title: The importance and benefits of species.
abstract: Humans depend on biodiversity in myriad ways, yet species are being rapidly lost due to human activities. The ecosystem services approach to conservation tries to establish the value that society derives from the natural world such that the true cost of proposed development actions becomes apparent to decision makers. Species are an integral component of ecosystems, and the value they provide in terms of services should be a standard part of ecosystem assessments. However, assessing the value of species is difficult and will always remain incomplete. Some of the most difficult species' benefits to assess are those that accrue unexpectedly or are wholly unanticipated. In this review, we consider recent examples from a wide variety of species and a diverse set of ecosystem services that illustrate this point and support the application of the precautionary principle to decisions affecting the natural world.
authors.affiliation: National Fish and Wildlife Foundation, Washington, DC 20005, USA.
authors.forename: Claude
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Gascon
authors.affiliation: International Union for Conservation of Nature, 1196 Gland, Switzerland.
authors.forename: Thomas M
authors.initials: TM
authors.lastname: Brooks
authors.affiliation: Centro de Investigaciones Biológicas (CIB), Universidad Autónoma del Estado de Morelos, Cuernavaca, Morelos, México.
authors.forename: Topiltzin
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Contreras-MacBeath
authors.affiliation: Mohamed bin Zayed Species Conservation Fund, Abu Dhabi, UAE.
authors.forename: Nicolas
authors.initials: N
authors.lastname: Heard
authors.affiliation: International Rhino Foundation, Fort Worth, TX 76102, USA.
authors.forename: William
authors.initials: W
authors.lastname: Konstant
authors.affiliation: National Fish and Wildlife Foundation, Washington, DC 20005, USA. Electronic address: john.lamoreux@nfwf.org.
authors.forename: John
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Lamoreux
authors.affiliation: Mohamed bin Zayed Species Conservation Fund, Abu Dhabi, UAE.
authors.forename: Frederic
authors.initials: F
authors.lastname: Launay
authors.affiliation: Tropical Conservation Institute, Florida International University, Miami, FL 33199, USA.
authors.forename: Michael
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Maunder
authors.affiliation: Conservation International, Arlington, VA 22202, USA.
authors.forename: Russell A
authors.initials: RA
authors.lastname: Mittermeier
authors.affiliation: Zoo Outreach Organization, Coimbatore, 641 035 Tamil Nadu, India.
authors.forename: Sanjay
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Molur
authors.affiliation: Mohamed bin Zayed Species Conservation Fund, Abu Dhabi, UAE.
authors.forename: Razan Khalifa
authors.initials: RK
authors.lastname: Al Mubarak
authors.affiliation: American Bird Conservancy/Alliance for Zero Extinction, Washington, DC 20009, USA.
authors.forename: Michael J
authors.initials: MJ
authors.lastname: Parr
authors.affiliation: Chelonian Research Foundation, Lunenburg, MA 01462, USA.
authors.forename: Anders G J
authors.initials: AG
authors.lastname: Rhodin
authors.affiliation: Conservation International, Arlington, VA 22202, USA.
authors.forename: Anthony B
authors.initials: AB
authors.lastname: Rylands
authors.affiliation: IUCN/SSC Re-introduction Specialist Group, Abu Dhabi, UAE.
authors.forename: Pritpal
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Soorae
authors.affiliation: Small Wild Cat Conservation Foundation, Campbell, CA 95008, USA.
authors.forename: James G
authors.initials: JG
authors.lastname: Sanderson
authors.affiliation: International Union for Conservation of Nature, 1196 Gland, Switzerland.
authors.forename: Jean-Christophe
authors.initials: JC
authors.lastname: Vié
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D044822:Biodiversity; D061046:Biological Control Agents; D049872:Bivalvia; D057965:Carbon Sequestration; D003247:Conservation of Natural Resources; D003469:Culture; D004463:Ecology / Q000191:economics; D017753:Ecosystem; D006801:Humans; D060753:Water Quality; D053833:Wetlands
chemical_list: D061046:Biological Control Agents