Diverse portfolio of protected areas key to Mexican conservation efforts
Ecologists from Yale found that Mexico's current protected areas cover only 16% of carnivore habitats, but this increases to 39% when including Indigenous territories and wildlife management units. The study emphasizes the need for a diverse portfolio of land management to meet 30x30 conservation goals.
Why it matters
Effective conservation strategies require recognizing non-traditional land management, such as Indigenous territories, to meet global biodiversity targets.
edited by Sadie Harley , reviewed by Andrew Zinin
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Add as preferred source Credit: Unsplash In 2020, Mexico joined 150 nations committing to protect 30% of its territory by 2030 as part of the global 30x30 initiative. More than halfway through the decade, there is ongoing debate about how to effectively expand protected areas to meet that ambitious goal.
Mapping the overlap between the country's current network of protected land and the habitat of 28 terrestrial carnivores, ecologists at the Yale School of the Environment found that 16% of habitat is covered by legally designated conservation areas. The percentage overlap is lower when considering threatened and endangered species specifically, according to the study published in Conservation Science and Practice .
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