Chapter Synthesis

Scientific concepts, measurements, and values are not set by decree. They survive and become accepted only if they are operational, testable, and open to analytical refinement. Biodiversity is one of the core concepts and motivating values for the science of conservation biology, but its persistence and value as a scientific idea are not yet assured. The conceptual definition of biodiversity requires thorough understanding, its mathematical definitions careful measurement, and its valuation rigorous analysis if the concept is to be translated into meaningful ideas that can shape conservation strategies. If biodiversity can be thoughtfully understood and articulated, quantitatively measured and tested, and carefully valued in both instrumental and noninstrumental ways, it will become an increasingly important component of conservation science, conservation law, and conservation policy.

The fundamental processes that control the level of biodiversity in ecological systems are still not well understood. The most effective future research on biodiversity will not be those studies that simply continue to measure it, but those that explore and test hypotheses about the ecological processes that shape it. Biodiversity is a concept that requires further refinement, and it cannot stand apart from other conservation priorities. Current measurements of biodiversity, with their emphasis on species richness and evenness, do not always reveal correlations between diversity and conservation value. New indices that address taxonomic uniqueness and ecological importance must be developed and used in conjunction with traditional measures of diversity if biodiversity is to provide meaningful information about the relative value of different community and landscape assemblages.

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