Earth’s biodiversity hotspots in serious decline

There are 35 biodiversity hotspots across the planet, each having both exceptional biodiversity and acute land-cover disturbance. A new paper finds that most hotspots have much less intact vegetation than previously estimated, with half now having less than a tenth of their original vegetation. The hotspots that were formerly in the best shape have suffered the worst. (With thanks to ALERT – Alliance of Leading Environmental Researchers & Thinkers).