Biodiversity conservation research has long been biased toward popular species and ecosystems, with little attention given to within-species genetic diversity. A study analyzing 17,502 research articles from four top conservation-focused journals over 40 years found that these biases have remained consistent. Animals and terrestrial ecosystems are over-represented, while plants, fungi, and freshwater ecosystems are under-represented. Many of the most-studied species have low conservation risk, including domesticated animals. Conservation research has increasingly focused on the same suite of species, with vertebrates making up 89% of the most-studied species, despite comprising less than 4% of all GBIF-listed species. Research effort is also biased toward animals over plants and fungi, with marine and freshwater species receiving less attention. Genetic diversity has received the least attention, with genetics research in conservation biology journals increasing from less than 3% to 20% in 1996, but then declining. Despite increased research, the number of new species studied each decade has decreased. The study highlights the need for targeted funding and research efforts to address these biases and ensure more effective conservation across multiple levels of biodiversity. The findings suggest that current conservation efforts are not meeting CBD targets due to persistent biases in research focus. The study calls for a more balanced approach to conservation research to prevent further biodiversity loss.Biodiversity conservation research has long been biased toward popular species and ecosystems, with little attention given to within-species genetic diversity. A study analyzing 17,502 research articles from four top conservation-focused journals over 40 years found that these biases have remained consistent. Animals and terrestrial ecosystems are over-represented, while plants, fungi, and freshwater ecosystems are under-represented. Many of the most-studied species have low conservation risk, including domesticated animals. Conservation research has increasingly focused on the same suite of species, with vertebrates making up 89% of the most-studied species, despite comprising less than 4% of all GBIF-listed species. Research effort is also biased toward animals over plants and fungi, with marine and freshwater species receiving less attention. Genetic diversity has received the least attention, with genetics research in conservation biology journals increasing from less than 3% to 20% in 1996, but then declining. Despite increased research, the number of new species studied each decade has decreased. The study highlights the need for targeted funding and research efforts to address these biases and ensure more effective conservation across multiple levels of biodiversity. The findings suggest that current conservation efforts are not meeting CBD targets due to persistent biases in research focus. The study calls for a more balanced approach to conservation research to prevent further biodiversity loss.