Assessing conservation biology priorities through the development of biodiversity indicators

Biodiversity erosion is now a recognized phenomenon within the scientific community, and it is understood that there is an urgent need for action to relieve this loss. However, no consensus exists on how to go about achieving this goal. This is due to two kinds of problems: namely, that there are many different reasons which can motivate conservation attempts and hence they can lead to different priorities, sometimes in direct contrast with one another; and that of the complexity of the natural world which we have to operate in. Regarding the latter, several authors have lamented a severe lack of theoretical support for many conservation decisions. We briefly review some of the criteria that are commonly adopted in conservation, and indicate some of their problems; we then introduce a new theoretical framework based on the use of a series of biological indicators, many of which have already been proposed in the past but never fully explained and/or adopted. In addition, we propose two indices for one of these potential indicators, i.e. evolutionary potential. We conclude with an appeal for a greater collaboration between conservation scientists and evolutionary biologists, in order to encompass evolutionary evidence in the decision-making process. In doing so, we hope to increase the chances of successful conservation efforts.