Seminarios MNCN
 
 
Viernes 8 de febrero de 2013 a las 12h,
Salón de Actos del Museo Nacional de Ciencias Naturales.
C/ José Gutiérrez Abascal, 2. 28006 Madrid


This lecture will be held in English.

Título: Can we name Earth's species before they go extinct?
Ponente: Dr. Mark J. Costello, Leigh Marine Laboratoy, University of Auckland, Nueva Zelanda

Resumen (Abstract):

"Some people despair that most species will go extinct before they are discovered. However, such worries result from overestimates of how many species may exist, beliefs that the expertise to describe species is decreasing, and alarmist estimates of extinction rates. We argue that the number of species on Earth today is 5 +/-3 million, of which 1.5 million are named. New databases show that there are more taxonomists describing species than ever before, and their number is increasing faster than the rate of species description. Conservation efforts and species survival in secondary habitats are at least delaying extinctions. Extinction rates are, however, poorly quantified, ranging from 0.01 to 1% (at most 5%) per decade. We propose practical actions to improve taxonomic productivity and associated understanding and conservation of biodiversity." (See Costello et al. 2013. Science 339: 413-416)

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