Hughes Daniel F, Behangana Mathias
Department of Biology, Coe College, Cedar Rapids, IA, United States of America.
NICE Planet Uganda Limited, Kampala, Uganda.
PeerJ. 2025 Jan 2;13:e18704. doi: 10.7717/peerj.18704. eCollection 2025.
Biodiversity is unevenly distributed across the globe. Regional differences in biodiversity impact conservation through the allocation of financial resources, development of infrastructure, and public attention. Such resources are often prioritized to areas that are in more need than others. However, reasons for deciding which locations are more deserving are derived from an accurate knowledge of the number and composition of species that occur in each region. Regional differences in biodiversity, however, can reflect differences in the source of information consulted, rather than differences between areas. As a result, conservation resources may not be directed to regions in proportion to their actual need, especially if there is no consensus among sources of information. Here, we compared major sources of information on species of reptiles and amphibians that occur in Uganda, Africa. We found that none of the sources agreed on the total number, nor composition, of species in the country, with estimates for amphibians ranging more widely than those for reptiles. Notably, sources with similar species richness differed in species composition, which had an impact on the number of threatened species in the country. These results for a conspicuous group of vertebrates suggest that lesser-known groups are also likely misrepresented in sources, especially in other underexplored regions of tropical Africa. We discuss the implications for biodiversity conservation that are derived from inaccurate species lists that are commonly used by agencies, scientists, and practitioners. We argue that more critical evaluations of biodiversity resources, in addition to greater capacity building for field programs, taxonomy, and museum collections, will be essential to ensure that resources are allocated to regions that need them the most.
生物多样性在全球分布不均。生物多样性的区域差异通过财政资源分配、基础设施建设以及公众关注度影响着保护工作。这些资源往往优先分配给比其他地区更需要的区域。然而，决定哪些地区更应得到资源的依据是对每个地区物种数量和组成的准确了解。然而，生物多样性的区域差异可能反映的是所参考信息来源的差异，而非地区之间的差异。因此，保护资源可能不会按照实际需求比例分配到各个地区，尤其是在信息来源之间没有达成共识的情况下。在此，我们比较了非洲乌干达爬行动物和两栖动物物种的主要信息来源。我们发现，没有一个信息来源在该国物种总数或组成上达成一致，两栖动物的估计范围比爬行动物的更广。值得注意的是，物种丰富度相似的信息来源在物种组成上存在差异，这对该国受威胁物种的数量产生了影响。这些针对一组显著脊椎动物的结果表明，鲜为人知的类群在信息来源中也可能被错误呈现，尤其是在热带非洲其他未充分探索的地区。我们讨论了机构、科学家和从业者常用的不准确物种清单对生物多样性保护的影响。我们认为，除了加强实地项目、分类学和博物馆藏品的能力建设外，对生物多样性资源进行更严格的评估对于确保资源分配到最需要的地区至关重要。
