The relati
onship between bi
odiversity and each ec
osystem service
or bundle
of ec
osystem services (e.g. win−win, win−l
ose
or win−neutral) is an active field
of research that requires structured and c
onsistent inf
ormati
on. The applicati
on
of that research f
or c
onservati
on and decisi
on-making can be hampered by the ambiguity f
ound in the definiti
on
of the nursery functi
on under the ec
osystem service perspective. In this paper, we review h
ow the r
ole
of nursery habitats is included in the ec
osystem services literature, c
overing c
onceptual, bi
ophysical and ec
on
omic reflecti
ons. The r
ole
of ec
osystems as nurseries is m
ostly analyzed in c
oastal envir
onments. The main
observati
on is that there is n
o c
onsensus
on the c
onsiderati
on
of the nursery functi
on as a service (e.g. which species
or habitats)
or
on h
ow t
o assess it (e.g. which indicat
ors
or valuati
on meth
ods). After that review, we analyze three different interpretati
ons given t
o the nursery functi
on, namely the ec
ol
ogical, c
onservati
onist and ec
on
omic p
oint
of view; and we distinguish between different types
of assessment that may c
onsider the nursery functi
on.
We conclude that the nursery function can be considered an ecosystem service on its own right when it is linked to a concrete human benefit and not when it is represented with indicators of general biodiversity or ecosystem condition. Thus, the analysis of the delivery of ecosystem services should be differentiated from the analysis of ecological integrity. Only with this distinction science may be able to quantify the link between biodiversity and ecosystem services and policy may be effective in halting biodiversity loss. Similar considerations could apply for other biodiversity constituents that may be treated as ecosystem services.