Environment, Biodiversity and Conservation in the Middle East Proceedings of the First Middle Eastern Biodiversity Congress, Aqaba, Jordan, 20-23 October 2008

On a global scale, the Middle East is the only transition zone between three major biogeographic units, the Palaearctic, Afrotropical, and Oriental Realms, resulting in an exceptional biogeography and unique biological diversity, which are increasingly impacted by anthropogenic threats and climate change. This special issue of BioRisk contains a collection of 15 papers presented during the First International Congress: Documenting, Analysing and Managing Biodiversity in the Middle East, which was held in Aqaba, Jordan from 20 to 23 October 2008.

Contributions address a wide range of themes, including success and limits of re-colonisation of the Mediterranean with tropical marine species, biodiversity networks, ecological challenges of rapid urbanization in the United Arab Emirates, habitat mapping for protected area design, diversity of cyanobacteria in hot springs, variability and diversity of phytoplankton in the Gulf, diversity and distribution of lichens, a complex ex situ – in situ approach for conservation of endangered plants, and the Key Biodiversity Areas Programme implemented by Nature Iraq with various examples of phytoplankton, fish and bird studies.

This special issue will be of value to anyone interested in biodiversity research and conservation in the Middle East including botanists, zoologists, ecologists, conservationists, and decision makers as well as those who care about global climate change and its effects on biological diversity.