Ecologists find sites home to 'imminent extinctions'

Safeguarding 595 sites around the world would help prevent imminent global extinctions, scientists say.

The sites are the only place remaining on Earth to find at least one species of endangered plants and animals.

Many of the sites are on isolated islands, such as the coast of Baja California, where species often evolve differently from those on the mainland. Others are found in tropical forests or mountains untouched by logging, said study author Mike Parr of the American Bird Conservancy.

Some of the 595 sites provided habitat for more than one endangered species, the researchers reported in Monday's online issue of the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences.

The researchers said 257 of the sites are completely unprotected, and they were unable to determine the status of another 48 locations. Many were surrounded by intense human development.

Developing countries were home to 508 of the sites.

Mexico, where populations of rare parakeet and mockingbird are protected, had the most sites.

Parr and his colleagues focused on five groups:

• Mammals.
• Birds.
• Amphibians.
• Conifers.
• Certain reptiles.

Within the five groups, 794 species were found that are confined to single sites three times the number of recorded extinctions since 1500, the researchers said.

The distribution of the species also differs from historical patterns, which suggests current extinctions extend beyond "sensitive species and places toward the planet's most biodiverse mainland regions."

The species identified require immediate attention and may be difficult to conserve, but recovery is possible, the study's authors said. They pointed to recovering animals, such as the Seychelles warbler and black robin.