The accelerating decline in biodiversity and the threats it poses are increasingly a topic of discussion. Despite growing recognition of the links between nature and climate, efforts to meaningfully protect biodiversity suffer from a lack of attention and investment. While there are inspiring conservation successes, such as the recovery of the peregrine falcon in Canada or the California condor in the US, these isolated successes have not yet translated into the integrated systems needed to protect the full breadth of biodiversity. In this context, habitat protection often seen as a key, proactive strategy for the conservation of ecosystems and species. However, while essential, it is not a universal solution to all the challenges faced by many endangered species.

The importance and benefits of habitat protection

Conservation measures are often understood as taking place within a multi-level framework that covers all elements of biological diversity, from the gene to the ecosystem. Within this framework, proactive area- and ecosystem-based approaches essential for biodiversity conservationGovernments and conservation partners identify and protect lands and waters that are representative of a set of ecosystems, providing habitat for individual species and maintaining associated community interactions and evolutionary heritage. These proactive protections should be resilient to natural disturbances, both now and in the future.

The history of establishing protected areas, at least in part motivated by nature conservation, is long. For example Yellowstone National Park was established in 1872 as the first national park in the US and the world. Similar conservation measures can be found in Europe, where the European Union Birds Directive and the Habitats Directive were responsible for shifting conservation towards a species-based approach and led to the creation of Natura 2000, a continent-wide network of protected areas focused on conserving biodiversity and integrating conservation with sustainable land use. Countries like Canada have also committed to ambitious targets, such as protecting 30% of their land and water by 2030, in line with the Kunming-Montreal Global Biodiversity Framework.

A review of the data confirms that Many of the identified threatened species in Canada face threats associated with habitat loss and degradation.Improvements in habitat quantity and quality can lead to increased population distribution and abundance. Larger populations over larger areas of habitat will be more resilient to the stochastic impacts that threaten many at-risk species.

Habitat protection constraints and the need for targeted measures

Despite the undeniable importance of habitat protection, sources emphasize that it is not a universal solutionMany endangered species are threatened due to extremely restricted distribution or small population sizes and need other targeted measuresThese measures include, for example, captive breeding, translocation, predation or competition management, veterinary interventions to address diseases and parasites, and control of predators and competitors.

Key threats such as use of biological resources, pollution, climate change and invasive species, are not effectively addressed by habitat protection alone. For example, the sunflower star (Pycnopodia helianthoides) declined rapidly in 2014 and 2015 due to a poorly understood disease (Sea Star Wasting Disease). Even full protection of its extensive marine habitat is unlikely to prevent or mitigate this threat.

Furthermore, it has been found that protected areas are often not systematically targeted to represent ecosystems or areas with the highest number of threatened species, but rather to address human uses. In British Columbia, for example, despite a multi-level approach to protecting forest ecosystems, evidence suggests that this protection is not sufficient to maintain natural levels of biodiversity, as illustrated by the ongoing loss of forested habitat for important threatened species such as woodland caribou and northern owl. Furthermore, existing regulatory tools are limited to public lands, a small number of species, and activities related to forestry, grazing, or oil and gas exploration and production.

For species with very few adults (e.g. fewer than 250) or very restricted distributions (e.g. ranges of less than 20 km²), intensive, locally focused measures are needed to maintain survival and initiate population recovery. An example is the Sable Island Sweat Bee, which is found only on Sable Island and is threatened by invasive plants, habitat disturbance by introduced horses, and seawater inundation. Large-scale habitat measures are not possible for this species, underscoring the need for species-specific conservation.

Integration and holistic approach

The protection of individual species is considered essential to address non-habitat-related threats and to strengthen direct measures to restore species that are close to extinction. These reactive measures are not a substitute, but complementing more proactive conservation tools aimed at maintaining habitats, communities and ecosystems.

For effective protection of biodiversity, it is necessary whole-of-government approach, where species conservation is not confined to a single environmental department but is integrated into broader decision-making and policy planning. This includes recognizing biodiversity as a fundamental value. Threatened or endangered species can serve as flagships for broader conservation initiatives and provide valuable insights into broader ecosystem changes.

A fundamental shift is needed from reactive, crisis-driven measures to proactive, preventive strategies. Addressing biodiversity loss requires addressing systemic drivers of decline, such as land-use change and unsustainable resource use, and adopting policies that prioritize the long-term resilience of ecosystems. This shift must integrate species conservation into broader ecosystem-based strategies, but this must not be at the expense of targeted protection for species that require specific intervention.

Habitat protection is undoubtedly key and forms the backbone of a proactive approach to the conservation of biodiversity. It provides the basis for resilient ecosystems and is essential for addressing habitat loss and degradation. However, to comprehensively address the current biodiversity crisis, it needs to be recognised and complemented by targeted, species-specific measures. This is particularly the case where species are on the brink of extinction or face threats such as pollution, invasive species or climate change that are not adequately addressed by habitat protection alone. Effective biodiversity protection requires a multi-level approach that integrates robust habitat protection with flexible and targeted measures to save individual species. Only in this way can we ensure the permanent preservation of our natural diversity. JRi

The study was published in the journal FACETS Journey