livestock grazing in some agricultural landscapes. Greater management effort and targeted, long-term policies are needed to retain or re-establish scattered trees in many farming landscapes in both forest and non-forest biomes around the world.04-May-2017
Data from: Comparing the impact of future cropland expansion on global biodiversity and carbon storage across models and scenarios
<p>Land-use change is a direct driver of biodiversity and carbon storage loss. Projections of future land-use often include notable expansion of cropland areas in response to changes in climate and food demand, although there are large uncertainties in results between models and scenarios. This study examines these uncertainties by comparing three different socio-economic scenarios (SSP1-3) across three models (IMAGE, GLOBIOM and PLUMv2). It assesses the impacts on biodiversity metrics and direct carbon loss from biomass and soil as a direct consequence of cropland expansion. Results show substantial variation between models and scenarios, with little overlap across all nine projections. Although SSP1 projects the least impact, there are still significant impacts projected. IMAGE and GLOBIOM project the greatest impact across carbon storage and biodiversity metrics due to both extent and location of cropland expansion. Furthermore, for all the biodiversity and carbon metrics used, there is a greater proportion of variance explained by model used. This demonstrates the importance of improving the accuracy of land-based models. Incorporating effects of land-use change in biodiversity impact assessments would also help better prioritise future protection of biodiverse and carbon-rich areas.</p>
Data from: A meta-analysis reveals global patterns of sediment effects on marine biodiversity
Sediment disturbances are important threats affecting marine biodiversity, but the variety of biological responses have not yet been synthesized. Here, we collate all available information to compare the extent of impacts across different taxonomic groups, habitat types, and pathways of impact (light attenuation, suspended sediment and sedimentation). Global 1979-2017 Coral, fish, seagrass, sponge, macroalgae, ascidian, bryozoan, crustacean, echinoderm, mollusc, polychaeta We used meta-analyses to evaluate the effects of sediments across 842 observations found in 110 publications. We also evaluated some of the biological and methodological factors that could explain the variable effects observed in different studies. We found a significant negative effect of sediments on behavioural responses, reproduction and recruitment, organism's morphology, physiology, community abundance and diversity, and species interactions. In contrast, the overall effect on abundance of individual species was statistically non-significant and there was a strong positive effect on abundance for sponge and polychaete species. Many individual studies described physiological effects on coral reefs, but effects on diversity of soft-bottom and coral reef communities were particularly detrimental. Phototrophic species were generally more negatively impacted by sediments than heterotrophs, driven by strong physiological responses in crustose coralline algae and seagrass. Additionally, species with limited mobility were more vulnerable to sediment disturbances than highly mobile species. Sedimentation alone triggered more consistently negative effects on most biological responses than light depletion and suspended sediments. We found evidence for increased impacts on community diversity when more than one pathway of impact was present, indicating that these disturbances can disrupt whole ecosystems. Our meta-analysis for the first time provided strong quantitative support of negative effects of sediments on marine biodiversity. Taxonomic groups, habitat types, and life history characteristics were most influential in determining biological responses to sediment disturbances, highlighting the importance of an ecosystem-based approach when fully accounting for the impacts of sediment
Data from: Global biodiversity assessment and hyper-cryptic species complexes: more than one species of elephant in the room?
Several recent estimates of global biodiversity have concluded that the total number of species on Earth lies near the lower end of the wide range touted in previous decades. However, none of these recent estimates formally explore the real 'elephant in the room', namely, what proportion of species are taxonomically invisible to conventional assessments, and thus, as undiagnosed cryptic species, remain uncountable until revealed by multi-gene molecular assessments. Here we explore the significance and extent of so-called 'hyper-cryptic' species complexes, using the Australian freshwater fish Galaxias olidus as a proxy for any organism whose taxonomy ought to be largely finalized when compared to those in little-studied or morphologically undifferentiated groups. Our comprehensive allozyme (838 fish for 54 putative loci), mtDNA (557 fish for 605bp of cytb), and morphological (1963–3389 vouchers for 17–58 characters) assessment of this species across its broad geographic range revealed a 1500% increase in species-level biodiversity, and suggested that additional taxa may remain undiscovered. Importantly, while all 15 candidate species were morphologically diagnosable a posteriori from one another, single-gene DNA barcoding proved largely unsuccessful as an a priori method for species identification. These results lead us to draw two strong inferences of relevance to estimates of global biodiversity. First, hyper-cryptic complexes are likely to be common in many organismal groups. Second, no assessment of species numbers can be considered 'best practice' in the molecular age unless it explicitly includes estimates of the extent of cryptic and hyper-cryptic biodiversity.
Developing a global biodiversity standard certification for tree-planting and restoration: Tutorials for standardizing species names with WorldFlora
<p>This archive provides <a href="https://rmarkdown.rstudio.com/lesson-1.html">R Markdown files (.Rmd files)</a> containing scripts used to standardize tree species names downloaded from the <a href="https://www.bgci.org/resources/bgci-databases/globaltree-portal/">GlobalTree Portal</a> for different countries with national hubs for the <a href="https://www.darwininitiative.org.uk/project/DAREX001/">Developing a global biodiversity standard certification for tree-planting and restoration</a> project.</p> <p>The R Markdown files were modified from <a href="https://rpubs.com/Roeland-KINDT/1134151">a recent Rpub</a> where I standardized tree species names from <a href="https://tools.bgci.org/global_tree_search.php">GlobalTreeSearch</a> version 1.7. One of my objectives during a training workshop held in January 2024 with national hub partners at the <a href="https://sitioduascachoeiras.org.br/">Jardim Botânico Araribá, Sítio Duas Cachoeiras</a>, site in Brazil was to show how R Markdown files can be easily modified to analyse different data sets.</p> <p> </p> <p>This publication was generated after conducting training for a <strong>Darwin Initiative project</strong> (<a href="https://www.darwininitiative.org.uk/project/DAREX001/">DAREX001</a>) that develops a <a href="https://www.biodiversitystandard.org/">Global Biodiversity Standard for tree planting</a>. Recently the <a href="https://www.nature.com/articles/s41598-023-39552-1">GlobalUsefulNativeTrees</a> and <a href="https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/gcb.16914">Tree Globally Observed Environmental Ranges</a> databases were released from this project. With scripts such as the ones shown here, when the Global Biodiversity Standard scheme becomes operational, tree planting projects can crosscheck lists of species before applying.</p>
Data and code used for the paper "Global trends and biases in biodiversity conservation research"
Open the record for dataset details and reuse information.
A global meta-analysis of tree plantations impacts on biodiversity
<p>By conducting a meta-analysis of 361 observations from 138 sites worldwide, we explored the global patterns and associated drivers of biodiversity responding to tree plantations by comparing biodiversity levels in plantations and its adjacent habitats.</p>
Data from: The origins of global biodiversity on land, sea, and freshwater
<p>Many biodiversity studies focus on explaining high tropical species richness, but an equally dramatic yet understudied pattern involves the divergent richness of land, sea, and freshwater. Here, we reveal the origins of these richness differences among habitats across animals and plants. Most plant and animal species are terrestrial, although these habitats cover only ~28% of Earth's surface. Marine habitats have fewer species over a larger area (~70%). Freshwater habitats have relatively high richness and exceptional phylogenetic diversity given their tiny area (2%). The relative richness of habitats is related to variation in diversification rates. Based on ancestral reconstructions of habitat, we find that most marine species are descended from marine ancestors and most terrestrial species from freshwater ancestors. Yet, most extant animal richness in freshwater is derived from terrestrial ancestors. Overall, our results reveal the origins of fundamental but neglected biodiversity patterns and highlight the conservation importance of freshwater habitats.</p>
Replication data for Chen and Khanna. (Global Environmental Change Advances, 2024), "Heterogeneous and Long-Term Effects of a Changing Climate on Bird Biodiversity"
<p>This dataset contains code and data to replicate the results for "Heterogeneous and Long-Term Effects of a Changing Climate on Bird Biodiversity" by Luoye Chen and Madhu Khanna.</p>
Figure 9 in Summary for policymakers of the global assessment report on biodiversity and ecosystem services - unedited advance version
Figure 9. Transformative change in global sustainability pathways. Collaborative implementation of priority governance interventions (levers) targeting key points of intervention (leverage points) could enable transformative change from current trends towards more sustainable ones. Most levers can be applied by a range of actors such as intergovernmental organizations, governments, non-governmental organizations, citizen and community groups, indigenous peoples and local communities, donor agencies, science and educational organizations, and the private sector, at multiple leverage points, depending on context. Implementing existing and new instruments through place-based governance interventions that are integrative, informed, inclusive and adaptive, using strategic policy mixes and learning from feedback, could enable global transformation.
Figure 7 in Summary for policymakers of the global assessment report on biodiversity and ecosystem services - unedited advance version
Figure 7. Summary of recent status of, and trends in, aspects of nature and nature's contributions to people that support progress towards achieving selected targets of the Sustainable Development Goals. Selected targets are those where current evidence and target wording enable assessment of the consequences for target achievement of trends in nature and nature's contribution to people. Chapter 3 Section 3.3 provides a goal-level assessment of the evidence of links between nature and all Sustainable Development Goals. Scores for targets are based on systematic assessments of the literature and quantitative analysis of indicators where possible. None of the targets scored 'Full support' (that is, good status or substantial positive trends at a global scale); consequently, it was not included in the table. 'Partial support': the overall global status and trends are good or positive but insubstantial or insufficient, or there may be substantial positive trends for some relevant aspects but negative trends for others, or the trends are positive in some geographic regions but negative in others; 'Poor/Declining support': poor status or substantial negative trends at a global scale; "Uncertain relationship": the relationship between nature and/or nature's contributions to people and achieving the target; "Unknown": insufficient information to score the status and trends.
Figure 5. Development pathways since 1970 in Summary for policymakers of the global assessment report on biodiversity and ecosystem services - unedited advance version
Figure 5. Development pathways since 1970 for selected key indicators of human-environment interactions, which show a large increase in the scale of global economic growth and its impacts on nature, with strong contrasts across developed, developing, and least developed countries. Countries are classified according to the UN World Economic Situation and Prospects (www.un.org). Global gross domestic product has risen 4-fold in real terms with the vast majority of growth occurring in developed and developing countries (A). Extraction of living biomass (e.g. crops, fisheries) to meet the demand for domestic consumption and for export is highest in developing countries and rising rapidly (B). Material consumption per capita within each country (from imports and domestic production), however, is highest in developed countries (C). Overall protection of Key Biodiversity
Figure 4 in Summary for policymakers of the global assessment report on biodiversity and ecosystem services - unedited advance version
Figure 4. Contributions of indigenous peoples and local communities to the enhancement and maintenance of wild and domesticated biodiversity and landscapes. Indigenous and local knowledge systems are locally based, but regionally manifested and thus globally relevant. A wide diversity of practices actively and positively contribute to wild and domestic biodiversity through "accompanying" natural processes with anthropogenic assets (knowledge, practices and technology). Indigenous peoples often manage the land and coastal areas based on culturally specific world views, applying principles and indicators such as the health of the land, caring for the country and reciprocal responsibility. As lifestyles, values and external pressures change with globalization, however, unsustainable practices are becoming increasingly common in certain regions 9. The central figure shows the global-scale overlaps of 1) land areas traditionally owned, managed10, used, or occupied by indigenous peoples, 2) formally designated protected areas and 3) remaining terrestrial areas with very low human intervention (areas with <4 Human Footprint Index 11). Circles and intersections are proportional in area. Land areas traditionally owned, managed10, used, or occupied by indigenous peoples overlap with approx. 35 per cent of the area that is formally protected, and approximately 35 per cent of all remaining terrestrial areas with very low human intervention. Topics and pictures in the figure aim to illustrate, not represent, the types and diversity of the following contributions of indigenous peoples and local communities to biodiversity: (a) domestication and maintenance of locally adapted crop and fruit varieties (potatoes, Peru) and (b) animal breeds (rider and sheep, Kyrgyzstan) {2.2.4.4}; (c) creation of species-rich habitats and high ecosystem diversity in cultural landscapes (hay meadows, Central Europe) {2.2.4.1-2}; (d) identification of useful plants and their cultivation in high-diversity ecosystems (multi-species forest garden, Indonesia) {2.2.4.3}; (e)-(f) management and monitoring of wild species, habitats and landscapes for wildlife and for increased resilience (e) - Australia, (f) - Alaska) {2.2.4.5-6}; (g) restoration of degraded lands (Niger) {3.2.4}; (h) buffers for deforestation in recognized indigenous territories (Amazon basin, Brazil) {2.2.4.7}; (i) offering alternative concepts of relations between humanity and nature (Northern Australia).
Figure 3. A in Summary for policymakers of the global assessment report on biodiversity and ecosystem services - unedited advance version
Figure 3. A substantial proportion of assessed species are threatened with extinction and overall trends are deteriorating, with extinction rates increasing sharply in the past century. (A) Percentage of species threatened with extinction in taxonomic groups that have been assessed comprehensively, or through a 'sampled' approach, or for which selected subsets have been assessed, by the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) Red List of Threatened Species. Groups are ordered according to the best estimate for the percentage of extant species considered threatened (shown by the vertical blue lines), assuming that data deficient species are as threatened as non-data deficient species. (B) Extinctions since 1500 for vertebrate groups. Rates for Reptiles and Fishes have not been assessed for all species. (C) Red List Index of species survival for taxonomic groups that have been assessed for the IUCN Red List at least twice. A value of 1 is equivalent to all species being categorized as Least Concern; a value of zero is equivalent to all species being classified as Extinct. Data for all panels derive from www.iucnredlist.org (see Chapter 3 Figure 3.4 and Chapter 2 Figure 2.7).
Figure 1 in Summary for policymakers of the global assessment report on biodiversity and ecosystem services - unedited advance version
Figure 1. Global trends in the capacity of nature to sustain contributions to good quality of life from 1970 to the present, which show a decline for 14 of the 18 categories of nature's contributions to people analysed. Data supporting global trends and regional variations come from a systematic review of over 2,000 studies {2.3.5.1}. Indicators were selected on the basis of availability of global data, prior use in assessments and alignment with 18 categories. For many categories of nature's contributions, two indicators are included that show different aspects of nature's capacity to contribute to human well-being within that category. Indicators are defined so that an increase in the indicator is associated with an improvement in nature's contributions.
Figure 8 in Summary for policymakers of the global assessment report on biodiversity and ecosystem services - unedited advance version
Figure 8. Projections of impacts of land use and climate change on biodiversity and nature's material and regulating contributions to people between 2015 and 2050. This figure illustrates three main messages: i) impacts on biodiversity and regulating nature's contributions to people (NCP) are the lowest in the Global Sustainability scenario in nearly all sub-regions, ii) regional differences in impacts are high in the regional competition and economic optimism scenario and iii) material NCP increase the most in the regional competition and economic optimism scenarios, but this comes at the expense of biodiversity and regulating NCP. Projected impacts are based on a subset of the Shared Socioeconomic Pathway (SSP) scenarios and greenhouse gas emissions trajectories (RCP) developed in support of Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change assessments. This does not cover scenarios that include transformative change that are discussed in chapter 5.
Leafcutter ants of the genus Atta in the Insects Collection at the Field Museum of Natural History. The field data on the attached tags are transcribed for entry into databases such as AntWeb and the Global Biodiversity Information Facility. Photograph: Matthew Nelsen. in The Evolution of Natural History Collections
Leafcutter ants of the genus Atta in the Insects Collection at the Field Museum of Natural History. The field data on the attached tags are transcribed for entry into databases such as AntWeb and the Global Biodiversity Information Facility. Photograph: Matthew Nelsen.
Fig. 3 in Lack of well-maintained natural history collections and taxonomists in megadiverse developing countries hampers global biodiversity exploration
Fig. 3 Correlation between the number of taxonomists and biodiversity collections in the 17 biologically megadiverse developing countries (see legend of Fig. 1 for details). Shown are the correlations between species
Fig. 2 in Lack of well-maintained natural history collections and taxonomists in megadiverse developing countries hampers global biodiversity exploration
Fig. 2 Locations of holotype deposition of 1427 newly described animal species from the 17 biologically megadiverse countries. Data including all taxa from amphipods to mammals were gathered by surveying all
Fig. 1 in A New Apterous Species of the Genus Parathlibops Basilewsky (Coleoptera: Carabidae: Scaritinae) from the Western Ghats, a Global Hotspot of Biodiversity in Southwest India
Fig. 1. Maps showing the distribution of the genus Parathlibops in India. a) Map of India showing P. devagiriensis, new species (red pin), P. bulirschi (blue triangle), P. glaber (red triangles), P. filiformis (pink triangles), P. puncticollis (purple triangle), P. wittmeri (green triangles), b) Inset showing the type locality of P. devagiriensis, new species.
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These curated guides explain access requirements, typical timelines, costs, and reuse considerations for widely used research datasets.
Allen Brain Atlas
Allen Brain Atlas is an Allen Institute collection of brain map atlases, datasets, APIs, and analysis tools covering mouse, human, and non-human primate brain resources.
Annotated Behaviour and Observability Dataset (ABODe)
ABODe is a University of Edinburgh DataShare dataset for behavior classification in group-housed mice using home-cage video, identities, bounding boxes, ground-plate positions, and annotator labels.
DANDI Archive for NWB datasets
DANDI is a BRAIN Initiative archive for publishing and sharing neurophysiology data, including electrophysiology, optophysiology, and behavioral data packaged as NWB and related standards.
International Brain Laboratory public data
The International Brain Laboratory public data releases expose standardized mouse decision-making experiments, including Neuropixels recordings, widefield calcium imaging, behavior, and session metadata accessed through the ONE API.
OpenNeuro
OpenNeuro is a free, open platform for sharing neuroimaging datasets, with public search, dataset pages, and download paths for web, S3, DataLad, and the OpenNeuro CLI.