Conservation funding is currently limited; cost‐effective conservation solutions are essential. We suggest that the thousands of field stations worldwide can play key roles at the frontline of biodiversity conservation and have high intrinsic value. We assessed field stations’ conservation return on investment and explored the impact of COVID‐19. We surveyed leaders of field stations across tropical regions that host primate research; 157 field stations in 56 countries responded. Respondents reported improved habitat quality and reduced hunting rates at over 80% of field stations and lower operational costs per km2 than protected areas, yet half of those surveyed have less funding now than in 2019. Spatial analyses support field station presence as reducing deforestation. These “earth observatories” provide a high return on investment; we advocate for increased support of field station programs and for governments to support their vital conservation efforts by investing accordingly.

中文翻译：

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热带野外观测站可带来高保护投资回报

目前保护资金有限；具有成本效益的保护解决方案至关重要。我们认为，全球数以千计的野外观测站可以在生物多样性保护的第一线发挥关键作用，并具有很高的内在价值。我们评估了实地站的保护投资回报并探讨了 COVID-19 的影响。我们调查了热带地区主持灵长类动物研究的实地站的领导者；56 个国家的 157 个现场站做出了回应。受访者表示，超过 80% 的野外监测站栖息地质量得到改善，狩猎率降低，每公里运营成本也降低2比保护区还多，但一半的受访者现在的资金比 2019 年少。空间分析支持实地监测站的存在可以减少森林砍伐。这些“地球观测站”提供了很高的投资回报；我们主张增加对实地站计划的支持，并主张各国政府通过相应投资来支持其重要的保护工作。