Scientists at the Zoological Society of London's Institute of Zoology (IoZ) and Imperial College London have identified fundamental new approaches to improve the success of large mammal conservation. Published today in the journal Science, the largest study of its kind analyses key factors linked to the extinction of mammals.
"Conservation biologists have always known that large bodied mammals are at greater risk of extinction," comments Professor Georgina Mace of the IoZ, "Now we understand the mechanisms, we are able to tailor conservation programmes dependant on size, to ensure they're more effective."
The study showed that extinction risk in smaller mammals, below approximately 3kg (about the weight of a small domestic cat), is determined primarily by the size and locations of their distributions, and the human impact to which they are exposed. Larger mammals have the additional pressure of biological disadvantages such as long gestation period and late weaning age to contend with, significantly increasing their susceptibility to extinction.
"In a world dominated by people, being big is substantially more of a disadvantage than we realised, which implies that the conservation of large mammals should assume a particular urgency," said Dr Marcel Cardillo of Imperial College London.
"From a conservation policy angle, the message would be: small may be conservable but it is a little trickier for the larger mammals," commented Dr Andy Purvis of Imperial College London.
The research findings suggest smaller species, of around less than 3kg, would benefit from conservation of their habitat area, whereas, larger bodied animals require a different approach, focusing upon the specific species, their biology and their habitat.