Scientists advocate the inclusion of all fungi in global goals for biodiversity conservation
Susana C. Gonçalves leads the missive
A letter published today in the prestigious scientific journal Science calls for all fungi to be included in the global goals for the conservation of biodiversity, which will be approved at the United Nations Conference on Biodiversity (COP15), which will take place in Kunming, China, in 11 to 24 October.
The letter is led by researcher Susana C. Gonçalves, from the Centre for Functional Ecology - Science for People & the Planet of the Faculty of Science and Technology of the University of Coimbra (FCTUC), and is mainly addressed to the parts of the Convention on Biological Diversity that will be at COP15.
«It is intended that the Kingdom Fungi be explicitly included in the designated targets through the inclusion of the term funga, substituting in all documents the expression “fauna and flora” for “fauna, flora and funga”», stresses Susana C. Gonçalves.
The authors further warn that the lack of knowledge about “which fungi are most at risk of extinction hinders our ability to inform conservation actions to support these species and, ultimately, provide fungal-based solutions to address pressing global challenges ».
“Fungi support all life on Earth. We cannot afford to neglect them in our efforts to halt the loss of biodiversity”, reads the end of the letter.
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