Geodiversity is an inseparable but underutilized part of connectivity in
nature conservation amid climate change
Abstract
Nature conservation has shifted towards a climate change adaptation
approach, in which expected species range shifts are increasingly
considered. Facilitating species movements requires improving ecological
connectivity across landscapes, and for these assessments, new and
powerful approaches are emerging. One such approach is the use of
geodiversity information as a proxy for biodiverse, resilient, and
dispersal-enhancing areas. Although data on abiotic nature are routinely
used in many connectivity assessments, geodiversity is not necessarily
recognized by researcher due to non-explicit application of variables
combined with vague definitions of terms. Here, we present a systematic
literature review examining the role of geodiversity in ecological
connectivity. We used the PRISMA method to review 89 research articles
on the topic. Of these, 34% explicitly modeled connectivity and
included geodiversity variables, while the remaining studies discussed
or explored the potential effects of geodiversity on species movement
and broader biodiversity patterns, without directly modeling
connectivity. Our findings highlight the value of integrating
geodiversity and the Conserving Nature’s Stage approach in both research
and the management of connectivity and climate resilience. We identified
that the key challenges hindering the widespread use of geodiversity
information in biodiversity conservation stem from the limited adoption
of the term outside geosciences and the lack of established quantitative
metrics to explore the geodiversity-biodiversity relationship.
Addressing these gaps could greatly enhance ecological connectivity
assessments, thereby improving conservation outcomes. After all,
geodiversity is the abiotic counterpart to biodiversity, and together
these two components form the dynamics of nature that we aim to
conserve.