Biodiversity Hotspot

A biodiversity hotspot is a biogeographic region that contains a significant reservoir of biodiversity that is under threat from human activity. The concept was introduced by British ecologist Norman Myers in 1988 and formalized by Conservation International, which identified hotspots based on two criteria: the region must contain at least 1,500 species of vascular plants as endemics, and it must have lost at least 70% of its original primary vegetation.

The hotspot approach has been criticized for prioritizing species richness over ecosystem function and for focusing on vascular plants while neglecting other taxa. The 36 recognized hotspots cover only 2.4% of the Earth's land surface but contain approximately 60% of the world's plant, bird, mammal, reptile, and amphibian species. This concentration makes hotspots efficient targets for conservation investment, but it also means that conservation outside hotspots is systematically underfunded.