Global Ecology and Conservation最新文献

{"title":"Climate shapes biodiversity–mycorrhiza interactions to control forest carbon","authors":"Xi Luo ,&nbsp;Chunnan Fan ,&nbsp;Guoyong Yan","doi":"10.1016/j.gecco.2026.e04106","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.gecco.2026.e04106","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>While mycorrhizal dominance is known to influence biodiversity-ecosystem functioning relationships, the joint effects of mycorrhizal dominance and tree diversity on forest productivity and carbon storage remain poorly understood, particularly under varying climatic conditions. To address this gap, we analyzed data from 5215 forest plots across China and 27,467 plots across the USA to assess how tree diversity and mycorrhizal associations interact to influence tree productivity and carbon storage under contrasting climate regimes. In China, biodiversity-mycorrhizal interactions exhibited strong climate dependency. In temperate forests, increasing ectomycorrhizal (EcM) dominance weakened the positive effects of tree diversity on carbon storage-a negative interaction further intensified by warming, but reversed under higher precipitation. By contrast, subtropical forests showed consistently positive diversity-EcM synergies, largely unaffected by climate. In the USA, these patterns were inverted. In temperate forests, EcM dominance enhanced the diversity–productivity relationship under cool, dry conditions, but this synergy reversed under warmer and wetter climates. In subtropical regions, initial antagonistic interactions became increasingly positive with rising temperature and precipitation. These discontinuities likely arise from climate-driven shifts in nutrient limitation and mycorrhizal functional strategies, whereby EcM-associated species gain a competitive advantage under cooler or nutrient-poor conditions, while arbuscular mycorrhizal (AM)-associated communities dominate in warmer and more productive environments. Together, our results demonstrate that mycorrhizal-diversity interactions are highly context dependent and vary markedly across continents, underscoring the pivotal role of the climate–mycorrhizal–diversity triad in shaping forest ecosystem functioning and providing a critical ecological basis for improving carbon modeling and guiding forest management under climate change.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":54264,"journal":{"name":"Global Ecology and Conservation","volume":"66 ","pages":"Article e04106"},"PeriodicalIF":3.4,"publicationDate":"2026-04-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"146174221","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"环境科学与生态学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Protected areas sustain Amur tiger populations in the Russian Far East’s multiple-use landscapes","authors":"Scott J. Waller ,&nbsp;Aleksandr N. Rybin ,&nbsp;Ekaterina I. Nikolaeva ,&nbsp;Anton V. Semyonov ,&nbsp;Svetlana V. Soutyrina ,&nbsp;Jonathan C. Slaght ,&nbsp;Ivan V. Seryodkin ,&nbsp;Dale G. Miquelle","doi":"10.1016/j.gecco.2026.e04099","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.gecco.2026.e04099","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>Protected areas are a hallmark of conservation, yet their ability to support endangered species can be compromised by human use in adjacent lands. In the Russian Far East, a network of protected areas has been established to conserve biodiversity, including the endangered Amur tiger (<em>Panthera tigris altaica</em>). However, human disturbance in/around protected areas may jeopardize tiger populations. In this study, we surveyed 504 camera trap sites over 4 years (2018–19–2021–22) in an 8322 km² multiple-use landscape in the Central Sikhote-Alin Mountains to estimate tiger density and survival in relation to human development and use, including previously undocumented forest roads. We estimated a stable, low population density of 0.27 tigers (95 % CI [0.18–0.31]) per 100 km² in places further from main roads and in high-quality habitat. Female tigers captured predominantly in protected areas had higher survival (<em>φ</em> = 0.90 [0.60–0.98]) than those in multiple-use areas (<em>φ</em> = 0.51 [0.30–0.72]). The number of females detected with cubs was also twice as high in protected areas. Analyzing high-resolution satellite imagery, we traced 7828 km of roads. In places with intense logging traffic, the odds of detecting individual tigers more than one year decreased by 92 %. While protected areas ensured higher annual survival of female tigers, greater cub production, and a stable population, logging operations in multiple-use lands represented a key threat, probably by increasing chances of poaching. Overall, our study area remains far from tiger recovery goals, and we urge more investments in law enforcement, especially outside of protected areas.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":54264,"journal":{"name":"Global Ecology and Conservation","volume":"66 ","pages":"Article e04099"},"PeriodicalIF":3.4,"publicationDate":"2026-04-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"146174220","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"环境科学与生态学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Functional diversity and trait variation along an elevational gradient in a temperate mixed forest, northeast China","authors":"Jingru Ge ,&nbsp;Rongxia Zhang ,&nbsp;Jinfeng Zhang ,&nbsp;Junqing Li","doi":"10.1016/j.gecco.2026.e04086","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.gecco.2026.e04086","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>Functional diversity, a core component of biodiversity, reflects the variation in organismal traits that underlie ecosystem processes. Despite its importance, how functional diversity and trait variation across interspecific and intraspecific levels respond to elevational gradients remains poorly understood in temperate forest ecosystems. This study investigates the functional diversity and trait variation of woody plants along an elevational gradient (700–1250 m) in a temperate mixed forest, Northeast China, by measuring 14 key functional traits across 57 woody species (including a total of 476 individuals) in 45 plots and quantifying five functional diversity indices. Results showed that functional richness (FRic), functional evenness (FEve), and functional dispersion (FDis) decreased significantly with elevation, while functional divergence (FDiv) and Rao’s quadratic entropy (RaoQ) increased. Redundancy analysis identified elevation and slope collectively explaining 70.5 % of the variation in community functional structure. Principal component analysis revealed that trait variation was structured along two independent axes: PC1 (52.3 %) represented a topographic stress gradient, while PC2 (23.2 %) reflected soil nutrient availability. Community-weighted mean traits revealed strong coordination among structural traits and trade-offs within the leaf economics spectrum. Variance partitioning demonstrated that interspecific variation dominated morphological traits (51–76 % of variance), whereas intraspecific variation explained most of the variation in physiological traits (46–66 %). This study provides a descriptive foundation for understanding how forest communities are structured across elevations and highlights the need to incorporate both inter-and intraspecific trait data in functional ecology studies.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":54264,"journal":{"name":"Global Ecology and Conservation","volume":"66 ","pages":"Article e04086"},"PeriodicalIF":3.4,"publicationDate":"2026-04-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"146078913","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"环境科学与生态学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Uncertain role of conservation areas to protect soil biodiversity and functioning","authors":"Romy Zeiss ,&nbsp;Manuel Delgado-Baquerizo ,&nbsp;Bala Singavarapu ,&nbsp;Nico Eisenhauer ,&nbsp;Concha Cano-Díaz ,&nbsp;Irene Calderón-Sanou ,&nbsp;Rui P. Carvalho ,&nbsp;Sofia R. Costa ,&nbsp;A. Carolina Duarte ,&nbsp;Paulo Fernandes ,&nbsp;Arwyn Jones ,&nbsp;Kirsten Küsel ,&nbsp;Susana Mendes ,&nbsp;Alberto Orgiazzi ,&nbsp;Brajesh K. Singh ,&nbsp;Carlos A. Guerra","doi":"10.1016/j.gecco.2026.e04052","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.gecco.2026.e04052","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>Soil biodiversity and functioning are the foundation of ecosystem sustainability, but we do not know whether current nature conservation areas are efficiently protecting soils. Here, we investigated the contribution of terrestrial nature conservation areas to protect soil biodiversity and functioning across scales. We found no general positive effect on diversity of bacteria, fungi, protists, invertebrates, and nematodes, captured as richness, Shannon diversity and dissimilarity, and 5 soil functions (pathogen control, nutrient provision, soil carbon, soil organic matter decomposition, and soil aggregate stability). Our findings suggest that nature conservation areas show an inconsistent role in protecting soil biodiversity and functioning, as we found mostly non-significant and otherwise mixed effects across scales. Despite few positive and negative effects of protection status, our work highlights the urgent need to directly target soils in nature conservation.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":54264,"journal":{"name":"Global Ecology and Conservation","volume":"66 ","pages":"Article e04052"},"PeriodicalIF":3.4,"publicationDate":"2026-04-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"146024376","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"环境科学与生态学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Agri-environment schemes and predator management: Impacts on brown hare populations in Hungarian farmland","authors":"Nikolett Ujhegyi ,&nbsp;Zsolt Biró ,&nbsp;Veronika Bókony ,&nbsp;Norbert Keller ,&nbsp;Krisztián Katona ,&nbsp;Miklós Heltai ,&nbsp;Sándor Csányi ,&nbsp;László Szemethy","doi":"10.1016/j.gecco.2026.e04120","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.gecco.2026.e04120","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>Population densities of brown hare (<em>Lepus europaeus</em>) have declined markedly over recent decades across Europe, largely driven by agricultural intensification and habitat homogenization. In response, Agri-Environment Schemes (AES) were introduced to mitigate biodiversity loss. This study evaluates the effectiveness of AES on brown hare populations across Hungary from 2007 to 2014, and the influence of vegetation quality and predator control (focused on the red fox, <em>Vulpes vulpes</em>) on AES effectiveness. Using data from 482 wildlife management units (WMUs), we analyzed relationships between hare densities, AES land cover (arable and grassland), vegetation quality (proportion of preferred habitats by hare), and fox reduction rates. Hare population estimates and harvest data were compared annually to a pre-AES baseline using linear mixed-effects models. We found consistent annual decline in hare densities regardless of vegetation quality. AES land cover was low (typically &lt;10 %) and had no significant positive effect on hare density. AES grasslands were often heavily grazed, reducing habitat suitability. WMUs with higher fox reduction rates had higher pre-AES baselines and steeper declines in hare densities, suggesting that predation control was insufficient for mitigating hare declines. The effects of AES land cover were not influenced by vegetation quality and predator control. Overall, our study found that AES measures in Hungary, particularly those involving grasslands, had limited effectiveness in supporting brown hare populations. We recommend increasing AES cover with more targeted, vegetation-specific AES practices and landscape-scale management to support long-term hare conservation.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":54264,"journal":{"name":"Global Ecology and Conservation","volume":"66 ","pages":"Article e04120"},"PeriodicalIF":3.4,"publicationDate":"2026-04-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"147385246","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"环境科学与生态学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Vanishing biodiversity: The creeping degradation of central European calcareous grasslands","authors":"Dominik Poniatowski ,&nbsp;Thomas Fartmann","doi":"10.1016/j.gecco.2026.e04147","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.gecco.2026.e04147","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>Calcareous grasslands in Central Europe are among the most species-rich habitats, yet they are undergoing a gradual but pervasive decline in habitat quality despite ongoing conservation efforts. Recent studies indicate that the expansion of Upright Brome (<em>Bromus erectus</em>), driven by climate change, atmospheric nitrogen deposition, and prevailing management practices, is leading to structural and floristic homogenisation. This process reduces bare-soil availability while threatening specialist plants and their associated fungi and animals, including pollinators and herbivorous insects. Traditional late-season mowing has proven insufficient to counter these changes, and current conservation strategies often fail to maintain the structural diversity necessary to sustain biodiversity. To halt the gradual degradation of calcareous grasslands, we argue that conservation practices must be fundamentally reconsidered. Adaptive management approaches – including year-round or temporary grazing, early-season mowing, and prescribed burning – should be implemented to restore habitat heterogeneity and support biodiversity. Timely adoption of such measures, accompanied where possible by regular monitoring, is essential to prevent further biodiversity loss in these valuable ecosystems.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":54264,"journal":{"name":"Global Ecology and Conservation","volume":"67 ","pages":"Article e04147"},"PeriodicalIF":3.4,"publicationDate":"2026-03-06","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"147450371","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"环境科学与生态学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"The use of bird perches and artificial bat roosts to overcome dispersal and establishment limitation in bracken-dominated deforested areas","authors":"Cesar Mayta ,&nbsp;Cecilia L. López ,&nbsp;Mariana Villegas ,&nbsp;Isabell Hensen ,&nbsp;Silvia C. Gallegos","doi":"10.1016/j.gecco.2026.e04064","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.gecco.2026.e04064","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>The failure of seeds to arrive at suitable sites (dispersal limitation) and/or unsuitable conditions for germination, seedling survival and growth (establishment limitation) can impede the regeneration of tropical forests. We installed bird perches and artificial bat roosts in deforested areas dominated by the bracken fern <em>Pteridium</em> in the tropical montane forest of Bolivia to evaluate their effect on dispersal and establishment limitations. We also analyzed the relationship between seed size and life-history strategies of plants subject to both limitations. We found that perches reduced dispersal and establishment limitation of all seed sizes (small and large) and life-history strategies (pioneer and non-pioneer). In contrast, bat roosts did not reduce dispersal and establishment limitation in any of the categories. Our results reinforce the observation that dispersal limitation is one of the main filters that plant species must overcome in bracken-dominated deforested areas. The installation of bird perches as well as direct sowing of animal-dispersed seeds and planting of seedlings are strategies that could effectively support the regeneration of these widely distributed deforested areas.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":54264,"journal":{"name":"Global Ecology and Conservation","volume":"66 ","pages":"Article e04064"},"PeriodicalIF":3.4,"publicationDate":"2026-01-09","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"145928954","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"环境科学与生态学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"How does climate and land use affect structural attributes, diversity and carbon sequestration at vegetation and species levels in West African savanna ecosystems?","authors":"Valaire Séraphin Ouehoudja Yaro ,&nbsp;Loyapin Bonde ,&nbsp;Pawend-taoré Christian Bougma ,&nbsp;Reginald Tang Guuroh ,&nbsp;Oumarou Ouedraogo ,&nbsp;Anja Linstädter","doi":"10.1016/j.gecco.2026.e04056","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.gecco.2026.e04056","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>Research on land use impacts on woody diversity and carbon stocks in West African savannas has primarily focused on the vegetation level. However, a combined analysis at both vegetation and species levels offers a more nuanced understanding of carbon loss patterns and provides stronger guidance for management and conservation of threatened species. This study evaluated the effect of climate and land use change on woody structure, diversity and carbon stocks in two climate zone (Sudanian and Sudano-Sahelian) and four land use types reflecting a land use conversion gradient. Aboveground carbon stocks were calculated from dendrometric data using a generalized pantropical allometric equation. Carbon dynamics were analyzed along the conversion gradient (near natural vegetation → recent cropland → cropland remaining cropland → fallow), with near natural vegetation as the baseline. Analysis of variance revealed significant effects of both climate and land use types on woody diversity and carbon stocks (P &lt; 0.05), with interactive effects observed only for diversity. The highest aboveground carbon losses occurred during conversion from near natural vegetation to recent croplands in both the Sudano-Sahelian (reduced by 69.8%) and the Sudanian zones (reduced by 84%). Species level analyses further showed that carbon-rich species such as <em>Anogeissus leiocarpa</em> were largely removed during recent cropland establishment, while socio-economically important species such as <em>Vitellaria paradoxa, Parkia biglobosa, Tamarindus indica, and Lannea macrocarpa</em> were retained. To limit carbon losses, the integration of nitrogen-fixing tree species such as <em>Faidherbia albida</em> could simultaneously enhance agricultural productivity, reduce deforestation pressure, and strengthen carbon storage in savanna ecosystems, thereby contributing to conservation goals at the landscape level.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":54264,"journal":{"name":"Global Ecology and Conservation","volume":"66 ","pages":"Article e04056"},"PeriodicalIF":3.4,"publicationDate":"2026-01-08","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"145928955","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"环境科学与生态学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Differences in physiological and ecological adaptations of Ipomoea pes-caprae in sandy beaches and coral islands","authors":"Xu Li ,&nbsp;Zhipeng Li ,&nbsp;Zhiyuan Shi ,&nbsp;Ting Wu ,&nbsp;Guopeng Wu ,&nbsp;Han Sheng ,&nbsp;Shu-Yi-Dan Zhou ,&nbsp;Linhua Wang ,&nbsp;Xuli Tang ,&nbsp;Juxiu Liu","doi":"10.1016/j.gecco.2025.e04043","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.gecco.2025.e04043","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div><em>Ipomoea pes-caprae</em> has potential ecological restoration value as a salt- and drought-tolerant pioneer plant, while fewer studies on its environmental and physiological adaptations in different habitats. Here, we selected <em>I. pes-caprae</em> populations from Sansha (coral soil, CS) and Huizhou (sandy soil, SS), measured key physiological and ecological characteristics, and explored the mechanism of its adaptation. The results showed that the leaf water content and the δ¹³C of <em>I. pes-caprae</em> in the CS habitat were significantly lower than those in SS, indicating that it adapted to the arid environment by improving water use efficiency. The carbon and nitrogen contents of <em>I. pes-caprae</em> leaves in the SS habitat were significantly higher than CS, while phosphorous content was lower. <em>I. pes-caprae</em> leaves from the CS habitat had a higher soluble sugars and non-structural carbohydrates content, suggesting that they may enhance stress tolerance by accumulating osmoregulatory substances. Still, its higher malondialdehyde content and lower superoxide dismutase and glutathione activities indicated that it may be subjected to stronger oxidative stress. In contrast, <em>I. pes-caprae</em> from SS habitats exhibited a stronger antioxidant system. <em>I. pes-caprae</em> in the CS habitat had lower chlorophyll content and higher carotenoid accumulation, suggesting that they may reduce high light damage by lowering photosynthetic activity, whereas SS habitat had higher photosynthetic capacity. In summary, <em>I. pes-caprae</em> in CS habitats adapted to arid, infertile, and hypersaline environments mainly through water conservation, osmoregulation, and reduced photosynthetic activity, whereas SS habitats relied on higher nutrient utilization efficiencies, photosynthesis, and antioxidant systems to maintain rapid growth.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":54264,"journal":{"name":"Global Ecology and Conservation","volume":"65 ","pages":"Article e04043"},"PeriodicalIF":3.4,"publicationDate":"2026-01-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"145925596","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"环境科学与生态学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Ghost economy: The forbidden trade of the Himalayas","authors":"Babar Khan ,&nbsp;Kesang Wangchuk","doi":"10.1016/j.gecco.2025.e04045","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.gecco.2025.e04045","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>The Hindu Kush Himalayas, a region with diverse ecosystems and rich biodiversity, faces widespread illegal wildlife crime. We reviewed available literature to gain insights into the scale and patterns of illegal wildlife crime in the HKH, hotspots, transit routes, consumers, and the significant causes of wildlife trafficking. Wildlife trade and seizure data for the eight HKH countries were accessed from the trade database of the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species (CITES) and the Wildlife Trade Portal of the Trade Records Analysis of Flora and Fauna in Commerce (TRAFFIC) for the period 2001–2020. The review findings showed that each year, millions of wild plants and animals, valued at $ 8–23 billion, were traded to meet the demand for wildlife, its parts, and products worldwide. In the illegal wildlife trade, about 24 % of terrestrial birds, mammals, amphibians, and reptiles originated from biologically diverse tropical regions, including the HKH mountains. The illegal wildlife trade in HKH covered a range of commodities, including live individuals, their parts, and their derivatives. The primary drivers of the illicit trade and commercial exploitation of rare and unique species from the wild were the ever-increasing demand for traditional Chinese and Tibetan medicines, folk remedies, weak law enforcement, the high price of wildlife and their parts, and mountain poverty. Efforts to combat wildlife poaching, trafficking, and trade in the region were hampered by weak wildlife law enforcement, insufficient institutional capacity and resources, and a lack of practical regional networks and other mechanisms for regional cooperation. Porous borders and high mountain passes, with harsh climates and physical conditions, further restrained the vigilance of law enforcement agencies. A lack of understanding of wildlife supply chains' social, economic, and ecological dimensions hindered informed policy and legislation. Lack of awareness among communities and other stakeholders about biodiversity conservation made them partners in the wildlife trade rather than custodians. The region needs to strengthen institutional capacities for effective legislation and action, and greater regional cooperation for intra-regional law enforcement to control the illegal trade of wildlife across borders and online. Scientific studies on the scale, trend, and patterns of illicit wildlife trade are crucial for understanding the social, economic, and ecological dimensions of unlawful wildlife supply chains in HKH. Mass awareness about biodiversity conservation values will help create responsible stewards among mountain communities.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":54264,"journal":{"name":"Global Ecology and Conservation","volume":"65 ","pages":"Article e04045"},"PeriodicalIF":3.4,"publicationDate":"2026-01-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"145925743","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"环境科学与生态学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}