Darwinian shortfalls in biodiversity conservation

• Published in: Trends in ecology & evolution (Amsterdam) Vol. 28; no. 12; pp. 689 - 695
• Main Authors: Diniz-Filho, José Alexandre F., Loyola, Rafael D., Raia, Pasquale, Mooers, Arne O., Bini, Luis M.
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Kidlington Elsevier Ltd 01.12.2013; Elsevier
• Subjects: Animal and plant ecology; Animal, plant and microbial ecology; Applied ecology; Biodiversity; Biological and medical sciences; Conservation of Natural Resources; Conservation, protection and management of environment and wildlife; Fundamental and applied biological sciences. Psychology; General aspects; life history; Phylogeny; planning; research support; Environmental protection
• ISSN: 0169-5347; 1872-8383
• DOI: 10.1016/j.tree.2013.09.003

•Phylogenetically based metrics can enhance biodiversity analyses and conservation.•Lack of phylogenetic information precludes more comprehensive applications.•We call this lack of information the Darwinian shortfall, with three components.•We propose an integrated discussion of Darwinian, Linnean, and Wallacean shortfalls. If we were to describe all the species on Earth and determine their distributions, we would solve the popularly termed ‘Linnean’ and ‘Wallacean’ shortfalls in biodiversity conservation. Even so, we would still be hindered by a ‘Darwinian shortfall’, that is, the lack of relevant phylogenetic information for most organisms. Overall, there are too few comprehensive phylogenies, large uncertainties in the estimation of divergence times, and, most critically, unknown evolutionary models linking phylogenies to relevant ecological traits and life history variation. Here, we discuss these issues and offer suggestions for further research to support evolutionary-based conservation planning.