Putting your best fish forward: Investigating distance decay and relative preferences for fish conservation

Easily recognizable species are often used as so-called ‘flagship’ species to raise awareness and funding for conservation action, but this practice has been criticized for neglecting low-profile species. One component of biodiversity is the geographic distribution of where species live, with species that live in only one habitat being endemic to that particular habitat. This study investigates how respondents to a discrete choice experiment ascribe value to the conservation of five different fish species with one species being non-endemic to the study area and familiar to most respondents while another, much lesser-known species, is endemic to the study area. We use a latent class model to investigate possible distance decay effects in which species respondents prioritize for economic valuation. Results suggest individuals who live relatively close to unfamiliar species may be among those who are more likely to value such species higher relative to more familiar substitute species.