Using biodiversity features to promote an Ecosystem-Based Conservation framework in terrestrial ecosystems

PLOS One | https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0336705 November 21, 2025 1 / 18 OPEN ACCESS Citation: Tarimo FG, Moyo F, Munishi LK (2025) Using biodiversity features to promote an Ecosystem-Based Conservation framework in terrestrial ecosystems. PLoS One 20(11): e0336705. https://doi.org/10.1371/journal. pone.0336705 Editor: Daniel de Paiva Silva, Instituto Federal de Educacao Ciencia e Tecnologia Goiano - Campus Urutai, BRAZIL Received: June 20, 2025 Accepted: October 29, 2025 Published: November 21, 2025 Copyright: © 2025 Tarimo et al . This is an open access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License, which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original author and source are credited. Data availability statement: All relevant data are within the paper and its Supporting Information files. Funding: The author received a PhD Scholarship from the University of Dar es Salaam (Tanzania) under the MUCE-HEET RESEARCH ARTICLE Using biodiversity features to promote an Ecosystem-Based Conservation framework in terrestrial ecosystems Florence Godfrey Tarimo 1,2*, Francis Moyo 1, Linus Kasian Munishi1 1 School of Life Sciences and Bio-Engineering, The Nelson Mandela African Institution of Science and Technology, Arusha, Tanzania, 2 Department of Geography and Economics, Mkwawa University College of Education (MUCE), Iringa, Tanzania * godfreyf@nm-aist.ac.tz/ florence.tarimo@muce.ac.tz Abstract Biodiversity features are important indicators for monitoring conservation success

and have been adopted to assess the extent of biodiversity loss in ecosystems affected by anthropogenic pressures. Protected areas (PAs) form the basis of the modern conservation framework and are the heart of conserving biodiversity. Despite PAs being the cornerstones for biodiversity conservation, they are limited in extent and their ability to inclusively conserve and safeguard biodiversity. We performed a literature review and spatial analysis across terrestrial ecosystems in Tanzania to investigate how biodiversity features can guide and promote an ecosystem-based conservation approach. We compiled biodiversity features for three taxonomic groups (plants, vertebrates, and invertebrates), resulting in a total sum of 22,987 features across eight terrestrial ecosystems in Tanzania. Our results revealed that the mon- tane forest ecosystem had more total reported biodiversity features than other eco- systems, with <1/3 of its area protected. For other ecosystems, our three biodiversity features varied widely with the level of protection. PAs encompassed approximately 41%, while the remaining lacked formal protection measures. Invertebrates are often not considered when designing PA systems or building conservation approaches, highlighting the need to extend conservation efforts beyond the current framework. An ecosystem-based conservation framework is needed to extend conservation efforts outside PAs to address substantial taxonomic and spatial gaps in conserva- tion actions to achieve biodiversity conservation targets under the Post-2020 Global Biodiversity Framework.

Introduction Protected areas (PAs) form the basis of modern conservation frameworks and are at the heart of conserving biodiversity [1,2]. Despite global efforts under the Aichi