Biodiversity in Arid Lands: An Overview

Abstract

Arid lands are typically thought of as biologically depauperate and thus a low priority for biodiversity conservation. However, research in the preceding decad~ has largely transformed this view, as the biology and ecology of arid zone organisms bec~m~ bett~r know~. The paper reviews the institutional structures designated to conserve blOdlverslly and In particular policies mandated by the Convention on Biologica.1 Diversity.(CBD). It then describes the role of biodiversity in the formation of the bIOtas ~f and land~, considering individual groups of organisms. Finally, the paper conSiders strategIes and prospects for the conservation of arid lands in the light both of the policy context and new biological research.