Marine extinctions revisited |
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Authors: | Pablo del Monte-Luna Daniel Lluch-Belda Elisa Serviere-Zaragoza Roberto Carmona Héctor Reyes-Bonilla David Aurioles-Gamboa José Luis Castro-Aguirre Sergio A Guzmán del Próo Oscar Trujillo-Millán & Barry W Brook |
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Institution: | Departamento de Pesquerías y Biología Marina, Centro Interdisciplinario de Ciencias Marinas, Instituto Politécnico Nacional, Av. Instituto Politécnico Nacional s/n Col. Playa Palo de Santa Rita, PO Box 592, CP 23096, La Paz, BCS, México;;Centro de Investigaciones Biológicas del Noroeste S.C., PO Box 128, La Paz, BCS, México;;Departamento de Biología Marina, Universidad Autónoma de Baja California Sur, Carretera al Sur km 5.5, CP 23080, La Paz, BCS, México;;Escuela Nacional de Ciencias Biológicas, Instituto Politécnico Nacional, Prolongación Carpio s/n esq. Plan de Ayala, Col. Plutarco Elías Calles, CP 11340, México, DF;;Research Institute for Climate Change and Sustainability, School of Earth &Environmental Sciences, University of Adelaide, SA 5005, Australia |
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Abstract: | In recent years, more than 130 extinctions have been estimated to have occurred in the marine realm. Here we review this body of evidence and show that this figure may actually be overestimated by as much as 50%. We argue that previous estimates have not fully taken into account critical uncertainties such as naturally variable geographical distributions, and have misinterpreted documentary evidence. However, current evidence indicates that some sharks, rays and reef‐associated species, although not necessarily geographically restricted, are particularly vulnerable to anthropogenic impacts and now occur in very low numbers. Overestimating extinctions is of concern because it could reduce confidence in the credibility of the ‘extinct’ category in threatened species lists and, ultimately, be used to question the integrity of conservation and management policies. We suggest that when integrating future checklists of marine extinct species, there needs to be a more rigorous use of the terminology of extinction, and participation by specialists in each of the particular taxonomic groups involved. |
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Keywords: | biodiversity loss extirpation global change habitat loss overexploitation |
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