Recent international agreements have strengthened and expanded commitments to protect and restore native habitats for biodiversity protection (“area-based biodiversity conservation”). Nevertheless, biodiversity conservation is hindered because how such commitments should be implemented has been strongly debated, which can lead to suboptimal habitat protection decisions. We argue that, despite the debates, there are three essential principles for area-based biodiversity conservation. These principles are related to habitat geographic coverage, amount, and connectivity. They emerge from evidence that, while large areas of nature are important and must be protected, conservation or restoration of multiple small habitat patches is also critical for global conservation, particularly in regions with high land use. We contend that the many area-based conservation initiatives expected in the coming decades should follow the principles we identify, regardless of ongoing debates. Considering the importance of biodiversity for maintenance of ecosystem services, we suggest that this would bring widespread societal benefits.

中文翻译：

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区域生物多样性保护原则


最近的国际协议加强并扩大了保护和恢复原生栖息地以实现生物多样性保护（“区域生物多样性保护”）的承诺。然而，生物多样性保护受到阻碍，因为如何履行此类承诺存在激烈争论，这可能导致栖息地保护决策不理想。我们认为，尽管存在争议，但区域生物多样性保护仍存在三个基本原则。这些原则与栖息地地理覆盖范围、数量和连通性有关。证据表明，虽然大片自然区域很重要且必须受到保护，但多个小型栖息地斑块的保护或恢复对于全球保护也至关重要，特别是在土地利用频繁的地区。我们认为，无论正在进行的争论如何，未来几十年预计的许多地区保护举措都应遵循我们确定的原则。考虑到生物多样性对于维持生态系统服务的重要性，我们建议这将带来广泛的社会效益。