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Especies en Peligro y Patrones de Desarrollo en los Estados Unidos
Author(s) -
BROWN ROGER M.,
LABAND DAVID N.
Publication year - 2006
Publication title -
conservation biology
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 2.2
H-Index - 222
eISSN - 1523-1739
pISSN - 0888-8892
DOI - 10.1111/j.1523-1739.2005.00294.x
Subject(s) - geography , biodiversity , spatial distribution , ecology , extinction (optical mineralogy) , distribution (mathematics) , multivariate statistics , physical geography , biology , statistics , mathematics , paleontology , mathematical analysis , remote sensing
Conservation biologists and others hypothesize that humankind's “ecological footprint” is affected not only by the sheer intensity of human activity but also by its spatial arrangement. We used a multivariate statistical model and state‐level data to evaluate correlations between species imperilment and the level and spatial distribution of human settlement and infrastructure development in the United States. The level of human activity—measured by the number of people and households, incidence of roads, and intensity of nighttime lights—was significantly correlated with the ecological imperilment of species. Our regression models consistently showed that a 1% increase in the level of human activity across the United States was associated with about a 0.25% increase in the proportion of plant and animal species considered at risk of extinction by The Nature Conservancy. The distribution of human activity did not affect species imperilment. Our results point to rising levels of human activity—and not some particular (e.g., sprawling) distribution of human activity—as the most relevant anthropogenic factor explaining biodiversity loss in the United States.