The Protection of Species versus Habitats — Dilemmas for Marine Scientists

摘要

Conservation of the marine environment has been increasingly recognized as important during the past 15 years and, indeed, it becomes critical if the generally adopted definition of biodiversity is extended to include phylogenetic diversity. For example, while 15 phyla such as Echinodermata are exclusively marine, most species diversity on land is the result of the radiation of the Arthropoda. Thus, with many more basic body plans represented in the marine environment compared with the terrestrial, conservation of the marine system becomes especially important. The desirability of protecting the marine environment requires no further debate, as shown by national, international and global fora. Instead, the debate now centres on which approach(es) should be adopted to protect as much as possible with limited resources for monitoring the systems.