Biodiversity hotspot

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As biodiversity hotspots ( English hot spot literally hot spot ', you receive the focus ) are regions of the Earth called, in which a large number of endemic plant and animal species found and their nature is particularly vulnerable.

Most of these regions are distributed around the equator . The countries where hotspots are found cover less than 10% of the earth's surface, but are home to 70% of the world's abundance of life ( living beings ). The combined area of ​​the 34 named hotspot regions corresponds to a mere 2.3% of the total land area of ​​the world. Originally the 35 hotspots once covered 15.7% of the earth's land surface. However, 86% of the hotspot's habitat has been destroyed by humans. 2.3% of the world's land area is home to 50% of all plant species , 55% of all freshwater fish species and 77% (22,022) of all terrestrial vertebrates . However, based on the observed number of terrestrial vertebrates in the hotspots, the total number of all species occurring in the hotspots is estimated to be much higher. With regard to endemism in the hotspots, it was found that 42% of all terrestrial vertebrates and 50% of the world's flora occur only in the 34 biodiversity hotspots identified.

Endangered Birds (2007): Worldwide Distribution of Endangered Birds. The greatest density is found at the equator and in mountain ranges as well as on coasts.

A similar concept - which, however, is not related to the risk situation - is that of the megadiversity countries . But it only applies to states.

Development of the research field

Conservation biologists found that globally, there are regions with a high density of endemic species, which are usually located near the equator. The concept of biodiversity hotspots was developed by the biologists Russell Mittermeier and Norman Myers in the late 1980s. The trigger was the perceived dilemma as to which areas are most important for species protection. The aim was to pool nature conservation efforts worldwide in a meaningful way.

Tylecodon , the butter tree, a typical plant of the succulent - Karoo .

Mittermeier had analyzed primate protection programs worldwide from the point of view of setting priorities. He found that four countries around the world are home to two-thirds of all primate species. He extended his research to other mammal species , birds , reptiles , amphibians , plants and selected groups of insects . The British biologist Myers coined the term biodiversity hotspot in 1988. The biological basis for identifying a region as a hotspot was based on the diversity of the plant species occurring there. The background to this was that the identification and recording of plants is less complex and that the diversity of other species depends on the existing plant occurrences. Myers carried out biogeographical categorizations of regions based on the two dimensions of plant endemism and habitat loss .

In 1990, Myers added eight other hotspots to the already designated hotspot areas. These included four areas with a Mediterranean climate. In 1996, the non-profit organization Conservation International , whose main focus is the protection of “biodiversity hotspots”, revised the list of hotspots most in need of protection.

criteria

Limpopo River -Coastal Forests of Eastern Africa

Conservation International initially defined two strict criteria according to which a region is identified as a hotspot:

  1. It must have at least 1500 endemic species of vascular plants (and thus over 0.5 percent of the sum of all on earth).
  2. The plant species must have already lost 70 percent of their original habitat there.

In 1999 CI identified 25 biodiversity hotspots according to these criteria in the book Hotspots: Earth's Biologically Richest and Most Endangered Terrestrial Ecoregions. In 2005, the organization released an update entitled Hotspots Revisited: Earth's Biologically Richest and Most Endangered Terrestrial Ecoregions.

The criteria used to identify biodiversity hotspots are the subject of controversial discussion among the specialist public. On the one hand, the question is raised whether the threat to biodiversity should be included in the definition of a hotspot. On the other hand, the consideration of other groups of organisms or the consideration of animals in addition to plants leads to different results.

Biodiversity hotspots by region

Biodiversity hotspots: extended biogeographical distribution of the regions and marine areas with the greatest species density on our planet (sometimes the geographical markings do not exactly match the colored areas) Areas 1–25 according to Myers u. a. 2000 areas 26–34 added after 2000



North and Central America :

South America :

Africa :

Europe and Central Asia :

Asia Pacific :

Strategy to protect the biodiversity hotspots

Philippine tarsier
Chiloe National Park

After the regions with a particularly high biodiversity and a particularly precarious protection situation had been identified, various programs were launched. The concept of hotspots is now part of many global institutions such as the MacArthur and Moore Foundations, the World Bank and the Global Environment Facility . In addition, many NGOs are working to protect the hotspots. A total of $ 750 million (2003) has been invested in implementing the strategy to date. This is the largest sum that has ever been invested in a nature conservation project.

The thesis of the hotspots is based on the fact that conservationists cannot protect all endangered species with the existing financial means from donations. Therefore, the activists had to set priorities when planning their measures: Where can the greatest "protective value" be achieved with the available money?

In most cases, the biodiversity hotspots are located in socially and economically developing and emerging countries . That is why in most cases logistical and financial support from Western states and organizations is part of the strategy.

Twelve mega-diversity countries met in Cancún, Mexico, in 2002 and signed the Declaración de Cancún , which was joined by two other states by 2003.

Biodiversity hotspots of national importance in Germany

The Federal Agency for Nature Conservation took up the hotspot idea and defined “national hotspots” for the national biodiversity strategy. Throughout Germany, 30 biodiversity hotspots were identified on the basis of data on the FFH habitat types and the occurrence of different groups of species. They have a particularly high density and diversity of characteristic species, populations and habitats. The hotspot regions are spread all over Germany and cover around 11% of the country's area.

The diversity of landscapes, habitats and communities typical of the natural area, as well as the natural and historical biodiversity of these areas typical of the region, should be preserved. Based on this, a concept is to be developed for each hotspot and exemplary measures implemented. A long-term safeguarding of the hotspots is to be achieved through “regional partnerships” of cities and municipalities, nature conservation actors as well as economic and social partners.

See also

literature

  • Werner Ackermann and Jens Sachteleben: Identification of the hotspots of biological diversity in Germany . BfN -Skripten 315. Bonn, 2012. ISBN 978-3-89624-050-7 .
  • Russell A. Mittermeier, Patricio Robles Gil, Michael Hoffman, John Pilgrim, Thomas Brooks, Cristina Goettsch Mittermeier, John Lamoreux, Gustavo AB da Fonseca u. a .: Hotspots Revisited: Earth's Biologically Richest and Most Endangered Terrestrial Ecoregions. Conservation International 2005, ISBN 978-968-6397-77-2 .
  • Carl Beierkuhnlein : Biogeography . UTB L 8341. Ulmer-Verlag, Stuttgart 2006, ISBN 3-8252-8341-0 .
  • Josef H. Reichholf (Author), Klaus Wiegand (Ed.): End of Species Diversity? Endangerment and destruction of biodiversity. Fischer (Tb.), Frankfurt 2008, ISBN 978-3-596-17665-6 .

Web links

Individual evidence

  1. ^ A b Thomas M. Smith, Robert L. Smith: Ecology, Pearson Studium Verlag, pages 830-834, ISBN 978-3-8273-7313-7
  2. ↑ Hotspots Revisited - Key Findings. In: Conservation International. Retrieved April 8, 2014 .
  3. ↑ Encyclopedia of Earth: biodiversity hotspots (collection)
  4. ↑ C. D. L. Orme, R. G. Davies, M. Burgess, F. Eigenbrod: Global hotspots of species richness are not congruent with endemism or threat . In: Nature . No. 436 , 2005, pp. 1016-1019 .
  5. ↑ cf. for example Kirsten Kaschner: Predictive model of global distribution areas and biodiversity hotspots of marine mammals. In: Meeting point for biological diversity . No. 6, 2005, pp. 229-230.
  6. ↑ Bruno Streit : What is biodiversity ?: Research, protection and value of biological diversity . C. H. Beck, Munich 2007, p. 79, 83 .
  7. ↑ N. Myers et al. a .: Biodiversity hotspots for conservation priorities . In: Nature . No. 403 , 2000, pp. 853-858 .
  8. ^ Christian Marchese: Biodiversity hotspots: A shortcut for a more complicated concept . Ed .: Université du Québec à Rimouski, Département de Biologie, chimie et geographie. Rimouski (Québec), doi : 10.1016 / j.gecco.2014.12.008 (English, abstract [accessed on March 28, 2020], full download possible on the website).
  9. ↑ Norman Myers: Biodiversity Hotspots Revisited (PDF; 173 kB)
  10. ↑ Text of the Declaración de Cancún on Wikisource (Spanish)
  11. ↑ United Nations Industrial Development Organization: How can biotechnology benefit Latin America and the Caribbean? ( Memento of the original from December 12, 2011 in the Internet Archive ) Info: The archive link was automatically inserted and not yet checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice. (PDF; 29 kB), June 25, 2003 @1@ 2Template: Webachiv / IABot / www.unido.org
  12. ^ Federal Agency for Nature Conservation : Hotspots of biological diversity in Germany. April 15, 2015, accessed on June 3, 2019 (with further links).