Not Seeing the Forest for the Trees: The Oversight of Defaunation in REDD+ and Global Forest Governance

Background

REDD+ (Reducing Emissions from Deforestation and Forest Degradation) aims to mitigate climate change by preserving forest carbon stocks. Although REDD+ focuses mainly on reducing deforestation, it largely ignores defaunation—the loss of forest wildlife caused by unsustainable hunting. Many tropical forests suffer from "empty forest syndrome," where hunting removes large frugivores and seed dispersers, disrupting seed dispersal and carbon sequestration. This study highlights how REDD+ policies overlook the ecological role of forest fauna and argues that neglecting defaunation threatens the long-term success of forest conservation.

Goals and Methods

The study reviews REDD+ policies and national implementation in Colombia, Ecuador, Nigeria, Tanzania, and Indonesia to assess whether they recognize hunting and defaunation as threats to forest function. Researchers analyze sub-national REDD+ project documents to determine if they incorporate wildlife conservation, hunting management, or biodiversity monitoring. The study also examines how defaunation affects forest regeneration, tree species composition, and carbon storage.

Conclusion

The findings show that both international and national REDD+ strategies almost entirely ignore defaunation. While biodiversity appears as a co-benefit, REDD+ rarely addresses the specific role wildlife plays in maintaining forest ecosystems. Hunting rarely features as a driver of forest degradation, despite strong evidence that losing large frugivores and seed dispersers alters tree recruitment and reduces carbon storage. Even sub-national REDD+ projects mention hunting superficially and implement few measures to monitor or mitigate its effects. The study concludes that without integrating defaunation into REDD+, forest conservation efforts risk failing over the long term.