Climate change is devastating our planet's biodiversity, including species critical to halting the warming of our planet. Without greater protection of nature, we will fall short of solving the climate change crisis.
The Washington Post published an OpEd from Panthera’s Chief Scientist, Dr. John Goodrich, that proposes a compelling concept: wild cats should be utilized as indicators of progress for the overall health of our planet’s biodiversity and our fight against climate change. This message was delivered just ahead of the United Nations Convention on Biological Diversity (COP15) in Montreal, where 190 nations adopted a global agreement to reverse biodiversity loss.
Read the OpEd
Panthera highlights the important role that wild cats, as umbrella, indicator, flagship and keystone species, play in biodiversity conservation and climate change mitigation.
Wild cats are not only essential to our cultures and traditions, they also serve important roles as flagship, umbrella, indicator and keystone species. Situated at the top of their food chains and living alongside thousands of species, healthy wild cat populations signal healthy ecosystems. Wild cats occupy an astonishing 74 percent of Earth’s landmass and nearly every forest on earth is occupied by at least one cat species. These species also overlap with three-quarters of the world’s Key Biodiversity Areas: landscapes that are home to critical populations of the world’s threatened species.
The tiger is a flagship species — a well-known, charismatic cat that can serve as a conservation ambassador and garner funding and support from policymakers and the public alike. Tigers require huge territories and thrive in biodiverse landscapes, so investment in this species has a trickle-down effect on entire ecosystems and regions. Research has shown that protected areas with tigers have greater biodiversity and carbon stocks because they are better protected from poaching and illegal activities that result in habitat degradation.
As the largest big cat in the Americas, jaguars coexist with thousands of other species. A study of jaguar conservation showed that the range-wide network of core jaguar populations and corridors performed better than random networks in protecting biodiversity and habitats. Jaguars roam from northern Mexico to Argentina, a vast habitat that encompasses most of the Americas’ tropical forests. Protecting jaguars — and their range — would have a substantial impact on humans, especially the 53 million people who directly benefit from these forests.
(SOURCE WWF)
While tropical forests and jungles make a lot of headlines, savannas are lesser-recognized biodiversity hotspots. Nearly all of the world’s remaining 24,000 wild lions live in savannas, including in woodland savanna habitats, which play a key role in carbon retention. As an indicator species, monitoring lions can provide insights into the health of these complex ecosystems. One study showed how the presence of lions and other large mammals can be used to assess the effectiveness of protected areas. Researchers can use data about these indicator species to evaluate the health of biodiversity in a landscape, in the same manner that forest cover indicates forest retention. Funding research and protection efforts for lions can indirectly benefit the thousands of species with whom they share their habitats.
COP, or Conferences of the Parties, are meetings of the Parties to UN Conventions on climate, biodiversity, international trade in endangered species, among others.They are attended by governments, which work together to adopt their agendas on key issues affecting the environment, and observer organizations like Panthera, which bring a variety of perspectives to help influence the outcomes.
More position statements can be found on our Informing Policy page.
By joining our email list, you will receive the latest conservation updates, exciting stories from the field, our monthly newsletter, and more.
Join Our Email ListPanthera cares about your privacy. Read our Privacy Policy.
© Sebastian Kennerknecht
