For decades, biogeographers have used patterns of animal and plant diversity to identify areas that could be considered for conservation efforts. Since richness is not the best framework to conserve biodiversity, ecologists have been using patterns of complementarity to ensure that sites selected for inclusion in a reserve network complement those already selected. They also have investigated their association with the environment to conserve biodiversity in terrestrial realms successfully. In this study, we extended these ideas to marine realms. Specifically, we investigated if complementarity patterns vary with latitude, and what are the reasons for the observed patterns.

中文翻译：

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海洋哺乳动物高度优先保护区的地理

几十年来，生物地理学家一直使用动植物多样性的模式来确定可以考虑进行保护工作的地区。由于丰富程度并不是保护生物多样性的最佳框架，生态学家一直在使用互补性模式，以确保选择纳入保护区网络的地点与已经选择的地点相辅相成。他们还调查了它们与环境的关系，以成功保护陆地领域的生物多样性。在这项研究中，我们将这些想法扩展到了海洋领域。具体来说，我们调查了互补模式是否随纬度变化，以及观察到这种模式的原因是什么。