The DOI matches its Crossref record; 164 of the 164 references it cites were found in a registry or an index; 6 of the 136 sources its claims cite were checked for support.
Defaunation in the Anthropocene
Open accessAbstract
We live amid a global wave of anthropogenically driven biodiversity loss: species and population extirpations and, critically, declines in local species abundance. Particularly, human impacts on animal biodiversity are an under-recognized form of global environmental change. Among terrestrial vertebrates, 322 species have become extinct since 1500, and populations of the remaining species show 25% average decline in abundance. Invertebrate patterns are equally dire: 67% of monitored populations show 45% mean abundance decline. Such animal declines will cascade onto ecosystem functioning and human well-being. Much remains unknown about this “Anthropocene defaunation”; these knowledge gaps hinder our capacity to predict and limit defaunation impacts. Clearly, however, defaunation is both a pervasive component of the planet’s sixth mass extinction and also a major driver of global ecological change.
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Claims the paper makes
64 Sources not found · 25 Own interpretation · 18 No full text of the sources · 14 Not checked yet · 4 No basis given · 3 Supported · 3 Own result · 2 Partly supported · 1 Supported so far · accuracy not yet measured
The cited sources support only part of this claim — read each source’s verdict below.
In the paper
“Across vertebrates, 16% to 33% of all species are estimated to be globally threatened or endangered (17,18)”
§ Defaunation in the Anthropocene > Defaunation: a pervasive phenomenon
What the sources say
- Not matchedcites [17] 17. IUCN, The IUCN Red List of Threatened Species <www.iucnredlist.org> (2013)
Couldn’t be matched to a paper in Crossref, so it can’t be checked.
- Supportedcites [18] 18. M. Hoffmann et al., Science 330, 1503 (2010). source
The “Status, trends, and threats” section states that, accounting for uncertainty from Data Deficient species, between 16% and 33% of all vertebrate species are classified as Threatened. This directly supports the cited estimate. (LLM, conf=0.95)
hedged- Asserted: passes — The authors put it forward as true.
- Checkable: passes — It can be checked against evidence.
- Load-bearing: unclear — It is unclear whether the paper’s conclusions depend on it.
- Based: passes — The paper gives a reason why it holds.
- Not matched
Every source the paper cites for this claim was checked and supports it.
In the paper
“The long-established major proximate drivers of wildlife population decline and extinction in terrestrial ecosystems, namely overexploitation, habitat destruction, and impacts from invasive species remain pervasive (18).”
§ Defaunation in the Anthropocene > Multiple, unaddressed drivers of defaunation
What the sources say
- Supportedcites [18] 18. M. Hoffmann et al., Science 330, 1503 (2010). source
The opening summary (p. 1503) identifies agricultural expansion, logging, overexploitation, and invasive alien species as main drivers of biodiversity loss among mammals, birds, and amphibians. The “Confronting threats” section adds that conservation has not yet offset any major driver of increased extinction risk. Agricultural expansion and logging substantiate the claim’s reference to habitat destruction. (LLM, conf=0.93)
boosteddirect- Asserted: passes — The authors put it forward as true.
- Checkable: passes — It can be checked against evidence.
- Load-bearing: passes — The paper’s conclusions depend on it.
- Based: passes — The paper gives a reason why it holds.
- Supported
The sources with a verdict support this claim; the rest weren’t checked yet, have no full text we could read, or their verdicts aren’t rated yet.
In the paper
“None of these major drivers have been effectively mitigated at the global scale (14,18).”
§ Defaunation in the Anthropocene > Multiple, unaddressed drivers of defaunation
What the sources say
- Not checked — no full text of the sourcecites [14] 14. S. H. Butchart et al., Science 328, 1164 (2010). source
- Supportedcites [18] 18. M. Hoffmann et al., Science 330, 1503 (2010). source
In “Confronting threats” (page not supplied), the paper says that deteriorations outnumber improvements for every threat assessed and concludes that conservation has not yet offset any major driver of increased extinction risk. This supports the claim at the global scale, within the paper’s scope of vertebrate extinction risk. (LLM, conf=0.93)
plain- Asserted: passes — The authors put it forward as true.
- Checkable: passes — It can be checked against evidence.
- Load-bearing: passes — The paper’s conclusions depend on it.
- Based: passes — The paper gives a reason why it holds.
The cited sources support only part of this claim — read each source’s verdict below.
In the paper
“the effects of defaunation will be much less about the loss of absolute diversity than about local shifts in species compositions and functional groups within a community (80).”
§ Defaunation in the Anthropocene > Synthesis and ways forward
What the sources say
- Partly supportedcites [80] 80. M. Dornelas et al., Science 344, 296 (2014). sourceExperimental — accuracy not yet measured
The Conclusions (page not available) describe the replacement of large herbivores by smaller mammals and arthropods, and the ‘Effects of large mammals on small mammals’ section reports changes in vegetation and consumer abundance. These support local shifts in the community, but the paper does not establish that such shifts matter more than losses of absolute diversity or make a general comparison of the two effects of defaunation. (LLM, conf=0.83)
plain- Asserted: passes — The authors put it forward as true.
- Checkable: passes — It can be checked against evidence.
- Load-bearing: passes — The paper’s conclusions depend on it.
- Based: passes — The paper gives a reason why it holds.
- Partly supported
Every source the paper cites for this claim was checked and supports it.
In the paper
“and few major human pathogens seem to fit the criteria that would make such a relationship pervasive (71).”
§ Defaunation in the Anthropocene > Water quality.
What the sources say
- Supportedcites [71] 71. C. L. Wood, K. D. Lafferty, G. DeLeo, H. S. Young, A. M. Kuris, Ecology 95, 817http://dx.doi.org/10.1890/13-1041.1 (2014). source
In “Predicting the Biodiversity–Disease Relationship” (page not available), the authors project that biodiversity would reduce the prevalence of only 12% of the infectious disease species they assessed. They conclude that negative biodiversity–disease relationships may be relatively uncommon, supporting the citing sentence’s hedged claim. Their assessment covers common pathogenic human protozoan and metazoan parasites, not viruses or bacteria. (LLM, conf=0.90)
hedged- Asserted: passes — The authors put it forward as true.
- Checkable: passes — It can be checked against evidence.
- Load-bearing: unclear — It is unclear whether the paper’s conclusions depend on it.
- Based: passes — The paper gives a reason why it holds.
- Supported
Every source the paper cites for this claim was checked and supports it.
In the paper
“However, the impacts of defaunation on disease are far from straightforward (71)”
§ Defaunation in the Anthropocene > Water quality.
What the sources say
- Supportedcites [71] 71. C. L. Wood, K. D. Lafferty, G. DeLeo, H. S. Young, A. M. Kuris, Ecology 95, 817http://dx.doi.org/10.1890/13-1041.1 (2014). source
The Introduction says that biodiversity loss is likely to produce both “winners and losers” among parasites. “Where Do We Go From Here?” adds that the biodiversity–disease relationship may be nonlinear and either positive or negative. These passages support the claim that the disease effects of defaunation are not straightforward; page numbers were not provided. (LLM, conf=0.92)
plain- Asserted: passes — The authors put it forward as true.
- Checkable: passes — It can be checked against evidence.
- Load-bearing: unclear — It is unclear whether the paper’s conclusions depend on it.
- Based: passes — The paper gives a reason why it holds.
- Supported
None of the sources cited for this claim could be matched to a paper in Crossref, so there is nothing to check it against.
In the paper
“Of a conservatively estimated 5-9 million animal species on the planet, we are likely losing ~11,000 to 58,000 species annually (15,16).”
§ Defaunation in the Anthropocene > Defaunation: a pervasive phenomenon
What the sources say
- Not matchedcites [15] 15. C. Mora, A. Rollo, D. P. Tittensor, Science 493, 295 (2013).
Couldn’t be matched to a paper in Crossref, so it can’t be checked.
- Not matchedcites [16] 16. B. R. Scheffers, L. N. Joppa, S. L. Pimm, W. F. Laurance, Trends Ecol. Evol. 27, 501 (2012).
Couldn’t be matched to a paper in Crossref, so it can’t be checked.
hedged- Asserted: passes — The authors put it forward as true.
- Checkable: passes — It can be checked against evidence.
- Load-bearing: unclear — It is unclear whether the paper’s conclusions depend on it.
- Based: passes — The paper gives a reason why it holds.
- Not matched
In the paper
“with populations of many iconic species such as elephant (Fig S1B) rapidly declining towards extinction (19).”
§ Defaunation in the Anthropocene > Defaunation: a pervasive phenomenon
What the sources say
- Not matchedcites [19] 19. Materials and methods are available in the Supplementary Materials.
Couldn’t be matched to a paper in Crossref, so it can’t be checked.
plain- Asserted: passes — The authors put it forward as true.
- Checkable: passes — It can be checked against evidence.
- Load-bearing: unclear — It is unclear whether the paper’s conclusions depend on it.
- Based: passes — The paper gives a reason why it holds.
- Not matched
None of the sources cited for this claim could be matched to a paper in Crossref, so there is nothing to check it against.
In the paper
“Among terrestrial vertebrates 322 species have become extinct since 1500, while populations of the remaining species show 25% average decline in abundance.”
- Also stated in: § Defaunation: a pervasive phenomenon · plain
“Across vertebrates, 16% to 33% of all species are estimated to be globally threatened or endangered (17,18), and at least 322 vertebrate species have become extinct since 1500 (a date representative of onset of the recent wave of extinction, as formal definition of the start of the Anthropocene still being debated) (17,19,20) (Table S1).”
§ Defaunation in the Anthropocene > Abstract
What the sources say
- Not matchedcites [17] 17. IUCN, The IUCN Red List of Threatened Species <www.iucnredlist.org> (2013)
Couldn’t be matched to a paper in Crossref, so it can’t be checked.
- Not matchedcites [19] 19. Materials and methods are available in the Supplementary Materials.
Couldn’t be matched to a paper in Crossref, so it can’t be checked.
- Not matchedcites [20] 20. G. Ceballos, A. García, P. R. Ehrlich, J. Cosmol. 8, 1821 (2010).
Couldn’t be matched to a paper in Crossref, so it can’t be checked.
plain- Asserted: passes — The authors put it forward as true.
- Checkable: passes — It can be checked against evidence.
- Load-bearing: passes — The paper’s conclusions depend on it.
- Based: passes — The paper gives a reason why it holds.
- Rests on an assumption: The year 1500 is a representative starting point for the recent wave of extinction.
- Also stated in: § Defaunation: a pervasive phenomenon · plain
The paper states this without a source or data behind it here, so there is nothing to check it against. The quote shows it is in the paper.
In the paper
“Invertebrate patterns are equally dire: 67% of monitored populations show 45% mean abundance decline.”
§ Defaunation in the Anthropocene > Abstract
plain- Asserted: passes — The authors put it forward as true.
- Checkable: passes — It can be checked against evidence.
- Load-bearing: passes — The paper’s conclusions depend on it.
- Based: unclear — It is unclear why the paper says it holds.
- It may state two separate claims as one. 24
- Probably not a substantial claim. 8
A result the paper reports from its own data — it cites no other source for it, so there is none to check. The quote shows it is in the paper.
In the paper
“In our evaluation of mammals (1437 species) and birds (4263 species), the number of species per 10,000 km 2 in decline (IUCN population status “decreasing”) varied across regions from a few to 75 in mammals and 125 in birds (Fig 2), with highest numbers in tropical regions.”
§ Defaunation in the Anthropocene > Patterns of defaunation
plaincorrelational- Asserted: passes — The authors put it forward as true.
- Checkable: passes — It can be checked against evidence.
- Load-bearing: passes — The paper’s conclusions depend on it.
- Based: passes — The paper gives a reason why it holds.
It may state two separate claims as one.
In the paper
“Of all insects with IUCN documented population trends, 33% are declining, with strong variation among Orders 19).”
§ Defaunation in the Anthropocene > Synthesis and ways forward
What the sources say
- Not matchedcites [19] 19. Materials and methods are available in the Supplementary Materials.
Couldn’t be matched to a paper in Crossref, so it can’t be checked.
plain- Asserted: passes — The authors put it forward as true.
- Checkable: passes — It can be checked against evidence.
- Load-bearing: unclear — It is unclear whether the paper’s conclusions depend on it.
- Based: passes — The paper gives a reason why it holds.
It may state two separate claims as one.
- Not matched
In the paper
“counts of threatened species do not necessarily translate into extinction risk, much less ecological impact (13).”
§ Defaunation in the Anthropocene > Abstract
What the sources say
- Not matchedcites [13] 13. A. Ø. Mooers, D. P. Faith, W. P. Maddison, PloS one 3, e3700 (2008).
Couldn’t be matched to a paper in Crossref, so it can’t be checked.
plain- Asserted: passes — The authors put it forward as true.
- Checkable: passes — It can be checked against evidence.
- Load-bearing: passes — The paper’s conclusions depend on it.
- Based: passes — The paper gives a reason why it holds.
It may state two separate claims as one.
- Not matched
None of the sources cited for this claim have been checked yet.
In the paper
“These extinctions altered ecosystem processes and disturbance regimes at continental scales, triggering cascades of extinction thought to still reverberate today (3,4).”
§ Defaunation in the Anthropocene > Abstract
What the sources say
- Not matchedcites [3] 3. C. E. Doughty, A. Wolf, Y. Malhi, Nat. Geosci. 6, 761 (2013).
Couldn’t be matched to a paper in Crossref, so it can’t be checked.
- Not checked — no full text of the sourcecites [4] 4. J. L. Gill et al., Science 326, 1100 (2009). source
hedgedconditional- Asserted: passes — The authors put it forward as true.
- Checkable: passes — It can be checked against evidence.
- Load-bearing: unclear — It is unclear whether the paper’s conclusions depend on it.
- Based: passes — The paper gives a reason why it holds.
It may state two separate claims as one.
- Not matched
In the paper
“Similar to other mass extinction events, the effects of this”
§ Defaunation in the Anthropocene > Abstract
What the sources say
- Not matchedcites [2] 2. M. Cardillo et al., P. Roy. Soc. Lond. B. Bio. 275, 1441 (2008).
Couldn’t be matched to a paper in Crossref, so it can’t be checked.
plaindirect- Asserted: passes — The authors put it forward as true.
- Checkable: passes — It can be checked against evidence.
- Load-bearing: unclear — It is unclear whether the paper’s conclusions depend on it.
- Based: passes — The paper gives a reason why it holds.
It may state two separate claims as one.
- Not matched
A conclusion the paper draws from its own results — it cites no other source for it, so there is none to check. The quote shows it is in the paper.
In the paper
“Clearly, however, defaunation is both a pervasive component of the planet's sixth mass extinction, and also a major driver of global ecological change.”
§ Defaunation in the Anthropocene > Abstract
boosteddirect- Asserted: passes — The authors put it forward as true.
- Checkable: passes — It can be checked against evidence.
- Load-bearing: passes — The paper’s conclusions depend on it.
- Based: passes — The paper gives a reason why it holds.
It may state two separate claims as one.
A conclusion the paper draws from its own results — it cites no other source for it, so there is none to check. The quote shows it is in the paper.
In the paper
“Much remains unknown about this”
§ Defaunation in the Anthropocene > Abstract
plaindirect- Asserted: passes — The authors put it forward as true.
- Checkable: passes — It can be checked against evidence.
- Load-bearing: passes — The paper’s conclusions depend on it.
- Based: passes — The paper gives a reason why it holds.
It may state two separate claims as one.
The paper states this without a source or data behind it here, so there is nothing to check it against. The quote shows it is in the paper.
In the paper
“Loss of invertebrate biodiversity has received much less attention and data are extremely limited.”
§ Defaunation in the Anthropocene > Defaunation: a pervasive phenomenon
plain- Asserted: passes — The authors put it forward as true.
- Checkable: passes — It can be checked against evidence.
- Load-bearing: unclear — It is unclear whether the paper’s conclusions depend on it.
- Based: passes — The paper gives a reason why it holds.
It may state two separate claims as one.
A conclusion the paper draws from its own results — it cites no other source for it, so there is none to check. The quote shows it is in the paper.
In the paper
“We live amidst a global wave of anthropogenically driven biodiversity loss: species and population extirpations and, critically, declines in local species abundance.”
§ Defaunation in the Anthropocene > Abstract
plain- Asserted: passes — The authors put it forward as true.
- Checkable: passes — It can be checked against evidence.
- Load-bearing: passes — The paper’s conclusions depend on it.
- Based: passes — The paper gives a reason why it holds.
It may state two separate claims as one.
The paper states this without a source or data behind it here, so there is nothing to check it against. The quote shows it is in the paper.
In the paper
“some animal species are able to persist in highly modified habitats”
§ Defaunation in the Anthropocene > Abstract
plain- Asserted: passes — The authors put it forward as true.
- Checkable: passes — It can be checked against evidence.
- Load-bearing: passes — The paper’s conclusions depend on it.
- Based: fails — The paper may give no reason why it holds.
Probably not a substantial claim. The paper may give no reason why it holds.
In the paper
“Moreover, several newer threats have recently emerged, most notably anthropogenic climate disruption, which will likely soon compete with habitat loss as the most important driver of defaunation (44).”
§ Defaunation in the Anthropocene > Multiple, unaddressed drivers of defaunation
What the sources say
- Not checked — no full text of the sourcecites [44] 44. O. E. Sala et al., Science 287, 1770 (2000). source
hedgedconditional- Asserted: passes — The authors put it forward as true.
- Checkable: passes — It can be checked against evidence.
- Load-bearing: unclear — It is unclear whether the paper’s conclusions depend on it.
- Based: passes — The paper gives a reason why it holds.
It may state two separate claims as one.
None of the sources cited for this claim have been checked yet.
In the paper
“While most declining species are affected by multiple stressors, we still have a poor understanding of the complex ways in which these drivers interact, and of feedback loops that may exist (7,11).”
§ Defaunation in the Anthropocene > Multiple, unaddressed drivers of defaunation
What the sources say
- Not checked — no full text of the sourcecites [7] 7. A. D. Barnosky et al., Nature 486, 52 (2012). source
- Not matchedcites [11] 11. B. W. Brook, N. S. Sodhi, C. J. Bradshaw, Trends Ecol. Evol. 23, 453 (2008).
Couldn’t be matched to a paper in Crossref, so it can’t be checked.
plain- Asserted: passes — The authors put it forward as true.
- Checkable: passes — It can be checked against evidence.
- Load-bearing: passes — The paper’s conclusions depend on it.
- Based: passes — The paper gives a reason why it holds.
It may state two separate claims as one.
In the paper
“While defaunation is a global pattern, geographic distribution patterns are also decidedly non-random (28).”
§ Defaunation in the Anthropocene > Patterns of defaunation
What the sources say
- Not checked — no full text of the sourcecites [28] 28. S. Pimm et al., Science 344, 1246752 (2014). source
plaincorrelational- Asserted: passes — The authors put it forward as true.
- Checkable: passes — It can be checked against evidence.
- Load-bearing: unclear — It is unclear whether the paper’s conclusions depend on it.
- Based: passes — The paper gives a reason why it holds.
It may state two separate claims as one.
None of the sources cited for this claim could be matched to a paper in Crossref, so there is nothing to check it against.
In the paper
“However, increasingly sophisticated approaches help to predict which species are likely to be at risk, and to map latent extinction risk (38), holding great promise both for managing defaunation and identifying likely patterns of ecological impact (39).”
§ Defaunation in the Anthropocene > Patterns of defaunation
What the sources say
- Not matchedcites [38] 38. M. Cardillo, G. M. Mace, J. L. Gittleman, A. Purvis, P. Natl. Acad. Sci. USA 103, 4157 (2006).
Couldn’t be matched to a paper in Crossref, so it can’t be checked.
- Not matchedcites [39] 39. H. Hillebrand, B. Matthiessen, Ecol. Lett. 12, 1405 (2009).
Couldn’t be matched to a paper in Crossref, so it can’t be checked.
plaincorrelational- Asserted: passes — The authors put it forward as true.
- Checkable: passes — It can be checked against evidence.
- Load-bearing: unclear — It is unclear whether the paper’s conclusions depend on it.
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It may state two separate claims as one.
- Not matched
In the paper
“For instance, among vertebrates, more amphibians (41%) are currently considered threatened than birds (17%), with mammals and reptiles experiencing intermediate threat levels (27).”
§ Defaunation in the Anthropocene > Patterns of defaunation
What the sources say
- Not checked — no full text of the sourcecites [27] 27. J. Schipper et al., Science 322, 225 (2008). source
plain- Asserted: passes — The authors put it forward as true.
- Checkable: passes — It can be checked against evidence.
- Load-bearing: unclear — It is unclear whether the paper’s conclusions depend on it.
- Based: passes — The paper gives a reason why it holds.
It may state two separate claims as one.
In the paper
“However, these 'extinction models' have made little impact on conservation management, in part because trait correlations are often idiosyncratic and context dependent (31).”
§ Defaunation in the Anthropocene > Patterns of defaunation
What the sources say
- Not matchedcites [31] 31. M. Cardillo, E. Meijaard, Trends Ecol. Evol. 27, 167 (2012).
Couldn’t be matched to a paper in Crossref, so it can’t be checked.
plaindirect- Asserted: passes — The authors put it forward as true.
- Checkable: passes — It can be checked against evidence.
- Load-bearing: unclear — It is unclear whether the paper’s conclusions depend on it.
- Based: passes — The paper gives a reason why it holds.
It may state two separate claims as one.
- Not matched
A conclusion the paper draws from its own results — it cites no other source for it, so there is none to check. The quote shows it is in the paper.
In the paper
“Ironically, the cryptic nature of defaunation has strong potential to soon become very non-cryptic, rivaling the impact of many other forms of global change in terms of loss of ecosystem services essential for human well-being.”
§ Defaunation in the Anthropocene > Synthesis and ways forward
boostedconditional- Asserted: passes — The authors put it forward as true.
- Checkable: fails — It may be too vague to check against evidence.
- Load-bearing: passes — The paper’s conclusions depend on it.
- Based: fails — The paper may give no reason why it holds.
Probably not a substantial claim. It may be too vague to check against evidence. The paper may give no reason why it holds.
A conclusion the paper draws from its own results — it cites no other source for it, so there is none to check. The quote shows it is in the paper.
In the paper
“we need to focus on predicting the systematic patterns of winners and losers in the Anthropocene and identify the traits that characterize them, as this will provide information on the patterns and the links to function that we can then act upon.”
§ Defaunation in the Anthropocene > Synthesis and ways forward
plaindirect- Asserted: passes — The authors put it forward as true.
- Checkable: fails — It may be too vague to check against evidence.
- Load-bearing: passes — The paper’s conclusions depend on it.
- Based: passes — The paper gives a reason why it holds.
Probably not a substantial claim. It may be too vague to check against evidence.
A conclusion the paper draws from its own results — it cites no other source for it, so there is none to check. The quote shows it is in the paper.
In the paper
“we emphasize that defaunation is about much more than species loss.”
§ Defaunation in the Anthropocene > Synthesis and ways forward
plain- Asserted: passes — The authors put it forward as true.
- Checkable: fails — It may be too vague to check against evidence.
- Load-bearing: passes — The paper’s conclusions depend on it.
- Based: passes — The paper gives a reason why it holds.
Probably not a substantial claim. It may be too vague to check against evidence.
None of the sources cited for this claim have been checked yet.
In the paper
“However, most efforts to quantify this relationship have focused largely on effects of reduced producer diversity, which may typically have much lower functional impacts than does consumer loss (49,50).”
§ Defaunation in the Anthropocene > Consequences of defaunation
What the sources say
- Not matchedcites [49] 49. J. Reiss, J. R. Bridle, J. M. Montoya, G. Woodward, Trends Ecol. Evol. 24, 505 (2009).
Couldn’t be matched to a paper in Crossref, so it can’t be checked.
- Not checked — no full text of the sourcecites [50] 50. B. J. Cardinale et al., Nature 486, 59 (2012). source
hedgedconditional- Asserted: passes — The authors put it forward as true.
- Checkable: passes — It can be checked against evidence.
- Load-bearing: passes — The paper’s conclusions depend on it.
- Based: passes — The paper gives a reason why it holds.
It may state two separate claims as one.
- Not matched
A conclusion the paper draws from its own results — it cites no other source for it, so there is none to check. The quote shows it is in the paper.
In the paper
“Ongoing declines in populations of animals such as nematodes, beetles, or bats, are considerably less evident to humans”
§ Defaunation in the Anthropocene > Synthesis and ways forward
plain- Asserted: passes — The authors put it forward as true.
- Checkable: fails — It may be too vague to check against evidence.
- Load-bearing: passes — The paper’s conclusions depend on it.
- Based: fails — The paper may give no reason why it holds.
Probably not a substantial claim. It may be too vague to check against evidence. The paper may give no reason why it holds.
A conclusion the paper draws from its own results — it cites no other source for it, so there is none to check. The quote shows it is in the paper.
In the paper
“Ultimately, both reduced and more evenly distributed global resource consumption will be necessary to sustainably change ongoing trends in defaunation and, hopefully, eventually open the door to refaunation.”
§ Defaunation in the Anthropocene > Synthesis and ways forward
plaindirect- Asserted: passes — The authors put it forward as true.
- Checkable: fails — It may be too vague to check against evidence.
- Load-bearing: passes — The paper’s conclusions depend on it.
- Based: passes — The paper gives a reason why it holds.
Probably not a substantial claim. It may be too vague to check against evidence. It may state two separate claims as one.
- Rests on an assumption: Continued human population growth and increasingly uneven per-capita consumption ultimately drive all these threats.
A conclusion the paper draws from its own results — it cites no other source for it, so there is none to check. The quote shows it is in the paper.
In the paper
“yet arguably are more functionally important”
§ Defaunation in the Anthropocene > Synthesis and ways forward
hedged- Asserted: passes — The authors put it forward as true.
- Checkable: fails — It may be too vague to check against evidence.
- Load-bearing: passes — The paper’s conclusions depend on it.
- Based: fails — The paper may give no reason why it holds.
Probably not a substantial claim. It may be too vague to check against evidence. The paper may give no reason why it holds.
In the paper
“One recent study in Madagascar suggested that loss of wildlife as a food source will increase anemia by 30%, leading to increased mortality, morbidity and learning difficulties (66).”
§ Defaunation in the Anthropocene > Water quality.
What the sources say
- Not matchedcites [66] 66. C. D. Golden et al., P. Natl. Acad. Sci. 108, 19653 (2011).
Couldn’t be matched to a paper in Crossref, so it can’t be checked.
hedgeddirect- Asserted: passes — The authors put it forward as true.
- Checkable: passes — It can be checked against evidence.
- Load-bearing: fails — The paper’s conclusions may not depend on it.
- Based: passes — The paper gives a reason why it holds.
Probably not a substantial claim. The paper’s conclusions may not depend on it. It may state two separate claims as one.
- Rests on an assumption: In many parts of the world, wild animal food sources are a critical part of the diet, particularly for the poor.
- Not matched
In the paper
“Insect pollination, needed for 75% of all the world's food crops, is estimated to be worth ~10% of the economic value of the world's entire food supply (52).”
§ Defaunation in the Anthropocene > Impacts on ecosystem functions and services
What the sources say
- Not matchedcites [52] 52. N. Gallai, J.-M. Salles, J. Settele, B. E. Vaissière, Ecological Economics 68, 810 (2009).
Couldn’t be matched to a paper in Crossref, so it can’t be checked.
hedgeddirect- Asserted: passes — The authors put it forward as true.
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In the paper
“Similarly, declines in bird pollinators in New Zealand led to strong pollen limitation, ultimately reducing seed production and population regeneration (55) (Fig 5H).”
§ Defaunation in the Anthropocene > Impacts on ecosystem functions and services
What the sources say
- Not checked — no full text of the sourcecites [55] 55. S. H. Anderson et al., Science 331, 1068 (2011). source
boosteddirect- Asserted: passes — The authors put it forward as true.
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- Load-bearing: unclear — It is unclear whether the paper’s conclusions depend on it.
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A conclusion the paper draws from its own results — it cites no other source for it, so there is none to check. The quote shows it is in the paper.
In the paper
“This review indicates that a widespread and pervasive defaunation crisis, with farreaching consequences, is upon us.”
§ Defaunation in the Anthropocene > Synthesis and ways forward
hedged- Asserted: passes — The authors put it forward as true.
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In the paper
“Large animals, including ungulates, hippos, and crocodiles, prevent formation of anoxic zones through agitation and affect water movement through trampling (64).”
§ Defaunation in the Anthropocene > Water quality.
What the sources say
- Not matchedcites [64] 64. J. P. Wright, C. G. Jones, A. S. Flecker, Oecologia 132, 96 (2002).
Couldn’t be matched to a paper in Crossref, so it can’t be checked.
plaindirect- Asserted: passes — The authors put it forward as true.
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In the paper
“For instance, global declines in amphibian populations increase algae and fine detritus biomass, reduce nitrogen uptake, and greatly reduce whole stream respiration (Fig 5E; (63)).”
§ Defaunation in the Anthropocene > Water quality.
What the sources say
- Not checked — no full text of the sourcecites [63] 63. M. Whiles et al., Ecosystems 16, 146 (2013). source
plaindirect- Asserted: passes — The authors put it forward as true.
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- Load-bearing: unclear — It is unclear whether the paper’s conclusions depend on it.
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In the paper
“Large wildlife removal also causes major effects on ecosystem functions and services (Panel D), including changes to fire intensity (Fi); cattle production in both dry (C-D) and wet seasons (C-W); disease prevalence (D); infectivity of arbuscular mycorrhizae fungi (AMF); photosynthetic rates (Ph); and transpiration rates (TR).”
§ Defaunation in the Anthropocene > Synthesis and ways forward
What the sources say
- Not matchedcites [81] 81. F. Keesing, T. P. Young, Bioscience 64, 487 (2014).
Couldn’t be matched to a paper in Crossref, so it can’t be checked.
plaindirectSingle case- Asserted: passes — The authors put it forward as true.
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- Not matched
The paper relies on this without support.
The year 1500 is a representative starting point for the recent wave of extinction.
“(a date representative of onset of the recent wave of extinction, as formal definition of the start of the Anthropocene still being debated)”
The paper relies on this without support.
In many parts of the world, wild animal food sources are a critical part of the diet, particularly for the poor.
“In many parts of the world, wild animal food sources are a critical part of the diet, particularly for the poor.”
The paper relies on this without support.
The indirect evolutionary effects of defaunation on species not directly impacted by human defaunation are still poorly studied.
“Still poorly studied are the indirect evolutionary effects of defaunation on other species, not directly impacted by human defaunation.”
The paper relies on this without support.
Arthropod pests are responsible for 8-15% of the losses in most major food crops.
“For example, arthropod pests are responsible for 8-15% of the losses in most major food crops.”
The paper relies on this without support.
Continued human population growth and increasingly uneven per-capita consumption ultimately drive all these threats.
“continued human population growth and increasingly uneven per-capita consumption, which ultimately drive all these threats”
Claims other papers make about this one
Each is checked against this paper’s own text: does it say what the citing paper says it does?
The source backs part of the claim, not all of it — or backs it for a different population, condition or comparison.
In the citing paper
“the literature reflects broad agreement among environmental scientists that biases lead to underestimating the number of species that have gone extinct in the past few centuries”
From Accelerated modern human–induced species losses: Entering the sixth mass extinction (2015) · cites this paper as [8]
Experimental — accuracy not yet measuredThe source backs part of the claim, not all of it — or backs it for a different population, condition or comparison.
In the citing paper
“Hundreds of species and myriad populations are being driven to extinction every year (1–8).”
From Biological annihilation via the ongoing sixth mass extinction signaled by vertebrate population losses and declines (2017) · cites this paper as [2]
Experimental — accuracy not yet measuredThe cited source says what the claim attributes to it.
In the citing paper
“A growing body of evidence indicates that current species extinction rates are higher than the pre-human background rate (8–15)”
From Accelerated modern human–induced species losses: Entering the sixth mass extinction (2015) · cites this paper as [8]
The cited source says what the claim attributes to it.
In the citing paper
“This suggests that, even if there was not ample sign that the crisis extends far beyond that group of animals, today’s planetary defaunation of vertebrates will itself promote cascading catastrophic effects on ecosystems, worsening the annihilation of nature (2, 3, 46).”
From Biological annihilation via the ongoing sixth mass extinction signaled by vertebrate population losses and declines (2017) · cites this paper as [2]
The cited source says what the claim attributes to it.
In the citing paper
“In sum, by losing populations (and species) of vertebrates, we are losing intricate ecological networks involving animals, plants, and microorganisms (e.g., refs. 2, 8, 18, 45, 46).”
From Biological annihilation via the ongoing sixth mass extinction signaled by vertebrate population losses and declines (2017) · cites this paper as [2]
The cited source says what the claim attributes to it.
In the citing paper
“However, given that such medium and large species are the most seriously threatened by the predominant proximate drivers of defaunation (2, 3), the likely bias against small-sized species should not affect our overall interpretation of results.”
From Biological annihilation via the ongoing sixth mass extinction signaled by vertebrate population losses and declines (2017) · cites this paper as [2]
In the citing paper
“Fourth, species at the brink have been pushed to a critical conservation status because of human activities, where habitat loss and fragmentation, illegal trade, overexploitation, introduced domestic and wild species, toxification, and pollution have played a major role (10, 13–15, 30, 46, 52, 53).”
From Vertebrates on the brink as indicators of biological annihilation and the sixth mass extinction (2020) · cites this paper as [14]
In the citing paper
“They occur mostly in heavily populated regions such as tropical Asia, where major ongoing biodiversity losses are well known (10, 13–15, 30, 46, 52, 53).”
From Vertebrates on the brink as indicators of biological annihilation and the sixth mass extinction (2020) · cites this paper as [14]
In the citing paper
“More recently, climate disruption is becoming a major cause of species endangerment (10, 11, 14–17).”
From Vertebrates on the brink as indicators of biological annihilation and the sixth mass extinction (2020) · cites this paper as [14]
In the citing paper
“Thus, moving onto the brink is an important part of the process of defaunation (14).”
From Vertebrates on the brink as indicators of biological annihilation and the sixth mass extinction (2020) · cites this paper as [14]
In the citing paper
“However, the number of studies on insect trends with sufficient replication and spatial coverage are limited [10, 23–25] and restricted to certain well-studied taxa.”
From More than 75 percent decline over 27 years in total flying insect biomass in protected areas (2017) · cites this paper as [24]
In the citing paper
“Many top predators are both overexploited and strong controllers of nutrient cycling, water quality and other ecosystem services9,77,80–82.”
From Linking the influence and dependence of people on biodiversity across scales (2017) · cites this paper as [82]
In the citing paper
“Increasingly, the simple theoretical prediction that fragmentation reduces species richness is being modified to account for species identity through models that focus on how species vary in their traits (4, 21, 36, 48, 57, 58).”
From Habitat fragmentation and its lasting impact on Earth’s ecosystems (2015) · cites this paper as [58]
In the citing paper
“Most forms of global change known to reduce population sizes and biodiversity will be exacerbated by fragmentation (58, 60), including climate change (61), invasive species (62, 63), hunting (64), pollution [including light, noise, and chemicals (65)], and altered disturbance regimes (66).”
From Habitat fragmentation and its lasting impact on Earth’s ecosystems (2015) · cites this paper as [58]
Citations
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Cited by
Sorted by citations
Items 1,501–1,600 of 4,205
The Monkeying of the Americas: Primate Biogeography in the Neotropics
Lynch, J. W. (2017) · Annual Review of Anthropology · doi:10.1146/annurev-anthro-102116-041510 · Cited by 19
“Although multiculturalism and interdisciplinarity allow for more inclusive insights into solving today’s problems, an even more radical shift in worldview may be necessary if we hope to stem the impending primate extinction crisis (Estrada et al. 2017) or, more broadly, the defaunation in the Anthropocene (Dirzo et al…”
BackgroundInfluentialArlt, D., & Pärt, T. (2017) · Ecology and Evolution · doi:10.1002/ece3.3603 · Cited by 18
“Several insect groups show European-wide population declines that seem re - lated to both climate and land use changes (Dirzo et al., 2014; Potts et al., 2010; Thomas et al., 2004; Hallmann, Sorg, Jongejans, Siepel, Hofland, Schwan, et al., 2017).”
Lander, T. A., Harris, S. A., Cremona, P. J., & Boshier, D. (2019) · Conservation Genetics · doi:10.1007/s10592-019-01187-z · Cited by 17
Trimbos, K. B., Cieraad, E., Schrama, M. J. J., et al. (2020) · Environmental DNA · doi:10.1002/edn3.157 · Cited by 18
“In a time of severe global biodiversity decline, ecological studies are ever more needed to achieve science-based conservation and management of biodiversity (Cardinale et al., 2012; Dirzo et al., 2014; Pereira et al., 2010).”
BackgroundDrivers of human-wildlife impact events involving mammals in Southeastern Brazil
Hilário, R. R., de Carvalho, W. D., Gheler‐Costa, C., et al. (2021) · The Science of The Total Environment · doi:10.1016/j.scitotenv.2021.148600 · Cited by 18
Hisano, M., Evans, M. J., Soga, M., & Tsunoda, H. (2021) · Ecological Research · doi:10.1111/1440-1703.12287 · Cited by 20
Brandão‐Dias, P. F. P., Zhang, Y. M., Pirro, S., Vinson, C. C., Weinersmith, K. L., Ward, A. K. G., Forbes, A. A., & Egan, S. P. (2022) · Systematic Entomology · doi:10.1111/syen.12521 · Cited by 19
Jaung, W., Carrasco, L. R., Richards, D. R., Shaikh, S. F. E. A., & Tan, P. Y. (2022) · Environment Development and Sustainability · doi:10.1007/s10668-021-02071-y · Cited by 18
Donoso, I., Fricke, E. C., Hervías‐Parejo, S., Rogers, H. S., & Traveset, A. (2022) · Frontiers in Ecology and Evolution · doi:10.3389/fevo.2022.794481 · Cited by 21
Assessing Climate Change Impacts on Island Bees: The Aegean Archipelago
Kougioumoutzis, K., Kaloveloni, A., & Petanidou, T. (2022) · Biology · doi:10.3390/biology11040552 · Cited by 17
Casas-Pinilla, L. C., Iserhard, C. A., Richter, A., Gawlinski, K., Cavalheiro, L., Romanowski, H. P., & Kaminski, L. A. (2022) · Forest Ecology and Management · doi:10.1016/j.foreco.2022.120279 · Cited by 16
Anthropogenic habitat modification alters calling phenology of frogs
Liu, G., Kingsford, R. T., Callaghan, C. T., & Rowley, J. J. L. (2022) · Global Change Biology · doi:10.1111/gcb.16367 · Cited by 17
“Habitat loss (e.g. deforestation) and fragmentation have undoubtedly driven species declines and extinctions (Dirzo et al., 2014; Young et al., 2016), but even subtle changes in temperature, resource availability, noise or light pollution caused by human modification can contribute to declines…”
BackgroundGlobal and regional erosion of mammalian functional diversity across the diel cycle
Cox, D. T. C., Gardner, A. S., & Gaston, K. J. (2022) · Science Advances · doi:10.1126/sciadv.abn6008 · Cited by 19
“Along with unsustainable levels of mortality disrupting trophic cascades and ecosystem functioning [e.g., ( 11 , 12 )], these pressures are driving increasing numbers of species to switch the timing of their activity to the nighttime ( 7 ), further changing the diel community structure.”
Loss of endangered frugivores from seed dispersal networks generates severe mutualism disruption
Lamperty, T., & Brosi, B. J. (2022) · Proceedings of the Royal Society B Biological Sciences · doi:10.1098/rspb.2022.0887 · Cited by 19
“To assess the relative effects of future frugivore extinction scenarios, we simulated losing frugivore species in the order of: (1) their risk level to extinction in the near future; (2) decreasing body mass (a simulation of ecological downsizing, which is broadly observed in tropical forests [7]); (3) most to least c…”
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“…great convenience for people’s lives, it has also brought about problems such as land degradation, biodiversity loss and environmental pollution (Dirzo et al. 2014; Shi et al. 2021a), which seriously threaten ecological security, especially in ecologically fragile areas such as arid and…”
BackgroundRapid monitoring of ecological persistence
Song, C., Simmons, B. I., Fortin, M., Gonzalez, A., Kaiser‐Bunbury, C. N., & Saavedra, S. (2023) · Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences · doi:10.1073/pnas.2211288120 · Cited by 17
The role of protected areas in safeguarding bat diversity in Brazil
da Silva, F. P., & Júnior, P. D. M. (2023) · Biodiversity and Conservation · doi:10.1007/s10531-023-02635-6 · Cited by 18
“Consequently, prolonged exposure of biodiversity to such risks can lead to reductions in abundances or even the extinction of species (Dirzo et al. 2014).”
BackgroundHüftlein, F., Seidenath, D., Mittereder, A., Hillenbrand, T., Brüggemann, D., Otti, O., Feldhaar, H., Laforsch, C., & Schott, M. (2023) · Journal of Hazardous Materials · doi:10.1016/j.jhazmat.2023.131905 · Cited by 18
A protocol for harvesting biodiversity data from Facebook
Chowdhury, S., Ahmed, S., Alam, S., Callaghan, C. T., Das, P., Marco, M. D., Minin, E. D., Jarić, I., Labi, M. M., Rokonuzzaman, M., et al. (2024) · Conservation Biology · doi:10.1111/cobi.14257 · Cited by 18
“Amid the sixth mass extinction, many species worldwide are dramatically declining—28% of all assessed species on the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) Red List are threatened with extinction (Dirzo et al., 2014; Murali et al., 2023; Pimm et al., 2014).”
Genetic consequences of seed dispersal to sleeping trees by white-bellied spider monkeys
Karubian, J. O., Ottewell, K. M., Link, A., et al. (2015) · Acta Oecologica · doi:10.1016/j.actao.2015.07.005 · Cited by 18
“For these reasons, a better understanding of plant-animal dispersal mutualisms is a long-standing goal among evolutionary ecologists and conservation biologists (e.g., Dirzo et al., 2014; Sica et al., 2014; Caughlin et al., 2015).”
BackgroundA most unusual (super)predator
Worm, B. (2015) · Science · doi:10.1126/science.aac8697 · Cited by 18
Rural protein insufficiency in a wildlife-depleted West African farm-forest landscape
Schulte‐Herbrüggen, B., Cowlishaw, G., Homewood, K., & Rowcliffe, J. M. (2017) · PLoS ONE · doi:10.1371/journal.pone.0188109 · Cited by 18
Long‐term changes in a zooplankton community revealed by the sediment archive
Vehmaa, A., Katajisto, T., & Candolin, U. (2018) · Limnology and Oceanography · doi:10.1002/lno.10928 · Cited by 19
Bröder, L., Tatin, L., Danielczak, A., Seibel, T., & Hochkirch, A. (2018) · Oryx · doi:10.1017/s0030605318000170 · Cited by 18
The Decline of Insect Representation in Biology Textbooks Over Time
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Little evidence of a road‐effect zone for nocturnal, flying insects
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Harvey, V. L., Egerton, V. M., Chamberlain, A. T., Manning, P. L., Sellers, W. I., & Buckley, M. (2019) · The Holocene · doi:10.1177/0959683618824793 · Cited by 17
“Work in this area is critically important as we begin to formally recognize a departure from the Holocene epoch, into the Anthropocene (e.g. Dirzo et al., 2014; Smith and Zeder, 2013; Waters et al., 2016).”
BackgroundVera‐Escalona, I., Habit, E., & Ruzzante, D. E. (2019) · Proceedings of the Royal Society B Biological Sciences · doi:10.1098/rspb.2018.2567 · Cited by 19
Walas, Ł., Ganatsas, P., Iszkuło, G., Thomas, P. A., & Dering, M. (2019) · PLoS ONE · doi:10.1371/journal.pone.0226225 · Cited by 19
Peña, R., Schleuning, M., Donoso, I., Rodríguez‐Pérez, J., Dalerum, F., & Garcı́a, D. (2020) · Functional Ecology · doi:10.1111/1365-2435.13566 · Cited by 18
“Anthropogenic disturbances can affect ecosystem functioning through their impact on biodiversity, particularly since species extinctions can lead to decays in ecological functions (Cardinale et al., 2012; Dirzo et al., 2014).”
BackgroundA global class reunion with multiple groups feasting on the declining insect smorgasbord
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Martínez‐Estévez, L., Amador, J. P. C., Amador, F. C., et al. (2021) · Global Ecology and Conservation · doi:10.1016/j.gecco.2021.e01540 · Cited by 18
“Declines in biodiversity across local, regional, and global scales have resulted in significant direct and indirect ecological and human social consequences (Dirzo et al., 2014).”
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“In the Anthropocene era, human activities have a dominant influence on the global environmental change [1].”
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“…for most taxa human-induced changes are negative and can be recognized in loss of genetic variability, lower population sizes, or even extinction (Kueffer and Kaiser-Bunbury 2013; Dirzo et al. 2014; Ceballos et al. 2015), some taxa do benefit from these ❖ changes (Ellis, Antill and Kreft 2012).”
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Stevens, B. S., & Conway, C. J. (2020) · Conservation Science and Practice · doi:10.1111/csp2.178 · Cited by 18
Inbreeding and disease avoidance in a free‐ranging koala population
Schultz, A., Cristescu, R. H., Hanger, J. J., et al. (2020) · Molecular Ecology · doi:10.1111/mec.15488 · Cited by 18
Ávila-Nájera, D. M., Chávez, C., Lazcano-Barrero, M. A., et al. (2015) · PubMed · Cited by 18
Tzafesta, E., & Shokri, M. (2025) · Ecological Indicators · doi:10.1016/j.ecolind.2025.113669 · Cited by 20
Unintentional rewilding: lessons for trophic rewilding from other forms of species introductions
Tanentzap, A. J., & Smith, B. R. (2018) · Philosophical Transactions of the Royal Society B Biological Sciences · doi:10.1098/rstb.2017.0445 · Cited by 17
Averting robo-bees: why free-flying robotic bees are a bad idea
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Grassland fallows as key for successful insect conservation
Frenzel, T., Wörsdörfer, A., Khedhiri, S., Giulio, M. D., Leus, F., Lipperts, M., Martin, D., & Fischer, K. (2021) · Insect Conservation and Diversity · doi:10.1111/icad.12525 · Cited by 17
Social norms shape wild bird hunting: A case study from southwest China
Commerçon, F. A., Zhang, M., & Solomon, J. N. (2021) · Global Ecology and Conservation · doi:10.1016/j.gecco.2021.e01882 · Cited by 18
Li, J., Dirzo, R., Wang, Y., Zeng, D., Liu, J., Ren, P., Zhong, L., & Ding, P. (2021) · Diversity and Distributions · doi:10.1111/ddi.13437 · Cited by 17
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Primate reintroduction promotes the recruitment of large-seeded plants via secondary dispersal
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Spatial analysis to inform the mitigation hierarchy
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“development, and reproduction [8, 15, 54], and eventually cause the decline of insect biomass and/or diversity [7, 10].”
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Malley, G. S., & Gorenflo, L. J. (2023) · PLoS ONE · doi:10.1371/journal.pone.0274155 · Cited by 20
Kajzer‐Bonk, J., & Nowicki, P. (2023) · Biological Conservation · doi:10.1016/j.biocon.2023.110050 · Cited by 17
Bridging archaeology and marine conservation in the Neotropics
Fossile, T., Herbst, D. F., McGrath, K. M., Toso, A., Giannini, P. C. F., Milheira, R. G., Gilson, S., Ferreira, J., Bandeira, D. D. R., Haimovici, M., et al. (2023) · PLoS ONE · doi:10.1371/journal.pone.0285951 · Cited by 19
Diesel exhaust particles alter gut microbiome and gene expression in the bumblebee Bombus terrestris
Seidenath, D., Weig, A. R., Mittereder, A., Hillenbrand, T., Brüggemann, D., Opel, T., Langhof, N., Riedl, M., Feldhaar, H., & Otti, O. (2023) · Ecology and Evolution · doi:10.1002/ece3.10180 · Cited by 18
“Global biodiversity loss is one of the major challenges humanity currently faces (Diaz et al. 2006, Dirzo et al. 2014).”
BackgroundConserving avian evolutionary history can effectively safeguard future benefits for people
Gumbs, R., Gray, C. L., Hoffmann, M., Molina‐Venegas, R., Owen, N., & Pollock, L. J. (2023) · Science Advances · doi:10.1126/sciadv.adh4686 · Cited by 17
Saha, T., Genoud, A. P., Williams, G., & Thomas, B. (2023) · Scientific Reports · doi:10.1038/s41598-023-42884-7 · Cited by 19
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“We also know that when frugivores disappear, the diversity and regeneration of tree species decreases [16,17].”
BackgroundAVOTREX : A Global Dataset of Extinct Birds and Their Traits
Sayol, F., Wayman, J. P., Dufour, P., Martin, T. E., HUME, J. P., Jørgensen, M. W., Martínez‐Rubio, N., Sanglas, A., Soares, F. C., Cooke, R., et al. (2024) · Global Ecology and Biogeography · doi:10.1111/geb.13927 · Cited by 18
Large wildlife removal drives immune defence increases in rodents
Young, H. S., Dirzo, R., Helgen, K. M., McCauley, D. J., Nunn, C. L., Snyder, P. W., Veblen, K. E., Zhao, S. Y., & Ezenwa, V. O. (2015) · Functional Ecology · doi:10.1111/1365-2435.12542 · Cited by 16
“These changes ultimately lead to powerful, often transfor- mative, effects on a wide range of ecosystem functions and services (Estes et al. 2011; Atwood et al. 2013; Dirzo et al. 2014).”
BackgroundSelf-citationGeospatial Analysis of Reed Bamboo (Ochlandra travancorica) Invasion in Western Ghats, India
Dutta, K., & Reddy, C. S. (2016) · Journal of the Indian Society of Remote Sensing · doi:10.1007/s12524-015-0534-5 · Cited by 17
“With increasing globalization initiated by anthropogenically driven processes, biodiversity on earth is being dramatically affected (Díaz et al. 2006; Dirzo et al. 2014).”
BackgroundContext‐Dependent Effects of Largewildlife Declines on Small‐Mammal Communities in Central Kenya
Young, H. S., McCauley, D. J., Dirzo, R., Goheen, J. R., Agwanda, B. R., Brook, C. E., Castillo, E. O., Ferguson, A. W., Kinyua, S. N., McDonough, M. M., et al. (2014) · Bulletin of the Ecological Society of America · doi:10.1890/0012-9623-96.1.157 · Cited by 17
Self-citationClare, D. S., Spencer, M., Robinson, L. A., & Frid, C. L. J. (2017) · Oikos · doi:10.1111/oik.03661 · Cited by 18
Long‐term consistency in spatial patterns of primate seed dispersal
Heymann, E. W., Culot, L., Knogge, C., et al. (2017) · Ecology and Evolution · doi:10.1002/ece3.2756 · Cited by 17
“…targets of hunting, and in many tropical regions their densities have been drastically reduced or they have been hunted to local extinction (Dirzo et al., 2014; Fa & Brown, 2009; Peres, 1990, 2000), seed dispersal is limited particularly for large- seeded plants, with subsequent effects on…”
BackgroundMuseum collections indicate bird defaunation in a biodiversity hotspot
Junior, V. A. C., Silveira, L. F., Tonetti, V. R., et al. (2017) · Biota Neopropica/Biota Neotropica · doi:10.1590/1676-0611-bn-2017-0404 · Cited by 17
On the teaching of ecological restoration in Brazil: an analysis of postgraduate courses
Sansevero, J. B. B., Alonso, J. M., Booth, M. C., Bueno, M. M., Carvalho, L. S., Clemente, N. L., Foesch, M. D. S., Mateus, F. A., & Valcarcel, R. (2017) · Restoration Ecology · doi:10.1111/rec.12662 · Cited by 17
“…century, the planet has gone through a process of great transformation in land use (Ellis et al. 2010), which has resulted in habitat loss (Myers et al. 2000), forest fragmentation (Laurance 1999), species extinction (Dirzo et al. 2014), and the loss of ecosystem services (Nicholson et al. 2009).”
BackgroundThe sociology of sea turtle research: evidence on a global expansion of co-authorship networks
Mazaris, A. D., Gkazinou, C., Almpanidou, V., & Balazs, G. H. (2018) · Biodiversity and Conservation · doi:10.1007/s10531-018-1506-1 · Cited by 18
Human- and risk-mediated browsing pressure by sympatric antelope in an African savanna
Otieno, T. O., Goheen, J. R., Webala, P. W., Mwangi, A., Osuga, I. M., & Ford, A. T. (2019) · Biological Conservation · doi:10.1016/j.biocon.2019.01.028 · Cited by 19
Ecological and social consequences of bison reintroduction in Colorado.
Wilkins, K., Pejchar, L., & Garvoille, R. (2019) · Conservation Science and Practice · doi:10.1111/csp2.9 · Cited by 16
“The decline or extinction of animals, known as defaunation, has important consequences for natural communities and human well-being (Dirzo et al., 2014).”
BackgroundFeeding Essential Biodiversity Variables (EBVs): actual and potential contributions from LTER-Italy
Zilioli, M., Oggioni, A., Tagliolato, P., Pugnetti, A., & Carrara, P. (2019) · Nature Conservation · doi:10.3897/natureconservation.34.30735 · Cited by 17
“2006), biodiversity is threatened by anthropogenic stressors (Barnosky et al. 2011; Dirzo et al. 2014).”
BackgroundProtected areas lacking for many common fluvial fishes of the conterminous USA
Cooper, A. R., Tsang, Y., Infante, D. M., Daniel, W. M., McKerrow, A. J., & Wieferich, D. J. (2019) · Diversity and Distributions · doi:10.1111/ddi.12937 · Cited by 17
“Declines in populations of numerous taxa are occurring globally (Butchart et al., 2010; Dirzo et al., 2014), with many examples of formerly common species that are now extinct in both aquatic and terrestrial ecosystems (Dirzo et al., 2014; Jelks et al., 2008; Lindenmayer et al., 2011).”
BackgroundKusamba, C. (2019) · Nature Conservation Research · doi:10.24189/ncr.2019.035 · Cited by 19
“It is known worldwide that species are threatened with extinction due to human pressure (Speight, 1992; Hartley et al., 2007; Dirzo et al., 2014).”
BackgroundSobre la ecología política posthumanista
Durand, L., & Sundberg, J. (2019) · Sociedad y Ambiente · doi:10.31840/sya.v0i20.1989 · Cited by 17
Legrand, M., Briand, C., Buisson, L., Artur, G., Azam, D., Baisez, A., Barracou, D., Bourré, N., Carry, L., Caudal, A.-L., et al. (2020) · Knowledge and Management of Aquatic Ecosystems · doi:10.1051/kmae/2019046 · Cited by 21
Donázar, J. A., Cortés‐Avizanda, A., Ceballos, O., et al. (2020) · Ecological Indicators · doi:10.1016/j.ecolind.2020.106188 · Cited by 17
Sáenz‐Jiménez, F., Rojas‐Soto, O., Pérez‐Torres, J., et al. (2020) · Bird Conservation International · doi:10.1017/s0959270920000271 · Cited by 17
“In addition, it has been proposed that species of large body size and with low reproductive rates (as in the case of the Andean Condor) will be more prone to extinction (Pimm et al. 2006, Dirzo et al. 2014).”
BackgroundA strategic road map for conserving the Endangered dhole Cuon alpinus in India
Srivathsa, A., Sharma, S., Singh, P., Punjabi, G. A., & Oli, M. K. (2020) · Mammal Review · doi:10.1111/mam.12209 · Cited by 22
“The past decade characterises an era of extensive documentation on global species extinctions (Szabo et al. 2012, Dirzo et al. 2014, Pimm et al. 2014).”
BackgroundFontes, B. L., Desbiez, A. L. J., Massocato, G. F., et al. (2020) · Global Ecology and Conservation · doi:10.1016/j.gecco.2020.e01357 · Cited by 17
Santana, M. L. E. C., Carvalho, F. R., & Teresa, F. B. (2021) · Biota Neotropica · doi:10.1590/1676-0611-bn-2020-0980 · Cited by 18
Large-scale reptile extinctions following European colonization of the Guadeloupe Islands
Bochaton, C., Paradis, E., Bailón, S., et al. (2021) · Science Advances · doi:10.1126/sciadv.abg2111 · Cited by 17
“Islands are some of the most imperiled ecosystems on the planet (6, 29, 30), their fragility offering clues as to what the future holds in more resilient continental ecosystems.”
BackgroundFrugivore diversity increases evenness in the seed rain on deforested tropical landscapes
Camargo, P. H. S. A., Carlo, T. A., Brancalion, P. H. S., & Pizo, M. A. (2021) · Oikos · doi:10.1111/oik.08028 · Cited by 17
The Holobiont as a Key to the Adaptation and Conservation of Wild Bees in the Anthropocene
Maebe, K., Vereecken, N. J., Piot, N., Reverté, S., Cejas, D., Michez, D., Vandamme, P. A. R., & Smagghe, G. J. (2021) · Frontiers in Ecology and Evolution · doi:10.3389/fevo.2021.781470 · Cited by 17
“Nowadays, there is undisputable evidence that the rise of Homo sapiens was –and still is– sadly associated with the widespread and often-irreversible demise of multitude of life forms on the planet, including negative population trends, population extirpations and significant range contractions leading eventually to s…”
BackgroundRosa, D. C. P., Brocardo, C. R., Rosa, C., Castro, A. B., Norris, D., & Fadini, R. F. (2021) · Acta Amazonica · doi:10.1590/1809-4392202101481 · Cited by 19
“The loss of largest mammal species is not random and follows classic defaunation patterns, according to which the largest species are the first and mostly affected (Dirzo et al. 2014).”
BackgroundBrzozowski, M., Pełechaty, M., & Bogawski, P. (2022) · Global Ecology and Conservation · doi:10.1016/j.gecco.2022.e02038 · Cited by 18
Chávez‐Pesqueira, M., Carmona, D., Suárez‐Montes, P., Núñez‐Farfán, J., & Aguilar, R. (2015) · Biological Conservation · doi:10.1016/j.biocon.2015.10.002 · Cited by 16
Monodominance in tropical forests: modelling reveals emerging clusters and phase transitions
Kazmierczak, M., Backmann, P., Fedriani, J. M., Fischer, R., Hartmann, A. K., Huth, A., May, F., Müller, M. S., Taubert, F., Grimm, V., et al. (2016) · Journal of The Royal Society Interface · doi:10.1098/rsif.2016.0123 · Cited by 20
IUCN Red List of Threatened Primate Species
Cotton, A. J., Clark, F. E., Boubli, J. P., & Schwitzer, C. (2016) · Oxford University Press eBooks · doi:10.1093/acprof:oso/9780198703389.003.0003 · Cited by 18
Exotic-Dominated Grasslands Show Signs of Recovery with Cattle Grazing and Fire
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Mouton, T. L., González‐Pestana, A., Rohner, C. A., Charles, R., García‐Rodríguez, E., Kyne, P. M., Batlle-Morera, A., di Sciara, G. N., Armstrong, A. O., Acuña, E., et al. (2024) · Marine Policy · doi:10.1016/j.marpol.2024.106448 · Cited by 19
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Human-animal relations in the capitalocene: environmental impacts and alternatives
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“Wild animals remain an important food source formany people across the globe and up to 36% of all birds, amphibians, and mammals that are used for food or medicine are facing extinction (Dirzo et al. 2014).”
BackgroundInfluentialClimate change enforces to look beyond the plant – the example of pollinators
Christmann, S. (2019) · Current Opinion in Plant Biology · doi:10.1016/j.pbi.2019.11.001 · Cited by 17
Enhancing monitoring of rewilding progress through wildlife tracking and remote sensing
Mata, J. C., Buitenwerf, R., & Svenning, J. (2021) · PLoS ONE · doi:10.1371/journal.pone.0253148 · Cited by 17
“Rewilding is applied to restore ecosystem functionality such as predation, herbivory, physical disturbance of vegetation, nutrient distribution, and fire dynamics [3, 4, 8, 9].”
BackgroundMethodCauses and Reasons of Insect Decline and the Way Forward
Dar, S. A., Ansari, M. J., Naggar, Y. A., Hassan, S., Nighat, S., Zehra, S. B., Rashid, R., Hassan, M., & Hussain, B. (2021) · IntechOpen eBooks · doi:10.5772/intechopen.98786 · Cited by 22
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“Overexploitation of wildlife has been linked to significantly reduced wildlife populations (Benítez-López et al., 2017) and increased extinction risk for many medium and large-bodied species (Dirzo et al., 2014).”
BackgroundGrames, E. M., Montgomery, G. A., Boyes, D., Dicks, L. V., Forister, M. L., Matson, T. A., Nakagawa, S., Prendergast, K. S., Taylor, N. G., Tingley, M. W., et al. (2022) · Conservation Science and Practice · doi:10.1111/csp2.12687 · Cited by 18
Metadata
- Authors
- Dirzo, R., Young, H. S., Galetti, M., Ceballos, G., Isaac, N. J. B., & Collen, B.
- Affiliations
- Stanford University (US)
- University of California, Santa Barbara (US)
- Universidade Estadual Paulista (Unesp) (BR)
- Universidad Nacional Autónoma de México (MX)
- Natural Environment Research Council (GB)
- University College London (GB)
- Corresponding author
- Dirzo, Rodolfo
- Venue
- Science
- Published
- 2014-07-25
- Volume
- 345
- Issue
- 6195
- Pages
- 401-406
- ISSN
- 0036-8075 (ISSN-L)
- 1095-9203
- OpenAlex
- W2100135944
- Cited by
- 4,474
- References
- 164
- Citations by year
- 2026: 382 · 2025: 425 · 2024: 397 · 2023: 475 · 2022: 501 · 2021: 494 · 2020: 416 · 2019: 411 · 2018: 294 · 2017: 280 · 2016: 189 · 2015: 167 · 2014: 39
- FWCI
- 16.67
- Type
- journal article
- Language
- en
- Open access
- green
- discovery.ucl.ac.uk
- Locations
- Science (publishedVersion)
- PubMed (publishedVersion)
- UCL Discovery (University College London) (submittedVersion)
- Acervo Digital da Universidade Estadual Paulista (Universidade Estadual Paulista) (submittedVersion)
- UNESP Institutional Repository (São Paulo State University) (submittedVersion)
- Zenodo (CERN European Organization for Nuclear Research)
- Funders
- Fundação de Amparo à Pesquisa do Estado de São Paulo
- Conselho Nacional de Desenvolvimento Científico e Tecnológico
- Natural Environment Research Council (CEH010010)
- Topics
- Physical Sciences › Environmental Science › Nature and Landscape Conservation › Ecology and Vegetation Dynamics Studies
- Physical Sciences › Environmental Science › Ecology › Wildlife Ecology and Conservation
- Life Sciences › Agricultural and Biological Sciences › Ecology, Evolution, Behavior and Systematics › Plant and animal studies
- Keywords
- defaunation, biodiversity loss, species abundance decline, extinction, invertebrates, terrestrial vertebrates, sixth mass extinction, ecosystem functioning, Anthropocene
- MeSH terms
- Animals, Birds, Humans, Human Activities, Insecta, Invertebrates, Mammals, Pest Control, Population, Biodiversity, Extinction, Biological, Pollination, Endangered Species
About these checks
Registry, retraction, Cites and statistics results are computed, not judged, with one exception: a printed reference that no index lists is read once by a model before it counts as a citation error. Claims are extracted by a model and kept only when their quote appears verbatim in the text; each cited source is then checked, with a model’s help, for whether it says what the claim relies on. Those verdicts can be wrong — read the claim’s quote and the cited source before relying on one.
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