Soil erosion and degradation provoked by deforestation in the Amazon is a global concern, and recent studies propose a link between deforestation, soil erosion and the leaching of naturally occurring mercury (Hg). In the Ecuadorian Amazon, elevated deforestation rates and the proximity of volcanoes could play an important role in soil fertility and soil Hg levels. The goal of this study is to e...

The degree at which tropical forests are exposed to human pressure is spatially dependent. Population density, proximity to roads, terrain slope, logging activities and land distribution projects are well known factors inducing deforestation and forest degradation in Latin America. Using expert knowledge to weight these threat factors and a Geographical Information System for spatial modeling, ...

Ecological gradients have long been recognized as important regions for diversification and speciation. However, little attention has been paid to the evolutionary consequences or conservation implications of human activities that fundamentally change the environmental features of such gradients. Here we show that recent deforestation in West Africa has homogenized the rainforest-savanna gradie...

Globally, deforestation continues, and although protected areas effectively protect forests, the majority of forests are not in protected areas. Thus, how effective are different management regimes to avoid deforestation in non-protected forests? We sought to assess the effectiveness of different national forest-management regimes to safeguard forests outside protected areas. We compared 2000-2...

Java is very densely populated since it is inhabited by more than 60% of the total population of Indonesia. Based on data from the Ministry of Forestry, forest loss between 2000-2005 in Java was about 800,000 hectares. Regardless of the debate on whether the different methodologies of forest inventory applied in 2005 have resulted in an underestimation of the figure of forest loss or not, the d...

The Brazilian state of Mato Grosso was a global deforestation hotspot in the early 2000s. Deforested land is used predominantly to produce meat for distal consumption either through cattle ranching or soya bean for livestock feed. Deforestation declined dramatically in the latter part of the decade through a combination of market forces, policies, enforcement and improved monitoring. This study...

Deforestation and fragmentation are major components of global change; both are contributing to the rapid loss of tropical forest area with important implications for ecosystem functioning and biodiversity conservation. The forests of South Ecuador are a biological 'hotspot' due to their high diversity and endemism levels. We examined the deforestation and fragmentation patterns in this area of...

Regulatory enforcement of forest conservation laws is often dismissed as an ineffective approach to reducing tropical forest loss. Yet, effective enforcement is often a precondition for alternative conservation measures, such as payments for environmental services, to achieve desired outcomes. Fair and efficient policies to reducing emissions from deforestation and forest degradation (REDD) wil...

Deforestation trends in the Brazilian Amazon have been increasingly linked to globalized markets for beef, timber, soybean, and other commodities. In recent years there has been a remarkable proliferation of deforestation-free agreements to pressure corporations to adopt more environmentally responsible practices around the world. The Brazilian Soy Moratorium (SoyM), the first voluntary defores...

Tropical deforestation is a significant cause of global carbon emissions and biodiversity loss. A new study shows that deforestation today leaves a carbon and biodiversity debt to be paid over subsequent years. This has potentially profound implications for forest conservation.