Species genetic diversity is a critical aspect of ecosystem health, but assessing it can be challenging due to the complexity of gathering and analyzing relevant data across large spatial scales. Traditional methods often require extensive fieldwork and labor-intensive sampling for DNA sequencing, which limits the frequency and scale of genetic diversity assessments.
The Genes From Space monitoring tool uses Earth Observations (EO) to track habitat changes over time and infer population trends as indicators of genetic diversity. Leveraging public EO data, the tool enables users to calculate two genetic diversity indicators adopted by the Convention on Biological Diversity:
- the Ne500 indicator, indicating the fraction of populations with an effective population size (Ne) above 500 units. Populations with Ne below 500 units are at risk of genetic erosion.
- the Populations Maintained indicator (PM), indicating the fraction of populations that are maintained (i.e., that did not extinct) over time.
Developed within the BON in a box platform, the tool provides an interface that simplifies the process of selecting EO datasets, running analyses, and interpreting genetic diversity indicators. Ultimately, this tool offers a more scalable and accessible solution for researchers, conservationists, and policymakers to monitor and protect biodiversity at local, regional, and global levels.
The beta version of the tool will be soon available for testing. If you’re interested in testing the tool’s features and providing feedback, sign up for beta testing via this form: https://forms.gle/uSbJT9YDqoDDYU9H8
How does the tool work
The Tool is made of three components:
- a population input, which defines the spatial distribution of the species populations;
- a habitat input, which summarizes changes in the species suitable habitat over time; and,
- a processing tool that combines population and habitat inputs to calculate genetic diversity indicators.
Population input
Populations are defined as polygons representing areas where distinct populations can potentially be found. You can either provide previously created polygons, like the ones given by a Species distribution model or use the tool to create them. The tool can generate population polygons from coordinates representing species observations. These are either field-collected points provided by the user or retrieved from online databases like GBIF.
Habitat input
The habitat input is a set of habitat suitability maps describing the area in which the species can realistically exist over time. For example, the suitable habitat map of a forest dwelling species could showareas with tree cover and the change over time. You can either provide a pre-calculated, binarized map or use the tool to generate one by using a variety of Land cover datasets. For example, the figure below shows tree cover change in Mexico between 2000 and 2023, as reconstructed by the tool using data from the Global Forest Watch.
Genetic diversity Indicators
Lastly, the tool combines population polygons and habitat suitability maps to calculate habitat size over time for each population. Habitat size is then combined with provided population estimates to calculate the genetic diversity indicators. Genetic diversity indicators are displayed through an interactive interface allowing the user to explore trends of genetic diversity change over time and across the geographical space.
Example case studies
