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The Use and Misuse of Species-Area Relationships in Predicting Climate-Driven Extinction

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Abstract

Thomas et al. (2004) pioneered the estimate of extinction risk due to climate change by coupling species range-loss simulations from species distribution models with species-loss estimates from the species-area relationships (SARs). Unfortunately, numerous conceptual and practical problems permeate this seemingly solid and straightforward approach. Chapter 4 explored developments in climate envelope modeling. Here we focus on the challenges associated with applying a SAR approach to climate-driven extinction estimates and propose a novel application of recent Maximum Entropy (MaxEnt) theory in ecology that may help to address some of them.

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Acknowledgments

Funding from the National Science Foundation (DEB 0516161 to JH and Graduate Research Fellowship to JK) and conversations with Adam Smith, Danielle Svehla Christianson, Stacy Jackson, and Alison Cameron are gratefully acknowledged.

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Harte, J., Kitzes, J. (2012). The Use and Misuse of Species-Area Relationships in Predicting Climate-Driven Extinction. In: Hannah, L. (eds) Saving a Million Species. Island Press/Center for Resource Economics. https://doi.org/10.5822/978-1-61091-182-5_5

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