Flagship species

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Tiger as flagship species for a campaign in Tamil Nadu, India Berijam tiger sign.jpg
Tiger as flagship species for a campaign in Tamil Nadu, India

In conservation biology, a flagship species is a species chosen to raise support for biodiversity conservation in a given place or social context. Definitions have varied, but they have tended to focus on the strategic goals and the socio-economic nature of the concept, to support the marketing of a conservation effort. The species need to be popular, to work as symbols or icons, and to stimulate people to provide money or support.

Contents

Species selected since the idea was developed in 1980s include widely recognised and charismatic species like the black rhinoceros, the Bengal tiger, and the Asian elephant. Some species such as the Chesapeake blue crab and the Pemba flying fox, the former of which is locally significant to Northern America, have suited a cultural and social context. Although animal species that can be described as "charismatic megafauna" are frequently the flagship species for a protected ecosystem, large, dominant plant species sometimes serve this role as well, for example, several United States national parks, including Redwood National and State Parks, Joshua Tree National Park, and Saguaro National Park, are named for the flagship plant species for those protected areas. Butterfly species, such as the monarch butterfly, have also served as flagship species in some contexts. [1]

Utilizing a flagship species has limitations. It can skew management and conservation priorities, which may conflict. Stakeholders may be negatively affected if the flagship species is lost. The use of a flagship may have limited effect, and the approach may not protect the species from extinction: all of the top ten charismatic groups of animal, including tigers, lions, elephants and giraffes, are endangered.

Definitions

Zanzibar red colobus as flagship species for a conservation organization in Zanzibar JCBCP logo.png
Zanzibar red colobus as flagship species for a conservation organization in Zanzibar

The term flagship is linked to the metaphor of representation. In its popular usage, flagships are viewed as ambassadors or icons for a conservation project or movement. The geographer Maan Barua noted that metaphors influence what people understand and how they act; that mammals are disproportionately chosen; and that biologists need to come to grips with language to improve the public's knowledge of conservation. [2] Several definitions have been advanced for the flagship species concept and for some time there has been confusion even in the academic literature. [3] Most of the latest definitions focus on the strategic, socio-economic, and marketing character of the concept. [3] [4] Some definitions are:

History

The flagship species concept appears to have become popular around the mid 1980s [7] within the debate on how to prioritise species for conservation. The first widely available references to use the flagship concept applied it to both neotropical primates [8] and African elephants and rhinos, [9] in the mammal-centric approach that still dominates how the concept is used. [10] [11] [12] The use of flagship species has been dominated by large bodied animals, [13] especially mammals, [12] although members of other taxonomic groups have occasionally been used. [1]

Bald eagle as flagship for forests in the United States "Behind the eagel stand the forests" - NARA - 513948.tif
Bald eagle as flagship for forests in the United States

Flagship species projects have sometimes been successful in saving the species and its habitat, as with the American bald eagle [14] and the manatee. [15]

Choosing species

Chosen flagship species are often charismatic, well-known species: see the Bengal tiger (Panthera tigris), the giant panda (Ailuropoda melanoleuca), the Golden lion tamarin (Leontopithecus rosalia), the African elephant (Loxodonta sp.) and Asian elephant (Elephas maximus). [3] [10] However, because flagship species are selected according to the audience they are hoping to influence, these species can also belong to traditionally uncharismatic groups if the cultural and social content is right. [16] [3] [17] Less charismatic but locally significant species include the use of the Pemba flying fox as a flagship in Tanzania, [16] and of the Chesapeake blue crab as a flagship in the US. [18]

Some flagship species are keystone species, like the African lion, a top predator: it used to control the populations of large herbivores, protecting ecosystems across the entire landscape. However, the lion's ability to serve as a keystone species is decreasing as its population and range decline. [19] [20] The WWF uses flagship species as one of its species classification categories, along with keystone and indicator species. It chooses between these when selecting a priority species to represent the conservation threats facing a certain region. [21]

Eurasian lynx as flagship for a protected area in Poland POL Bieszczadzki Park Narodowy LOGO.svg
Eurasian lynx as flagship for a protected area in Poland

Flagship species can represent an environmental feature (e.g. a species or ecosystem), cause (e.g. climate change or ocean acidification), organization (e.g. NGO or government department) or geographic region (e.g. state or protected area). [3] [22] [11]

Flagship species can be selected according to many different methodologies, such as social marketing, environmental economics, and conservation biology, depending on what is valued by the audience they try to target, [3] and the goals of the project, such as conservation awareness, fundraising, ecotourism promotion, community-based conservation, and promotion of funded research. [11] This is illustrated by the differences in recommendations made for flagship species selection targeting different target audiences such as local communities [16] and tourists. [13]

Limitations

5000 Tanzanian shillings bank note with Black rhinoceros as flagship for the country's wildlife 5000 tz shillings front.jpg
5000 Tanzanian shillings bank note with Black rhinoceros as flagship for the country's wildlife

The use of flagship species has some limitations: [23]

Leaving aside the impact on other species, charisma does not seem to protect even charismatic species against extinction. All ten of the most charismatic groups [a] of animal identified in a 2018 study, namely tiger, lion, elephant, giraffe, leopard, panda, cheetah, polar bear, wolf, and gorilla, are currently endangered; only the giant panda shows a demographic growth from an extremely small population. The researchers suggest that the widespread use of images of these animals has given the public the impression that the animals are abundant, obscuring their high risk of imminent extinction. They note that this remains true despite the intense focus of conservation efforts on these particular species. [23] A major challenge for the utilization of several flagship species in non-Western contexts is that they may come into conflict with local communities, thereby jeopardizing well-intended conservation actions. This has been termed 'flagship mutiny', and is exemplified by the Asian elephant in countries where there is human-elephant conflict. [10]

Other types

Conservation flagships can be used at broader levels, for example as ecosystems like coral reefs, rainforests or protected areas like the Serengeti or Yellowstone. Some recent initiatives have developed flagships based on the conservation value of particular areas or species. Examples of these are the EDGE project run by the Zoological Society of London and the Hotspots run by Conservation International. [3] More recently, work in microbiology has started to use flagship species in a distinct way. This work relates to the biogeography of micro-organisms and uses particular species because "eyecatching "flagships" with conspicuous size and/or morphology are the best distribution indicators". [27] [28]

See also

Notes

  1. ↑ Elephant includes African savannah, African forest, and Asian species; giraffe has been split into four species.

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Ecology</span> Study of organisms and their environment

Ecology is the natural science of the relationships among living organisms and their environment. Ecology considers organisms at the individual, population, community, ecosystem, and biosphere levels. Ecology overlaps with the closely related sciences of biogeography, evolutionary biology, genetics, ethology, and natural history.

Conservation status is a measure used in conservation biology to assess an ecoregion's degree of habitat alteration and habitat conservation. It is used to set priorities for conservation.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Conservation biology</span> Study of threats to biological diversity

Conservation biology is the study of the conservation of nature and of Earth's biodiversity with the aim of protecting species, their habitats, and ecosystems from excessive rates of extinction and the erosion of biotic interactions. It is an interdisciplinary subject drawing on natural and social sciences, and the practice of natural resource management.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Keystone species</span> Species with a large effect on its environment

A keystone species is a species that has a disproportionately large effect on its natural environment relative to its abundance. The concept was introduced in 1969 by the zoologist Robert T. Paine. Keystone species play a critical role in maintaining the structure of an ecological community, affecting many other organisms in an ecosystem and helping to determine the types and numbers of various other species in the community. Without keystone species, the ecosystem would be dramatically different or cease to exist altogether. Some keystone species, such as the wolf and lion, are also apex predators.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Urban ecology</span> Scientific study of living organisms

Urban ecology is the scientific study of the relation of living organisms with each other and their surroundings in an urban environment. An urban environment refers to environments dominated by high-density residential and commercial buildings, paved surfaces, and other urban-related factors that create a unique landscape. The goal of urban ecology is to achieve a balance between human culture and the natural environment.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Habitat conservation</span> Management practice for protecting types of environments

Habitat conservation is a management practice that seeks to conserve, protect and restore habitats and prevent species extinction, fragmentation or reduction in range. It is a priority of many groups that cannot be easily characterized in terms of any one ideology.

A biodiversity hotspot is a biogeographic region with significant levels of biodiversity that is threatened by human habitation. Norman Myers wrote about the concept in two articles in The Environmentalist in 1988 and 1990, after which the concept was revised following thorough analysis by Myers and others into "Hotspots: Earth's Biologically Richest and Most Endangered Terrestrial Ecoregions" and a paper published in the journal Nature, both in 2000.

Freshwater ecosystems are a subset of Earth's aquatic ecosystems. They include lakes, ponds, rivers, streams, springs, bogs, and wetlands. They can be contrasted with marine ecosystems, which have a larger salt content. Freshwater habitats can be classified by different factors, including temperature, light penetration, nutrients, and vegetation. There are three basic types of freshwater ecosystems: Lentic, lotic and wetlands. Freshwater ecosystems contain 41% of the world's known fish species.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Ecosystem engineer</span> Ecological niche

An ecosystem engineer is any species that creates, significantly modifies, maintains or destroys a habitat. These organisms can have a large impact on species richness and landscape-level heterogeneity of an area. As a result, ecosystem engineers are important for maintaining the health and stability of the environment they are living in. Since all organisms impact the environment they live in one way or another, it has been proposed that the term "ecosystem engineers" be used only for keystone species whose behavior very strongly affects other organisms.

The diversity of species and genes in ecological communities affects the functioning of these communities. These ecological effects of biodiversity in turn are affected by both climate change through enhanced greenhouse gases, aerosols and loss of land cover, and biological diversity, causing a rapid loss of biodiversity and extinctions of species and local populations. The current rate of extinction is sometimes considered a mass extinction, with current species extinction rates on the order of 100 to 1000 times as high as in the past.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Bioindicator</span> Species that reveals the status of an environment

A bioindicator is any species or group of species whose function, population, or status can reveal the qualitative status of the environment. The most common indicator species are animals. For example, copepods and other small water crustaceans that are present in many water bodies can be monitored for changes that may indicate a problem within their ecosystem. Bioindicators can tell us about the cumulative effects of different pollutants in the ecosystem and about how long a problem may have been present, which physical and chemical testing cannot.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Charismatic megafauna</span> Large animal species with symbolic value or widespread popular appeal

Charismatic megafauna are animal species that are large—in the category that they represent—with symbolic value or widespread popular appeal, and are often used by environmental activists to gain public support for environmentalist goals. In this definition, animals such as penguins or bald eagles are megafauna because they are among the largest animals within the local animal community, and they disproportionately affect their environment. The vast majority of charismatic megafauna species are threatened and endangered by issues such as overhunting, poaching, black market trade, climate change, habitat destruction, and invasive species. In a 2018 study, the top twenty most charismatic megafauna included the tiger, lion, and elephant.

Biocultural diversity is defined by Luisa Maffi, co-founder and director of Terralingua, as "the diversity of life in all its manifestations: biological, cultural, and linguistic — which are interrelated within a complex socio-ecological adaptive system." "The diversity of life is made up not only of the diversity of plants and animal species, habitats and ecosystems found on the planet, but also of the diversity of human cultures and languages." Research has linked biocultural diversity to the resilience of social-ecological systems. Certain geographic areas have been positively correlated with high levels of biocultural diversity, including those of low latitudes, higher rainfalls, higher temperatures, coastlines, and high altitudes. A negative correlation is found with areas of high latitudes, plains, and drier climates. Positive correlations can also be found between biological diversity and linguistic diversity, illustrated in the overlap between the distribution of plant diverse and language diverse zones. Social factors, such as modes of subsistence, have also been found to affect biocultural diversity.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Insect biodiversity</span>

Insect biodiversity accounts for a large proportion of all biodiversity on the planet—over half of the estimated 1.5 million organism species described are classified as insects.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Umbrella species</span> Species protected to aid further species

Umbrella species are species selected for making conservation-related decisions, typically because protecting these species indirectly protects the many other species that make up the ecological community of its habitat. Species conservation can be subjective because it is hard to determine the status of many species. The umbrella species is often either a flagship species whose conservation benefits other species or a keystone species which may be targeted for conservation due to its impact on an ecosystem. Umbrella species can be used to help select the locations of potential reserves, find the minimum size of these conservation areas or reserves, and to determine the composition, structure, and processes of ecosystems.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Red List Index</span> Conservation status indicator

The Red List Index (RLI), based on the IUCN Red List of Threatened Species, is an indicator of the changing state of global biodiversity. It defines the conservation status of major species groups, and measures trends in extinction risk over time. By conducting conservation assessments at regular intervals, changes in the threat status of species in a taxonomic group can be used to monitor trends in extinction risk. RLIs have been calculated for birds and amphibians, using changes in threat status for species in each of the groups.

The Future of Marine Animal Populations (FMAP) project was one of the core projects of the international Census of Marine Life (2000–2010). FMAP's mission was to describe and synthesize globally changing patterns of species abundance, distribution, and diversity, and to model the effects of fishing, climate change and other key variables on those patterns. This work was done across ocean realms and with an emphasis on understanding past changes and predicting future scenarios.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Wildlife smuggling</span> Illegal gathering, transport and distribution of wild animals

Wildlife smuggling or wildlife trafficking concerns the illegal gathering and trade of endangered species and protected wildlife, including plants and byproducts or products utilizing a species. Research on wildlife smuggling has increased, however, knowledge of the illicit trade remains limited. The differences between international policies and tendencies likely contribute to the extensive estimated range of wildlife smuggling, anywhere from $5-$23 billion, with an additional $67-$193 billion when timber and fish are included. The prolific growth of wildlife smuggling makes it the fourth-largest criminal enterprise globally after drug, firearm, and human trafficking. Products demanded by the trade include but are not limited to ivory, bushmeat, traditional medicine, and exotic pets. China and the United States are the largest buyers in the illegal wildlife trade. It often involves other illegal activities such as tranquilizing animals without proper authorization.

A cultural keystone species is one which is of exceptional significance to a particular culture or a people. Such species can be identified by their prevalence in language, cultural practices, traditions, diet, medicines, material items, and histories of a community. These species influence social systems and culture and are a key feature of a community's identity.

References

  1. 1 2 Guiney, Margaret; Oberhauser, Karen (2009-02-01). "Insects as flagship conservation species". Terrestrial Arthropod Reviews. 1 (2): 111–123. doi:10.1163/187498308x414733.
  2. ↑ Barua, Maan (2011). "Mobilizing metaphors: the popular use of keystone, flagship and umbrella species concepts". Biodiversity and Conservation. 20 (7): 1427–1440. Bibcode:2011BiCon..20.1427B. doi:10.1007/s10531-011-0035-y. S2CID   11030284.
  3. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 Verissimo, Diogo; MacMillan, Douglas C.; Smith, Robert J. (2010-11-29). "Toward a systematic approach for identifying conservation flagships" (PDF). Conservation Letters. 4 (1): 1–8. doi: 10.1111/j.1755-263x.2010.00151.x .
  4. 1 2 Ducarme, Frédéric; Luque, Gloria M.; Courchamp, Franck (2012). "What are "charismatic species" for conservation biologists ?". BioSciences Master Reviews. Retrieved 19 December 2013.
  5. ↑ Walpole, Matthew J.; Leader-Williams, Nigel (2002). "Tourism and Flagship Species in Conservation". Biodiversity and Conservation. 11 (3): 543–547. doi:10.1023/a:1014864708777. S2CID   41927369.
  6. ↑ Heywood, V. H. (1995). Global Biodiversity Assessment. Cambridge University Press. ISBN   978-0521564816.
  7. ↑ Frazier, J. 2005. Marine turtles: the role of flagship species in interactions between people and the Sea MAST, 3(2) and 4(1),5–38
  8. ↑ Mittermeier, R. 1988. Primate diversity and the tropical forest. Pages 145-154 in E. O. Wilson, editor. Biodiversity. National Academy Press. Washington, DC.
  9. ↑ Mittermeier, Russell A. (1986). "Primate Conservation Priorities in the Neotropical Region". In Benirschke, K. (ed.). Primates. Proceedings in Life Sciences. Springer New York. pp. 221–240. doi:10.1007/978-1-4612-4918-4_16. ISBN   978-1-4612-9360-6.{{cite book}}: |work= ignored (help)
  10. 1 2 3 Barua, Maan; Tamuly, Jatin; Ahmed, Riyaz Akhtar (2010-03-24). "Mutiny or Clear Sailing? Examining the Role of the Asian Elephant as a Flagship Species". Human Dimensions of Wildlife. 15 (2): 145–160. Bibcode:2010HDW....15..145B. doi:10.1080/10871200903536176. S2CID   143021377.
  11. 1 2 3 Barua, Maan; Root-Bernstein, Meredith; Ladle, Richard J.; Jepson, Paul (2011-01-04). "Defining Flagship Uses is Critical for Flagship Selection: A Critique of the IUCN Climate Change Flagship Fleet". Ambio. 40 (4): 431–435. Bibcode:2011Ambio..40..431B. doi:10.1007/s13280-010-0116-2. PMC   3357738 . PMID   21809786.
  12. 1 2 Leader-Williams, N.; Dublin, H. T. (2000). "Charismatic megafauna as 'flagship species'". In Entwistle, Abigail (ed.). Priorities for the conservation of mammalian diversity : has the panda had its day. Cambridge University Press. pp. 53–81. ISBN   978-0-521-77536-6. OCLC   42682803.
  13. 1 2 Veríssimo, D.; Fraser, I.; Groombridge, J.; Bristol, R.; MacMillan, D. C. (2009-07-03). "Birds as tourism flagship species: a case study of tropical islands" (PDF). Animal Conservation. 12 (6): 549–558. Bibcode:2009AnCon..12..549V. doi:10.1111/j.1469-1795.2009.00282.x. S2CID   53403873.
  14. ↑ "Bald Eagles | Life History and Conservation Success". US Fish & Wildlife Service. 20 April 2015. Retrieved 15 June 2018.
  15. ↑ Carroll, Sean B. (22 April 2016). "How Two Kinds of Regulation Brought Back the Manatee | The massive marine mammal's numbers have increased by 400 percent in the past quarter-century—and it's not the only such success story". Scientific American . Retrieved 15 June 2018.
  16. 1 2 3 Bowen-Jones, Evan; Entwistle, Abigail (2002). "Identifying appropriate flagship species: the importance of culture and local contexts". Oryx. 36 (2): 189–195. doi: 10.1017/S0030605302000261 .
  17. ↑ Shaw, Meghan N.; Borrie, William T.; McLeod, Emily M.; Miller, Kelly K. (January 2022). "Wildlife Photos on Social Media: A Quantitative Content Analysis of Conservation Organisations' Instagram Images". Animals. 12 (14): 1787. doi: 10.3390/ani12141787 . ISSN   2076-2615. PMC   9311588 . PMID   35883335.
  18. ↑ "Save the Crabs – Then Eat 'Em | The NSMC". www.thensmc.com. Retrieved 10 April 2018.
  19. ↑ "The African lion: what faster decline of apex predator means for ecosystems". The Conversation. 26 October 2015. Retrieved 18 April 2018.
  20. ↑ Hale, Sarah L.; Koprowski, John L. (February 2018). "Ecosystem-level effects of keystone species reintroduction: a literature review". Restoration Ecology. 26 (3): 439–445. Bibcode:2018ResEc..26..439H. doi:10.1111/rec.12684. S2CID   53686934.
  21. ↑ "Global Species Programe: how WWF classifies species | Know your flagship, keystone, priority and indicator species". WWF. 2017. Retrieved 18 April 2018.
  22. ↑ Veríssimo, Diogo; MacMillan, Douglas C.; Smith, Robert J. (2011-04-01). "Marketing diversity: a response to Joseph and colleagues". Conservation Letters. 4 (4): 326–327. Bibcode:2011ConL....4..326V. doi:10.1111/j.1755-263x.2011.00175.x. S2CID   83879042.
  23. 1 2 Courchamp, F.; Jaric, I.; Albert, C.; Meinard, Y.; Ripple, W. J.; Chapron, G. (April 2018). "The paradoxical extinction of the most charismatic animals". PLOS Biology . 16 (4): e2003997. doi: 10.1371/journal.pbio.2003997 . PMC   5896884 . PMID   29649205.
  24. 1 2 3 Simberloff, Daniel (1998). "Flagships, umbrellas, and keystones: Is single-species management passé in the landscape era?". Biological Conservation. 83 (3): 247–257. Bibcode:1998BCons..83..247S. doi:10.1016/s0006-3207(97)00081-5.
  25. ↑ Veríssimo, Diogo; Campbell, Hamish A.; Tollington, Simon; MacMillan, Douglas C.; Smith, Robert J. (2018-01-25). "Why do people donate to conservation? Insights from a 'real world' campaign". PLOS ONE. 13 (1): e0191888. Bibcode:2018PLoSO..1391888V. doi: 10.1371/journal.pone.0191888 . PMC   5785011 . PMID   29370291.
  26. ↑ Simberloff, Daniel (1998-03-01). "Flagships, umbrellas, and keystones: Is single-species management passé in the landscape era?". Biological Conservation. Conservation Biology and Biodiversity Strategies. 83 (3): 247–257. doi:10.1016/S0006-3207(97)00081-5. ISSN   0006-3207.
  27. ↑ Foissner, Wilhelm (April 2005). "Two new "flagship" ciliates (Protozoa, Ciliophora) from Venezuela: Sleighophrys pustulata and Luporinophrys micelae". European Journal of Protistology. 41 (2): 99–117. doi:10.1016/j.ejop.2004.10.002.
  28. ↑ Foissner, W.; Stoeck, T. (2006). "Rigidothrix goiseri nov gen., nov spec. (Rigidotrichidae nov fam.), a new "flagship" ciliate from the Niger floodplain breaks the flexibility-dogma in the classification of stichotrichine spirotrichs (Ciliophora, Spirotrichea)". European Journal of Protistology. 42 (4): 249–267. doi:10.1016/j.ejop.2006.07.003. PMID   17113471.

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