Herbivores at the highest risk of extinction among mammals, birds, and reptiles

As a result of their extensive home ranges and slow population growth rates, predators have often been perceived to suffer higher risks of extinction than other trophic groups. Our study challenges this extinction-risk paradigm by quantitatively comparing patterns of extinction risk across different...

Full description

Saved in:
Bibliographic Details
Published in:Science advances 2020-08, Vol.6 (32), p.eabb8458-eabb8458
Main Authors: Atwood, Trisha B, Valentine, Shaley A, Hammill, Edd, McCauley, Douglas J, Madin, Elizabeth M P, Beard, Karen H, Pearse, William D
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Animals
Birds
Ecology
Ecosystem
Extinction, Biological
Herbivory
Mammals
Reptiles
SciAdv r-articles
Citations: Items that this one cites
Items that cite this one
Online Access:Get full text
Tags: Add Tag
No Tags, Be the first to tag this record!
Description
Summary:As a result of their extensive home ranges and slow population growth rates, predators have often been perceived to suffer higher risks of extinction than other trophic groups. Our study challenges this extinction-risk paradigm by quantitatively comparing patterns of extinction risk across different trophic groups of mammals, birds, and reptiles. We found that trophic level and body size were significant factors that influenced extinction risk in all taxa. At multiple spatial and temporal scales, herbivores, especially herbivorous reptiles and large-bodied herbivores, consistently have the highest proportions of threatened species. This observed elevated extinction risk for herbivores is ecologically consequential, given the important roles that herbivores are known to play in controlling ecosystem function.
ISSN:2375-2548
2375-2548
DOI:10.1126/sciadv.abb8458