Natural grasslands in the Chaco. A neglected ecosystem under threat byn agriculture expansion and forest-oriented conservation policies

摘要

In most tropical and subtropical biomes, conservation strategies are mainly focused on the preservation of forests. However, neotropical dry forest and savanna ecoregions include open habitats that may deserve conservation attention. We analyzed the historical patterns and potential distribution of natural grasslands, as well as their biodiversity in the northern Argentina dry Chaco, which is one of the largest and yet most rapidly transforming neotropical ecoregions. Paleocological literature,