Methodology
Hotspots were defined by Norman Myers in 1988 when he published a seminal paper identifying 10 tropical forest “hotspots.” These regions were characterized both by exceptional levels of plant endemism, meaning plants found nowhere else on Earth, and serious levels of habitat loss. Conservation International (CI) adopted Myers’s hotspots as its institutional blueprint in 1989. In 1999, CI undertook a global review, which introduced quantitative thresholds for the designation of biodiversity hotspots and resulted in the identification of 25.
In 2005, an additional analysis brought the total number of biodiversity hotspots to 34, based on the work of nearly 400 specialists. In 2011, the Forests of East Australia were identified as the 35th hotspot by a team of researchers from the Commonwealth Scientific and Industrial Research Organization working with CI. In February 2016, the North American Coastal Plain was recognized as meeting the criteria and became the world’s 36th hotspot.
In 2005, an additional analysis brought the total number of biodiversity hotspots to 34, based on the work of nearly 400 specialists. In 2011, the Forests of East Australia were identified as the 35th hotspot by a team of researchers from the Commonwealth Scientific and Industrial Research Organization working with CI. In February 2016, the North American Coastal Plain was recognized as meeting the criteria and became the world’s 36th hotspot.
Data description
Biodiversity hotspots, a classification system created by the Critical Ecosystem Partnership Fund (CEPF), include some of our planet’s most biologically diverse yet threatened terrestrial areas. An area is qualified as a hotspot if it contains at least 1,500 species of vascular plants found nowhere else on Earth (known as “endemic” species) and it has lost at least 70 percent of its primary native vegetation. Between 1988 and 2016, 36 biodiversity hotspots have been identified globally.
Indicator
Study area surface
Method / tool
Biodiversity Impact Metric (BIM)
Geographic coverage (details)
Hotspots