Challenges in expert ratings of marine habitat and species sensitivity to anthropogenic pressures
Abstract Expert knowledge can help fill gaps in quantitative empirical information about complex ecological phenomena. We examined the level of agreement between 21 studies that collected expert ratings of the sensitivity of species and habitats to human activities and their pressures as input data...
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
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Nature Portfolio
2025-04-01
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| Series: | Scientific Reports |
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| Online Access: | https://doi.org/10.1038/s41598-025-96913-8 |
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| author | Niko Kallio Jesper H. Andersen Jacob Carstensen Elena Gissi Benjamin S. Halpern Linus Hammar Ciaran Murray Vanessa Stelzenmüller Andy Stock Samuli Korpinen |
| author_facet | Niko Kallio Jesper H. Andersen Jacob Carstensen Elena Gissi Benjamin S. Halpern Linus Hammar Ciaran Murray Vanessa Stelzenmüller Andy Stock Samuli Korpinen |
| author_sort | Niko Kallio |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | Abstract Expert knowledge can help fill gaps in quantitative empirical information about complex ecological phenomena. We examined the level of agreement between 21 studies that collected expert ratings of the sensitivity of species and habitats to human activities and their pressures as input data for mapping the human impact on marine ecosystems. Our analyses revealed broad agreement about which human activities and pressures many species and habitats are sensitive to. These agreements reflect a common view of the main threats to ocean ecosystems. In contrast, scores provided by individual experts varied both within and across studies. Sensitivity scores collected with the same method for different regions were often more similar than scores collected for the same region but with different methods. These results highlight how inconsistencies in the design of many expert surveys can lead to variable outcomes. It is important to employ more consistent and theoretically grounded methods and protocols when eliciting expert ratings of species’ sensitivity to pressures, to ensure compatibility across studies and maintain rigour in analyses supporting effective ocean management. |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj-art-fd2b2a5adfd042a288f04e7b3a5d41e0 |
| institution | DOAJ |
| issn | 2045-2322 |
| language | English |
| publishDate | 2025-04-01 |
| publisher | Nature Portfolio |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Scientific Reports |
| spelling | doaj-art-fd2b2a5adfd042a288f04e7b3a5d41e02025-08-20T03:06:57ZengNature PortfolioScientific Reports2045-23222025-04-0115111110.1038/s41598-025-96913-8Challenges in expert ratings of marine habitat and species sensitivity to anthropogenic pressuresNiko Kallio0Jesper H. Andersen1Jacob Carstensen2Elena Gissi3Benjamin S. Halpern4Linus Hammar5Ciaran Murray6Vanessa Stelzenmüller7Andy Stock8Samuli Korpinen9Finnish Environment Institute (SYKE)NIVA Denmark Water ResearchDepartment for Ecoscience (ECOS), Aarhus UniversityNational Research Council, Institute of Marine SciencesNational Centre for Ecological Analysis and Synthesis (NCEAS), University of CaliforniaKristineberg Centre for Marine Research and InnovationNIVA Denmark Water ResearchThünen Institute of Sea FisheriesNIVA Denmark Water ResearchFinnish Environment Institute (SYKE)Abstract Expert knowledge can help fill gaps in quantitative empirical information about complex ecological phenomena. We examined the level of agreement between 21 studies that collected expert ratings of the sensitivity of species and habitats to human activities and their pressures as input data for mapping the human impact on marine ecosystems. Our analyses revealed broad agreement about which human activities and pressures many species and habitats are sensitive to. These agreements reflect a common view of the main threats to ocean ecosystems. In contrast, scores provided by individual experts varied both within and across studies. Sensitivity scores collected with the same method for different regions were often more similar than scores collected for the same region but with different methods. These results highlight how inconsistencies in the design of many expert surveys can lead to variable outcomes. It is important to employ more consistent and theoretically grounded methods and protocols when eliciting expert ratings of species’ sensitivity to pressures, to ensure compatibility across studies and maintain rigour in analyses supporting effective ocean management.https://doi.org/10.1038/s41598-025-96913-8ExpertSurveyMarine habitatHuman impactEcosystem sensitivity |
| spellingShingle | Niko Kallio Jesper H. Andersen Jacob Carstensen Elena Gissi Benjamin S. Halpern Linus Hammar Ciaran Murray Vanessa Stelzenmüller Andy Stock Samuli Korpinen Challenges in expert ratings of marine habitat and species sensitivity to anthropogenic pressures Scientific Reports Expert Survey Marine habitat Human impact Ecosystem sensitivity |
| title | Challenges in expert ratings of marine habitat and species sensitivity to anthropogenic pressures |
| title_full | Challenges in expert ratings of marine habitat and species sensitivity to anthropogenic pressures |
| title_fullStr | Challenges in expert ratings of marine habitat and species sensitivity to anthropogenic pressures |
| title_full_unstemmed | Challenges in expert ratings of marine habitat and species sensitivity to anthropogenic pressures |
| title_short | Challenges in expert ratings of marine habitat and species sensitivity to anthropogenic pressures |
| title_sort | challenges in expert ratings of marine habitat and species sensitivity to anthropogenic pressures |
| topic | Expert Survey Marine habitat Human impact Ecosystem sensitivity |
| url | https://doi.org/10.1038/s41598-025-96913-8 |
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