Protection of Australia’s threatened species could be improved by a factor of seven

“The koala, red goshawk, matted flax-lily and purple clover are more efficient umbrella species, yet none of these appear on the existing federal government priority species list.”

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The University of Queensland

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The protection of Australia’s threatened species could be improved by a factor of seven, if more efficient ‘umbrella’ species were prioritised for protection, according to University of Queensland research.
Umbrella species are species which when preserved, indirectly protect many other plant and animal species.
“The Australian Federal Government’s umbrella prioritisation list identifies 73 species as conservation priorities,” she said.
“This figure could be increased to benefit nearly half of all threatened terrestrial species for the same budget.
The researchers investigated what umbrella species could maximise the flora and fauna benefiting from management, while considering threats, actions and costs.
“Now is precisely the time where governments need to get their investment in nature to be as efficient as possible,” he said.
“Nations around the world can significantly improve the selection of umbrella species for conservation action by taking advantage of our transparent, quantitative and objective prioritisation approach.
“With a species extinction crisis, looming international deadlines and limited conservation funding globally, we need better methods to efficiently prioritise investment of resources in species recovery.”

The Complete Story: New ‘umbrella’ species would massively improve conservation

University of Queensland | The Nature Conservancy | Wildlife Conservation Society

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