503 species, 3 million observations, one clear answer: protect the habitat, protect the animals

Researchers at the University of Helsinki asked a deceptively simple question across twenty years of Finnish wildlife data: what explains where animals live — the climate, or the habitat itself? Studying 503 species and more than 3 million observations, they found habitat mattered more than climate for most groups, especially butterflies, birds and small mammals. Climate shapes the broad map between north and south, but locally it is forests, wetlands and farmland decisions that decide who thrives. The practical message is hopeful: land-use choices are levers humans already hold — safeguarding habitat is something a council, a farmer or a forester can do this year.

SDG 15 · Life on land