Research themes & Data sets

The GMA lab is undertaking a wide variety of projects related to the following research lines:
  • Distribution changes of mammals (past, present, future, drivers)
  • Global mammal extinction risk (past, present, future)
  • Mammal and bird sensitivity to climate change
  • Global Area of Habitat (AOH) of mammals and birds
  • InSiGHTS scenario model of the effects of global (climate and land use) change on the AOH
  • Global mammal invasions (past, present, future drivers)

See also the full list of publications on Google Scholar.

For our research, we have produced several global mammal data sets that are available for use through research collaborations. These include:

  1. Global Area of Habitat for all mammals and birds. Area of Habitat is the habitat available to a species, i.e., habitat within its range, and is modeled based on suitable land cover and elevation range within the species’ geographic range maintained for the IUCN Red List.
  1. Global distributions of alien mammals (DAMA): A comprehensive source reporting the global distribution of the 230 mammal species that established self-sustaining and free-ranging populations outside their native range due to direct or indirect human action. Every alien range is accompanied by information on its invasion stage, pathway, method and date of introduction. DAMA was accepted for publication in Ecology and is currently In press. People interested can contact Dino Biancolini.
  1. Global data on the distribution of terrestrial mammals in the 1970s: A database that includes >300 species distribution maps collected from the literature and revised by the species’ experts. People interested can see Pacifici et al. 2019 for details and contact Michela Pacifici
  1. A global database of mammalian traits (COMBINE): A taxonomically integrated database of mammal traits that maximized trait number and coverage without compromising data quality. It contains information on 54 traits for 6,234 extant and recently extinct mammal species, including information on morphology, reproduction, diet, biogeography, life-habit, phenology, behavior, home range and density. People interested can see Soria et al. 2021 for details.
  1. Global scenarios of change in mammalian Area of Habitat: These scenarios are produced applying the InSiGHTS modelling framework to various global scenarios of change in land use and climate. Also available through the GEO BON Essential Biodiversity Variables Data Portal.

As the list of data products is growing continuously, we suggest interested people to contact Carlo Rondinini for updates and to discuss potential collaborations.

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