Biodiversity-Ecosystem Function Research: Is It Relevant to Conservation?

▪ Abstract It has often been argued that conserving biodiversity is necessary for maintaining ecosystem functioning. We critically evaluate the current evidence for this argument. Although there is substantial evidence that diversity is able to affect function, particularly for plant communities, it is unclear if these patterns will hold for realistic scenarios of extinctions, multitrophic communities, or larger spatial scales. Experiments are conducted at small spatial scales, the very scales at which diversity tends to increase owing to exotics. Stressors may affect function by many pathways, and diversity-mediated effects on function may be a minor pathway, except in the case of multiple-stressor insurance…