Data from: A wide megafauna gap undermines China’s expanding coastal ecosystem conservation
Data files
Jan 22, 2024 version files 54.11 KB
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DataS1.xlsx
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README.md
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Abstract
To fulfill sustainable development goals, many countries are expanding efforts to conserve ecologically and societally critical coastal ecosystems. Although megafauna profoundly impact the functioning of ecosystems, they are neglected as a key component in the conservation scheme for coastal ecosystems in many geographic contexts. Here, we reveal a rich diversity of extant megafauna associated with all major types of coastal ecosystems in China, including 218 species of mammals, birds, reptiles, cephalopods and fishes across terrestrial and marine environments. However, 44% of these species are globally threatened and 78% have not yet been assessed in China for extinction risk. More worrisome, 73% of these megafauna have not been designated as nationally protected species, and <10% of their most important habitats are protected. Filling this wide “megafauna gap” in China, and globally, would be a leading step as humanity strives to thrive with coastal ecosystems.
README: Data from: A wide megafauna gap undermines China's expanding coastal ecosystem conservation
We compiled a dataset of extant megafaunal species associated with coastal ecosystems in China (we focused on mainland China throughout this work). Three criteria were used to screen species: the species has (i) a maximum body mass no less than 10 kg, (ii) habitat association with coastal ecosystems, and (iii) geographic ranges encompassing China. We screened species in the following databases: the IUCN Red List of Threatened Species (ver. 2022-2), FishBase (ver. 2023-2), and SeaLifeBase (ver. 2022-12), including all Mammalia, Aves, Reptilia, Chondrichthyes, Actinopterygii, and Cephalopoda.
Description of the data and file structure
This dataset includes the functional traits of these megafaunal species (found in the "species_dataset" sheet), their extinction risk categories (also in the "species_dataset" sheet), and information on the threats they face (in the "threat_dataset" sheet). The "Summary_table_attributes" sheet provides a list of field names and descriptions, as well as data types for each dataset.
Trait modalities were assigned based mainly on the species information provided by IUCN Red List, the Amniote life-history database, the PHYLACINE (Phylogenetic Atlas of Mammal Macroecology, v1.2), FishBase, SeaLifeBase, and Pimiento et al. 2020.
Maximum body mass: For mammals, reptiles, and birds, we obtained data from the Amniote life-history database, PHYLACINE 1.2 (the Phylogenetic Atlas of Mammal Macroecology), and the Animal Diversity Web. For fishes and other aquatic species, we acquired the maximum published weight from FishBase and SeaLifeBase.
Thermoregulation: endothermy was assigned to all mammals. Mesothermy (or regional endothermy) was assigned to: all lamind sharks (family Lamnidae), tunas (Thunnus spp.), billfishes (families Xiphiidae and Istiophoridae [Istiophorus spp., Makaira spp. and Tetrapturus spp.]), two species of thresher shark (Alopias superciliosus and A. vulpinus) and Dermochelys coriacea. Ectothermy was assigned to all remaining sea turtles, bony fishes, and sharks and rays, including Mobula tarapacana.
Feeding mechanism: We assigned a predatory feeding mechanism to all organisms that are known to actively hunt or catch prey. This trait designation includes bottom and suction feeders that prey upon invertebrates and/or benthic fishes. A browsing feeding mechanism was assigned to all grazing organisms that feed on plants. A filter-feeding mechanism was assigned to all species that consume plankton or krill via suspension feeding, bulk, or selective filter-feeding.
Diet: We classified the diet of each species based on the principal type of food it consumes as an adult. Diets were expressed as four broad categories (i.e., plankton, plants, invertebrates, vertebrates), as given in Fishbase/Sealifebase, PHYLACINE 1.2, and EltonTraits 1.0.
coastal affinity: Based on the range of their habitat across different systems, we classified megafauna into three types of habitat range: inland-associated, primarily coastal, and ocean-associated: inland-associated, primarily coastal, and ocean-associated (see main text).
Vertical position: This was assigned based on the position where they feed (land, benthic [or demersal], pelagic, reef-associated, some of these, or all).
Coastal habitat use: We categorized the specific types of coastal ecosystem where organisms utilize (i.e., coastal waters, coral reef, soft sediment, hard bottom, seagrass/seaweed, mangrove, salt marsh, some of these, or all).
Extinction risk categories: We downloaded the categories from IUCN Red List (accessed on 20th May 2023) and China's Red List (2023), respectively.
Sharing/Access information
Links to other publicly accessible locations of the data:
https://www.iucnredlist.org/
https://www.fishbase.org/
https://www.sealifebase.org
Data was derived from the following sources:
- C. Pimiento, F. Leprieur, D. Silvestro, J. S. Lefcheck, C. Albouy, D. B. Rasher, M. Davis, J.-C. Svenning, J. N. Griffin, Functional diversity of marine megafauna in the Anthropocene. Sci. Adv. 6, eaay7650 (2020).
- S. Faurby, M. Davis, R. . Pedersen, S. D. Schowanek, A. Antonelli, J.-C. Svenning, PHYLACINE 1.2: The phylogenetic atlas of mammal macroecology. Ecology 99, 2626 (2018).
- H. Wilman, J. Belmaker, J. Simpson, C. de La Rosa, M. M. Rivadeneira, W. Jetz, EltonTraits 1.0: Species-level foraging attributes of the world's birds and mammals. Ecology 95, 2027 (2014).
- N. P. Myhrvold, E. Baldridge, B. Chan, D. Sivam, D. L. Freeman, S. K. M. Ernest, An amniote life-history database to perform comparative analyses with birds, mammals, and reptiles. Ecology 96, 3109 (2015).
Code/Software
NA
Methods
A dataset of extant megafaunal species associated with coastal ecosystems in China was compiled (focused on mainland China). Three criteria were used to screen species: the species has (i) a maximum body mass no less than 10 kg, (ii) habitat association with coastal ecosystems, and (iii) geographic ranges encompassing China. Species were screened in the following databases: the IUCN Red List of Threatened Species (ver. 2022-2), FishBase (ver. 2023-2), and SeaLifeBase (ver. 2022-12), including all Mammalia, Aves, Reptilia, Chondrichthyes, Actinopterygii, and Cephalopoda.
This dataset contains species functional traits (including maximum body mass, thermoregulation, feeding mechanism, diet, coastal affinity, vertical position, and coastal habitat use), extinction risk categories (including Red Lists of IUCN and China), and threats to species (IUCN threat classification scheme) for these megafauna.