Detecting management gaps for biodiversity conservation: An integrated assessment

Area of Science:

• Conservation science
• Biodiversity management
• Environmental policy

Background:

• European biodiversity is declining alarmingly, with protected species and habitats in poor condition.
• Despite increased data collection, integrating biodiversity information is crucial for effective conservation.
• Urgent action is needed to bridge the gap between conservation knowledge and implementation.

Purpose of the Study:

• To integrate biodiversity management data and identify non-spatial and spatial conservation gaps in Catalonia, Spain.
• To assess the adequacy of resource distribution across species and habitats.
• To guide priority setting for optimizing conservation efforts and informing environmental policy.

Main Methods:

• Collected and integrated data on conservation management measures (2013-2018), including resource allocation, budget, and targeted pressures/beneficiaries.
• Conducted non-spatial gap analysis by linking management information with pressures and species/habitat data.
• Performed spatial gap analysis to identify areas with unprotected species/habitats under pressure.

Main Results:

• Found significant misallocation of conservation resources, with biases towards certain taxa (e.g., plants, mollusks) showing wider management gaps.
• Identified specific geographical areas, particularly in the northeast, with substantial spatial management gaps.
• Demonstrated that integrating diverse information sources provides a comprehensive view of conservation challenges.

Conclusions:

• Integrating existing biodiversity data is essential for optimizing conservation efforts and narrowing the knowing-doing gap.
• Systematic assessments are vital for identifying conservation deficiencies, reducing ecosystem loss, and avoiding taxonomic biases.
• The study provides a framework applicable to environmental policy instruments like Prioritized Action Frameworks (PAFs).