Loss of the world's smallest forests

A large number of small forests typically harbor higher biodiversity than a small number of large forests totaling the same area, suggesting that small patches are disproportionately valuable for biodiversity conservation. However, policies often favor protection of large forest patches. Here we demonstrate a global trend of higher deforestation in small than large forest patches: the likelihood that a randomly selected forest plot disappeared between 1992 and 2020 increased with decreasing size of the forest patch containing that plot. Our results imply a disproportionate impact of forest loss on biodiversity relative to the total forest area removed. Achieving recent commitments of the post‐2020 Global Biodiversity Framework will require revision of current policies and increased societal awareness of the importance of small habitat patches for biodiversity protection. Global analysis of forest cover suggests that small patches of forest were 2–3 times more likely to suffer from deforestation than large patches between 1992 and 2020. This result highlights an important conservation conundrum: while conservation policy has historically emphasized the protection of large forest patches, groups of small patches often host higher biodiversity. Small patches amount to a third of forest in human‐dominated landscapes, suggesting particularly high risk to biodiversity of forest loss in those regions. Resolving this conundrum will require revision of current policy and increased societal awareness of the importance of small forest patches for biodiversity conservation.