How do extreme events affect ecosystem services?

Extreme events, including climate hazards, financial crises, and rapid policy changes, are increasingly disrupting socio-ecological systems and ecosystem service (ES) provision, yet their representation in ES research remains poorly characterised. This study develops a conceptual model that maps extreme event impacts across the ES supply chain, distinguishing biophysical effects from socio-economic effects. Using this model as a coding framework, we conducted a systematic review (2006–2026) of peer-reviewed literature indexed in Web of Science and Scopus to assess which extreme events are studied and which impact pathways are represented. Across 121 included studies spanning 21 event types, 11 ES categories, and 23 geographic regions, we find that research is dominated by environmental extremes (88%) and direct biophysical supply disruptions (91.4%), with socio-economic events and demand/flow pathways substantially under-represented. Impacts are overwhelmingly negative (93.3%), though positive outcomes occur in specific contexts. Few studies integrate disaster risk concepts (hazard, exposure, vulnerability) or couple biophysical and socio-economic models. These gaps limit ES assessments' ability to anticipate cascading, multi-scalar impacts. We recommend that future research prioritises socio-economic extremes and hybrid modelling approaches to support more resilient ES management under extreme events.