03283nas a2200313   4500008004100000022002500041245008300066210006900149260001600218300001000234520226000244653001702504653002802521653003202549653003202581653002502613653002202638653002702660653002802687653001702715653003402732100002302766700002102789700002502810700001802835700002702853700002302880856006602903       2025                        eng d  a0888-8892, 1523-173900aAn interdisciplinary approach to improving conservation outcomes for parasites0 ainterdisciplinary approach to improving conservation outcomes fo  cJan-19-2025  a1- 133 a<p><jats p="">Parasites represent a significant proportion of Earth&#39;s biodiversity and play important roles in the ecology and biology of ecosystems and hosts, making them an important target for conservation. Despite increasing calls to prioritize protection for parasites in the academic literature, they remain undervalued and underrepresented in global biodiversity conservation efforts, not least due to the perception that the interests of parasite and host conservation are opposing and the common misconception that parasites are a threat, rather than a benefit, to conservation. We considered whether taking an interdisciplinary approach to parasite conservation research will generate novel insights and solutions concerning why and how parasite conservation should be practiced for the benefit of parasites, their hosts, ecosystems, and people. We argue that 2 of the main barriers to more widespread parasite conservation are the knowledge gap concerning the role of sociocultural factors affecting the willingness to enact parasite conservation and the lack of a consistent and cohesive philosophical basis for parasite conservation. Possible sociocultural barriers to parasite conservation include misconceptions of the risks posed by parasites, taxonomic bias, differences in conservation values, economic constraints, and technical challenges. The use of social science can generate insights into levels of awareness and support for parasite conservation and improve understanding of how human values and attitudes mediate conservation practices concerning parasites. Such knowledge will have a critical role in addressing sociocultural barriers and improving support for parasite conservation. Issues with the current philosophical basis for parasite conservation include contradictory accounts of which parasites merit conservation, insufficient explanation of how different conservation values apply to parasite biodiversity, and the existence of a false antagonism between host and parasite conservation. Greater engagement with philosophical work on environmental ethics and biological unitization will strengthen existing arguments for parasite conservation and will support conservation decision‐making processes.</jats></p>
10acoextinction10aconservation philosophy10aConservation prioritization10aconservation social science10aex situ conservation10aFelicola isidoroi10aholobiont conservation10aNeotrichodectes minutus10aParasitology10aunderappreciated biodiversity1 aBrown, Timothy, M.1 aDunn, Alison, M.1 aQuinnell, Rupert, J.1 aClarke, Ellen1 aCunningham, Andrew, A.1 aGoodman, Simon, J.  uhttps://conbio.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/cobi.14431