Tools and Metrics for Species Prioritization for Conservation Planning and Action: Case Studies for Antelopes and Small Mammals

Given the scale of the current biodiversity loss, setting conservation priorities is essential to direct scarce resources to where they will be most effective. Many prioritization schemes have been described by using a wide range of criteria that vary across taxonomic groups, spatial scales, and ecological, socio-economic, and governance contexts. Currently, there is no single prioritization process applicable to all situations, nor is there a list of agreed metrics. The IUCN SSC Antelope Specialist Group and the Small Mammal Specialist Group recently performed species prioritization exercises based on a similar approach. The variables used included biological, socio-political, and feasibility criteria. The two exercises contained both common and some unique variables, arranged in a matrix for the target species (29 threatened antelopes and 19 critically endangered Mexican small mammals, respectively). The ASG framework provided a global summary of the antelope priorities, which can be updated and adapted to the national level. The SMSG matrix was applied in a regional workshop to select species for which the likelihood of implementing conservation actions was high and led to conservation action plans being developed for six species. The framework we jointly developed in theory can be applied to other taxa, certainly all mammals and perhaps most vertebrates.