Feijó Anderson, Magalhães Rodolfo, Bocchiglieri Adriana, Cordeiro José Luís P, Sena Liana Mara, Attias Nina
Key Laboratory of Zoological Systematics and Evolution, Institute of Zoology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, China.
Programa de Pós-Graduação em Ecologia, Conservação e Manejo da Vida Silvestre, Universidade Federal de Minas Gerais, Belo Horizonte, Brazil.
Camb Prism Extinct. 2023 Jan 5;1:e2. doi: 10.1017/ext.2022.2. eCollection 2023.
Conservation of poorly known species is challenging as lack of knowledge on their specific requirements may hamper effective strategies. Here, by integrating biogeographical and landscape analyses, we show that informed actions can be delineated for species with limited presence-only data available. We combine species distribution and connectivity models with temporal land cover changes to define priority areas for conservation of the endemic Brazilian three-banded armadillo, one of the most threatened xenarthrans that was once considered extinct in the wild. We revealed that areas of savanna and grassland are the most suitable habitats for the species and that uplands in the Caatinga ecoregion have a greater likelihood for dispersal. The few remnant armadillo populations are spatially associated with core areas of natural vegetation remnants. Worrisomely, 76% of natural core areas were lost in the past 30 years, mirroring the species' severe population decline. Preserving the remnant core natural areas should be a high priority to ensure the species' survival. We highlight key areas for proactive and reactive conservation actions for the three-banded armadillo that will benefit other threatened sympatric species. Our integrative framework provides a set of valuable information for guided conservation management that can be replicated for other poorly known species.
保护鲜为人知的物种具有挑战性，因为对其特定需求缺乏了解可能会阻碍有效的保护策略。在此，通过整合生物地理学和景观分析，我们表明，对于仅有有限的仅存在数据的物种，可以确定明智的保护行动。我们将物种分布和连通性模型与土地覆盖随时间的变化相结合，以确定巴西三带犰狳（一种曾经被认为在野外灭绝的最受威胁的贫齿目动物）的保护优先区域。我们发现，稀树草原和草原地区是该物种最适宜的栖息地，并且卡廷加生态区的高地具有更大的扩散可能性。少数残留的犰狳种群在空间上与自然植被残留的核心区域相关联。令人担忧的是，在过去30年中，76%的自然核心区域已经丧失，这反映了该物种种群数量的严重下降。保护残留的核心自然区域应成为确保该物种生存的高度优先事项。我们强调了针对三带犰狳采取积极和被动保护行动的关键区域，这将有利于其他受威胁的同域物种。我们的综合框架为指导保护管理提供了一套有价值的信息，可用于其他鲜为人知的物种。
