Platform

BIODIFUL

Biodiful.org is an online scientific platform dedicated to the study of human perception of biodiversity and the aesthetic dimensions of nature. It provides researchers with a WebSite to design and host photographic/sound or video surveys that explore how people perceive, appreciate, or sometimes fear the living world. The platform has already hosted several major surveys addressing a wide range of ecosystems and emotional responses to nature, from reef fishes, coralligenous assemblages, and coral reefs, to studies on biophobia and even teddy bears. These insights help link aesthetic appreciation, ecological function, and emotional perception, offering new perspectives for science communication and conservation.

The platform is open to the entire scientific community and other partners. Anyone interested in conducting a survey on human–nature interactions is welcome to use it by contacting nicolas.mouquet@cnrs.fr.

Published work so far

  1. Mouquet N., Blanc N., Brassac T., Casajus N., Tribot A. (2025). Too cute to be wild: what teddy bears reveal about our disconnection from nature. BioScience, doi.org/10.1093/biosci/biaf146

  2. Alisa C.A.G., Razak T.B., Mouquet N., Graham N.A.J., Hemingson C.R., Mouillot D., team M.C.R.P.m., Damayanti L., Prasetya M.E., Maulana P.B., Hamka A., Dwiyanto A., Abeng A.T., Irwan, Madjid R., Hidayat E.A., Lakota H., Parrangan C.V., Pratama A.M., Hamzah, Suandar, Subhan B., Zamani N.P., Vida R.T., Lamont T.A.C. (2025). Benthic communities on restored coral reefs confer equivalent aesthetic value to healthy reefs. Scientific Reports, doi.org/10.1038/s41598-025-06373-3

  3. McLean M.*, Mouillot D., Langlois J., Arif S., Bejarano S., Casajus N., Edgar G.J., Flandrin U., Guilhaumon F., Judah A.B., Loiseau N., MacNeil M.A., Maire E., Stuart-Smith R.D., Mouquet N.* (2025). Conserving the beauty of the world's reef fish assemblages. Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, doi.org/10.1073/pnas.2415931122 (* These authors contributed equally to this study)

  4. Blanc N., Tribot A., Brassac T., Mouquet N. (2025). The science of cuteness: where teddy bears' beauty, comfort and care converge. The Journal of Positive Psychology, doi.org/10.1080/17439760.2025.2538890

  5. Zeller K., Mouquet N., Garcia C., Dezecache G., Maille A., Duboscq J., Morino L., Bonnet X. (2025). Danger versus fear: A key to understanding biophobia. People and Nature, doi.org/10.1002/pan3.70009

  6. Mouquet N., Langlois J., Casajus N., Auber A., Flandrin U., Guilhaumon F., Loiseau N., McLean M., Receveur A., Stuart-Smith R.D., Mouillot D. (2024). Low human interest for the most at-risk reef fishes worldwide. Science Advances, doi.org/10.1126/sciadv.adj9510

  7. Tribot A., Blanc N., Brassac T., Guilhaumon F., Casajus N., Mouquet N. (2023). What makes a teddy bear comforting? A participatory study reveals the prevalence of sensory characteristics and emotional bonds in the perception of comforting teddy bears. The Journal of Positive Psychology, doi.org/10.1080/17439760.2023.2170273

  8. Langlois J.*, Guilhaumon F., Baletaud F., Casajus N., Braga C.D.A., Fleure V., Kulbicki M., Loiseau N., Mouillot D., Renoult J.P., Stahl A., Stuart-Smith R.D., Tribot A., Mouquet N.* (2022). The aesthetic value of reef fishes is globally mismatched to their conservation priorities. PLoS Biology, doi.org/10.1371/journal.pbio.3001640 (*These authors contributed equally to this study)

  9. Langlois J., Guilhaumon F., Bockel T., Boissery P., Braga C.D.A., Deter J., Holon F., Marre G., Tribot A., Mouquet N. (2021). An integrated approach to estimate aesthetic and ecological values of coralligenous reefs. Ecological Indicators, doi.org/10.1016/j.ecolind.2021.107935

  10. Tribot A., Deter J., Claverie T., Guillhaumon F., Villeger S., Mouquet N. (2019). Species diversity and composition drive the aesthetic value of coral reef fish assemblages. Biology Letters, doi.org/10.1098/rsbl.2019.0703

  11. Tribot A., Deter J., Mouquet N. (2018). Integrating the aesthetic value of landscapes and biological diversity. Proceedings of the Royal Society B Biological Sciences, doi.org/10.1098/rspb.2018.0971

  12. Tribot A., Carabeux Q., Deter J., Claverie T., Villeger S., Mouquet N. (2018). Confronting species aesthetics with ecological functions in coral reef fish. Scientific Reports, doi.org/10.1038/s41598-018-29637-7

  13. Tribot A., Mouquet N., Villeger S., Raymond M., Hoff F., Boissery P., Holon F., Deter J. (2016). Taxonomic and functional diversity increase the aesthetic value of coralligenous reefs. Scientific Reports, doi.org/10.1038/srep34229

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