Hostname: page-component-6766d58669-mzsfj Total loading time: 0 Render date: 2026-05-25T02:05:55.702Z Has data issue: false hasContentIssue false

Estimating the benefit of well-managed protected areas for threatened species conservation

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  31 May 2018

Stephen G. Kearney*
Affiliation:
School of Earth and Environmental Sciences, University of Queensland, Steele Building, Brisbane, Queensland4072, Australia
Vanessa M. Adams
Affiliation:
School of Biological Sciences, University of Queensland, Queensland, Australia
Richard A. Fuller
Affiliation:
School of Biological Sciences, University of Queensland, Queensland, Australia
Hugh P. Possingham
Affiliation:
School of Biological Sciences, University of Queensland, Queensland, Australia
James E. M. Watson
Affiliation:
School of Earth and Environmental Sciences, University of Queensland, Steele Building, Brisbane, Queensland4072, Australia
*
(Corresponding author) E-mail stephen.kearney@uq.edu.au
Rights & Permissions [Opens in a new window]

Abstract

Protected areas are central to global efforts to prevent species extinctions, with many countries investing heavily in their establishment. Yet the designation of protected areas alone can only abate certain threats to biodiversity. Targeted management within protected areas is often required to achieve fully effective conservation within their boundaries. It remains unclear what combination of protected area designation and management is needed to remove the suite of processes that imperil species. Here, using Australia as a case study, we use a dataset on the pressures facing threatened species to determine the role of protected areas and management in conserving imperilled species. We found that protected areas that are not resourced for threat management could remove one or more threats to 1,185 (76%) species and all threats to very few (n = 51, 3%) species. In contrast, a protected area network that is adequately resourced to manage threatening processes within their boundary could remove one or more threats to almost all species (n = 1,551; c. 100%) and all threats to almost half (n = 740, 48%). However, 815 (52%) species face one or more threats that require coordinated conservation actions that protected areas alone could not remove. This research shows that investing in the continued expansion of Australia's protected area network without providing adequate funding for threat management within and beyond the existing protected area network will benefit few threatened species. These findings highlight that as the international community expands the global protected area network in accordance with the 2020 Strategic Plan for Biodiversity, a greater emphasis on the effectiveness of threat management is needed.

Information

Type
Article
Copyright
Copyright © Fauna & Flora International 2018
Figure 0

Table 1 A description of the threat classifications, the typical conservation actions taken to mitigate these and our assessment of the corresponding protected area management scenario. Threat classification, description and conservation actions taken from Salafsky et al. (2008).

Figure 1

Fig. 1 The number of Australian threatened species facing each of Salafsky et al.’s (2008) major threat classifications (a) and the relative impact of each major threat classification on Australian threatened species (b). The relative impact is defined as the cumulative number of specific threats within a major threat that impacts a species. It takes into account that species may face more than one specific threat under each major threat. For example, a species may be threatened by an invasive plant species and an invasive animal species and as such is impacted twice by the major threat classification ‘invasive and problematic species’. Threat information is compiled using a range of sources including listing advice, recovery and action plans, published literature and expert knowledge (Commonwealth of Australia, 2015). It is likely that this information is not exhaustive and the listed threats are likely to be those that are obvious and tangible to species’ managers, meaning subtle threats may be overlooked and not reported.

Figure 2

Fig. 2 The number of Australian threatened species that face one or more major threat classifications (a) and the number of threatened species facing one or more specific threats (b). Species facing more than 30 specific threats (n = 9, 0.006%) were excluded from (b) to facilitate presentation. Threat information is compiled using a range of sources including listing advice, recovery and action plans, published literature and expert knowledge (Commonwealth of Australia, 2015). It is likely that this information is not exhaustive and the listed threats are likely to be those that are obvious and tangible to species’ managers, meaning subtle threats may be overlooked and not reported.

Figure 3

Table 2 The total number (and percentage of total) of threats to all Australian species, the number of species with one or more threats, and all threats removed by the two protected area management scenarios. The unmanaged scenario represents a network of protected areas that receives no funding for threat management, whereas the well-managed scenario represents a protected area network that is well-funded and all necessary threat management occurs. Landscape-scale management is required to mitigate threats that either originate outside protected areas or require coordinated management across all land-tenures.

Supplementary material: PDF

Kearney et al. supplementary material

Kearney et al. supplementary material 1

Download Kearney et al. supplementary material(PDF)
PDF 100.8 KB