Comprehensive conservation assessments reveal high extinction risks across Atlantic Forest trees

Area of Science:

• Biodiversity conservation
• Ecology
• Botany

Background:

• Global biodiversity is declining rapidly, particularly in hotspots.
• Many species, especially in the Atlantic Forest, lack conservation status assessments.
• Accurate assessments are vital for effective conservation strategies.

Purpose of the Study:

• To conduct automated conservation assessments for all tree species in the Atlantic Forest biodiversity hotspot.
• To evaluate extinction risks using multiple International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) Red List criteria.
• To assess the conservation status of approximately 1100 previously unevaluated species.

Main Methods:

• Utilized millions of herbarium and forest inventory records.
• Applied multiple IUCN Red List criteria to assess extinction risks.
• Developed automated conservation assessment protocols.

Main Results:

• 65% of all Atlantic Forest tree species are classified as threatened.
• 82% of endemic species within the hotspot are threatened.
• Five species previously listed as Extinct were rediscovered; 13 endemic species may now be extinct.

Conclusions:

• Automated assessments using comprehensive IUCN criteria are effective.
• Underestimating threat levels occurs when fewer criteria are used.
• The conservation status of tropical forests globally may be worse than currently reported.