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Questions of importance to the conservation of global biological diversity: answers from the past
K. J. Willis1,2 and S. A. Bhagwat1
1Long-term Ecology Laboratory, School of Geography and the Environment, University of Oxford, Oxford OX1 3QY, UK
2Department of Biology, University of Bergen, P.O. Box 7803, 5020 Bergen, Norway
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Abstract. Paleoecological records are replete with examples of biotic responses to
past climate change and human impact but how can we use these records in the
conservation of current and future biodiversity? A recently published list
of One Hundred Questions of Importance to the Conservation of Global Biological Diversity
(Sutherland et al., 2009) highlights a number of key research questions
that need a temporal perspective. Many of these questions are related to the
determination of ecological processes in order to assess ecosystem function
and services, climate change-integrated conservation strategies, and
ecosystem management and restoration. However, it is noticeable that not a
single contributor to this list was from the paleo-research community and
that extremely few paleo-records are ever used in the development of
terrestrial conservation management plans. This lack of dialogue between
conservationists and the paleo-community is partially driven by a perception
that the data provided by paleoecological records are purely descriptive and
not of relevance to the day-to-day management and conservation of biological
diversity. This paper illustrates, through a series of case-studies, how
long-term ecological records (>50 years) can provide a test of predictions
and assumptions of ecological processes that are directly relevant to
management strategies necessary in order to retain biological diversity in a
changing climate. This includes information on diversity baselines,
thresholds, resilience, and restoration of ecological processes.
 Notice on Discussion StatusThe requested discussion paper has a corresponding peer-reviewed
final revised paper in the journal Climate of the Past (CP). You are
encouraged to refer to the final revised version. Final Revised Paper (CP) Discussion Paper (PDF, 550 KB)
Citation: Willis, K. J. and Bhagwat, S. A.: Questions of importance to the conservation of global biological diversity: answers from the past, Clim. Past Discuss., 6, 1139-1162, doi:10.5194/cpd-6-1139-2010, 2010. Bibtex EndNote Reference Manager XML
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