Despite their diversity and ecological importance, small mammals are under-represented in conservation research relative to other mammals. We evaluated the conservation status of 36 small mammal species in Alaska, U.S.A. using a ranking system that we previously developed, the Alaska Species Ranking System (ASRS). We compared results from the ASRS with NatureServe's subnational rankings. Finally, we surveyed taxonomic experts to identify recommended conservation actions and research priorities for 5 species of high conservation concern. In general, the ASRS and NatureServe agreed on the rankings of species in the highest and lowest risk categories. Species of highest conservation concern were taxa endemic to the state, including 2 island-endemic shrews, and taxa from the orders Chiroptera and Eulipotyphla. Because the ASRS includes information needs in its assessment, 15 of the 20 species considered lowest concern by NatureServe were considered intermediate concern by the ASRS. In the ASRS, most species (n = 24) were assessed to have low biological vulnerabilities, but high information needs. Population size and trends were unknown for all species; distributional limits and understanding of population dynamics were incomplete for all species except 4. Disease and climate change effects on habitat were perceived as important threats, but affected only 8 species. Taxonomic experts identified addressing data deficiencies and protecting habitat as important conservation actions; they identified monitoring population trends, modeling habitat, and researching species' genetic diversity and adaptive capacity as high priorities. Conservation assessments that require accurate and current data on population trends or threats may lead to bias against data deficient groups such as small mammals. Our findings demonstrate the importance of accounting for data deficiencies in conservation status ranks to avoid conflation of sparse information with low conservation concern.

中文翻译：

---

阿拉斯加小型哺乳动物的保护状况，威胁和信息需求

尽管它们具有多样性和生态重要性，但与其他哺乳动物相比，小型哺乳动物在保护研究中的代表性不足。我们使用之前开发的排名系统阿拉斯加物种排名系统（ASRS）对美国阿拉斯加的36种小型哺乳动物物种的保护状况进行了评估。我们将ASRS的结果与NatureServe的国家以下排名进行了比较。最后，我们对生物分类学专家进行了调查，以找出建议的保护措施，并对5个高度关注保护的物种进行优先研究。总的来说，ASRS和NatureServe同意在最高和最低风险类别中对物种进行排名。最受保护的物种是该州特有的生物分类，包括2个岛屿特有的sh，以及来自翼手目和真蝇科的生物分类。由于ASRS在其评估中包括了信息需求，因此，NatureServe认为最低关注的20种物种中有15种被ASRS认为是中等关注。在ASRS中，大多数物种（n = 24）被评估为具有低生物脆弱性，但信息需求较高。所有物种的种群数量和趋势都未知；除4外，所有物种的分布极限和对种群动态的了解都不完整。疾病和气候变化对栖息地的影响被认为是重要的威胁，但仅影响8个物种。分类学专家认为解决数据不足和保护栖息地是重要的保护行动；他们确定了监测种群趋势，对栖息地进行建模以及研究物种的遗传多样性和适应能力是当务之急。需要准确，最新的人口趋势或威胁数据的保护评估可能会导致对诸如哺乳动物等数据不足人群的偏见。我们的发现表明，对保护状态等级中的数据不足进行会计处理的重要性，可以避免稀疏信息与低保护关注度的混淆。