Too big to miss: body size biases in tetrapod species descriptions and their implications for conservation
Year: 2025
Type: article
Abstract: While species descriptions are rooted in biological diversity, their timing and patterns have also been influenced by historical, socioeconomic, and perceptual biases. Among these, body size has long been proposed as a factor influencing the timing of species discovery, with larger species assumed to have been described earlier due to their conspicuousness and broader distributions. Using comprehensive datasets on amphibians, birds, mammals, and reptiles, this study analyzes body size trends in vertebrate species descriptions across broad temporal, phylogenetic and geographic scales. Results show that species described earlier tended to have larger body sizes. Null models reveal that, trends in species description accounting for body size deviate from chance. Spatial analyses further show that tropical regions, particularly the Amazon, Andes and Southeast Asia, have remained central to species discovery across all periods. I also briefly discuss the challenges of defining large‐bodied species and highlight the limitations of relying solely on central tendency estimates. While the discovery of entirely unknown large species is increasingly rare, taxonomic revisions continue to reveal cryptic giants. These findings underscore the importance of recognizing historical biases in species descriptions, not only for interpreting biodiversity patterns, but also for informing conservation priorities and reconciling taxonomic and ecological perspectives.
Source: Oikos
DOI: 10.1002/oik.11904
Author: Juan D. Vásquez‐Restrepo
Institution: Princeton University
Language: English
Subfield: Paleontology
Field: Earth and Planetary Sciences
Domain: Physical Sciences
Open Access status: hybrid
Estimated APC paid: $3,640
OpenAlex ID: W4416201547