Identifying the impact of global human activities expansion on natural habitats

Human activities expansion globally has exerted tremendous pressure on natural habitats and threatens the conservation of global biodiversity. Studying the impact of human activities expansion on natural habitats globally and in various biomes can provide scientific reference for differentiated approaches to global habitat restoration. However, previous studies still lack identification of the impact of global human activities expansion on natural habitats, especially in different biomes. Here we used the InVEST model to assess the changes in habitat quality globally and across biomes over the past 20 years and analyzed the impact of human activities expansion on them using Spearman correlation coefficients. The results showed an overall global degradation of natural habitats of 0.537% during 2000-2020, while human activities increased by 10.990%. Mangroves were the biomes with the most severe habitat degradation, while deserts and xeric shrublands were the biomes with the most significant habitat restoration. At the global scale, human activities had caused significant and growing negative impact on natural habitats, while in terms of different biomes, human activities may bring about habitat restoration. The findings of this study recommend the implementation of differentiated human activities regulation measures in different biomes to promote global habitat restoration.