Abstract
Conservation ecology is an applied area of ecology aimed at conserving biodiversity and maintaining sound ecosystems, and the discipline is expected to contribute to conservation activities. For this purpose, research in conservation ecology should be properly conducted to support such activities. To understand the current features of research in conservation ecology in Japan, we conducted a meta-analysis of papers published in the Japanese Journal of Conservation Ecology, which has been issued by the Ecological Society of Japan since 1996. The number of papers published in this journal has been increasing, and the authors of these papers have diversified since the first issue. However, certain biases were found in the published studies that were published: researchers tended to carry out studies close to the research institute to which they belonged, and they tended to study plants, mammals, and fish more often than insects and other invertebrates. We present these results and discuss problems that should be resolved in the future to improve research in conservation ecology in Japan.
