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Conservation biogeography, which applies principles, theories, and analyses of biodiversity distribution patterns to address conservation challenges, can provide valuable insight and guidance to policy making for protection of biodiversity at multiple scales. The temperate and tropical ecosystems of the Nearctic-Neotropical transition in the small western state of Colima, Mexico, support a mosaic of remarkably diverse fauna and flora and provide a rare opportunity to determine spatial distribution patterns of terrestrial vertebrate species, assess human-induced threats, and identify potential conservation strategies. We analyzed the spatial distribution patterns and correlated them with the current land cover and extent of the protected areas. Despite its limited geographic extension, 29% (866) of all vertebrates, and almost a quarter of both endemic and threatened species in Mexico, live in Colima. Our analysis identified clear high-richness concentration sites (i.e., “hotspots”) coincident for all groups and that elevation and both temperate and tropical ecosystems composition exert significant influence on richness patterns. Furthermore, current species´ distribution also showed significant correlation with natural and disturbed landcover. Significant hotspots for all species groups coincided poorly with the limited protected areas in the state (only 3.8%). The current state of natural land cover (less than 16%) in the state, coupled with its remarkable biological importance, highlights the need for further complementary conservation efforts including expansion and creation of new protected areas, significant restoration efforts and other conservation measures to maintain this uniquely biogeographic and biological diverse region of the country.

AIM: Functional diversity is a relatively recent approach to quantify species diversity and may provide a better understanding of the linkages between biological diversity and ecosystem functioning. Understanding the relationships between mammal species richness and functional diversity, the factors that influence these relationships, and the spatial scale at which they operate, can improve our knowledge of ecosystem functioning and may benefit conservation planning. LOCATION: Costa Rica (8°0′–11°14′N and 82°32′–85°56′W). METHODS: We evaluated spatial patterns of species richness and functional diversity for terrestrial mammal species in Costa Rica using regression techniques and assessed the influence of environmental, biological and anthropogenic factors on those patterns. RESULTS: Environmental and anthropogenic factors influenced species richness and functional diversity, while a biological factor (i.e. species' geographic origin) only influenced functional diversity. Observed patterns of species richness and functional diversity resulted in identification of three regions which could be differentiated by ecosystem type and the occurrence of bats and rodents. The spatial scale at which variation in these diversity measures also differed, with species richness most affected at fine spatial scales (local) and functional diversity best explained at the meso‐scale (regional level). MAIN CONCLUSIONS: Both diversity measures varied spatially in relationship of examined factors, and the extent at which influencing factors affect both measures also varied across the country and scales. Our results highlight that investigating the interaction of scales is necessary for also further understanding macroecological patterns. Considering multiple measures of biological diversity and the spatial scales at which they operate may improve our understanding of biodiversity and the efficacy of species and community conservation planning.

Habitat loss and climate change are major drivers of biodiversity loss, but their synergistic effects and functional perspectives have to be better understood. We employed species distribution models under future contrasting socioeconomic scenarios to assess the impacts of climate change and human footprint on avian frugivore and nectarivore functional groups in the Magdalena Valley, a highly transformed and biodiverse region in Colombia. We constructed the functional groups based on a dissimilarity matrix with 16 anatomical and ecological traits. Two types of future climatic refugia (type 1: areas that will maintain the current climatic conditions and type 2: regions outside the current distribution area that will have the current climatic conditions) were identified to guide conservation efforts for these groups and associated ecosystem services. Of the 27 functional groups identified, 19 are projected to undergo range reductions of 1–75%, with an average upward shift of their climatic niches along the altitudinal gradient of 690 m. Large frugivores from intermediate elevations, such as toucans and cracids, as well as nectarivores with extreme adaptations and specializations, are expected to experience the most severe range reductions. Distributional and altitudinal shifts will lead to spatial reorganization of communities and a reduction or complete loss of functional group richness, particularly in lowland areas. This could impact ecosystem services relevant for degraded area restoration, such as seed dispersal, fruit availability, and pollination of specialized plant species with economic importance. The low representation of future climatic refugia within protected areas highlights the need to incorporate climate change trends into future conservation strategies for these landscapes.

Functional diversity represents a measure of diversity that incorporates the role of species in an ecosystem, and therefore its dynamics and resilience. Assessing its drivers and spatial variation represents an important step forward in our understanding of functional ecosystem dynamics and it is also necessary to achieve a comprehensive conservation planning. In this paper, we assessed mammal functional diversity for the 218 ecoregions within the Neotropical realm. We evaluated the overall influence and spatial variation of species richness, ecoregion extent, intervention and species at risk on functional diversity. Using ordinary least squares and geographically weighted regression modeling approaches, we found that intervened areas and threatened and non-threatened species are the most influential overall drivers of functional diversity. However, we also detected that these variables do not operate equally across scales. Our local analyses indicated both that the variation explained and local coefficients vary spatially depending on the ecoregion and major habitat type. As estimates of functional diversity are based on current distribution of all mammals, negative influence of intervened areas and positive influence of non-threatened species may reflect a potential degradation of functional processes for some ecosystems. Most generally, the negative influence of intervention together with the influence of threatened species indicates that some areas are currently more susceptible to functional diversity loss. Our results help to pinpoint key areas requiring urgent conservation action to reduce natural land-cover loss and areas where threatened species play influential roles on ecosystem functioning.

Assemblages of large mammal species play a disproportionate role in the structure and composition of natural habitats. Loss of these assemblages destabilizes natural systems, while their recovery can restore ecological integrity. Here we take an ecoregion‐based approach to identify landscapes that retain their historically present large mammal assemblages, and map ecoregions where reintroduction of 1–3 species could restore intact assemblages. Intact mammal assemblages occur across more than one‐third of the 730 terrestrial ecoregions where large mammals were historically present, and 22% of these ecoregions retain complete assemblages across > 20% of the ecoregion area. Twenty species, if reintroduced or allowed to recolonize through improved connectivity, can increase the area of the world containing intact large mammal assemblages by 54% (11 116 000 km2). Each of these species have at least two large, intact habitat areas (> 10 000 km2) in a given ecoregion. Timely integration of recovery efforts for large mammals strengthens area‐based targets being considered under the Convention on Biological Diversity.

The jaguar ( Panthera onca ) is a charismatic species considered Vulnerable in Colombia but yet largely unknown in the country. The species is mostly threatened by the continuous decline in its habitats, mostly derived from deforestation and habitat loss, additional to hunting and conflicts with humans. Thus, the future of jaguars in Colombia depends on protecting and recovering existing habitats. The aims of this study were to 1) evaluate jaguar distribution and identify the remnant patches of habitat in Colombia, 2) define an ecological connectivity network within the country, and 3) propose a priority areas portfolio for the conservation and recovery of jaguars. We used a presence background model for estimating species potential distribution and subsequently identified remaining habitat patches across the country based on land cover and species-specific ecological attributes. We then created an ecological connectivity network based on circuit theory and following a multi-criteria approach identified jaguar priority areas for conservation (JPCA) and recovery (JPRA). Jaguar potential distribution comprises 1103122.43 km 2 , from which 56.71% maintain suitable patches of potential habitat. We identified 960 corridors between remnant patches of natural or semi-natural vegetation. Based on the criteria, JPCAs with greater importance were identified in each of the five Colombian regions. JPRAs were located mainly towards the Andean and Caribbean regions. These JPCAs and JPRAs could serve as a guide for designing and implementing management strategies for the long-term conservation and recovery of the species in Colombia.

The jaguar ( Panthera onca ) is one of the most threatened carnivores in the Americas. Despite a long history of research on this charismatic species, to date there have been few systematic efforts to assess its population size and status in most countries across its distribution range. We present here the results of the two National Jaguar Surveys for Mexico, the first national censuses in any country within the species distribution. We estimated jaguar densities from field data collected at 13 localities in 2008–2010 (2010 hereafter) and 11 localities in 2016–2018 (2018 hereafter). We used the 2010 census results as the basis to develop a National Jaguar Conservation Strategy that identified critical issues for jaguar conservation in Mexico. We worked with the Mexican government to implement the conservation strategy and then evaluated its effectivity. To compare the 2010 and 2018 results, we estimated the amount of jaguar-suitable habitat in the entire country based on an ecological niche model for both periods. Suitable jaguar habitat covered ~267,063 km 2 (13.9% of the country’s territory) in 2010 and ~ 288,890 km 2 (~14.8% of the country’s territory) in 2018. Using the most conservative density values for each priority region, we estimated jaguar densities for both the high and low suitable habitats. The total jaguar population was estimated in ~4,000 individuals for 2010 census and ~4,800 for the 2018 census. The Yucatan Peninsula was the region with the largest population, around 2000 jaguars, in both censuses. Our promising results indicate that the actions we proposed in the National Jaguar Conservation Strategy, some of which have been implemented working together with the Federal Government, other NGO’s, and land owners, are improving jaguar conservation in Mexico. The continuation of surveys and monitoring programs of the jaguar populations in Mexico will provide accurate information to design and implement effective, science-based conservation measures to try to ensure that robust jaguar populations remain a permanent fixture of Mexico’s natural heritage.

Aim Deforestation of the Atlantic Forest of eastern Paraguay has been recent but extensive, resulting in a fragmented landscape highly influenced by forest edges. We examined edge effects on multiple dimensions of small mammalian diversity. Location Forest fragments of eastern Paraguayan Atlantic Forest. Methods We trapped small mammal species at different distances from the forest edge (DTE) in reserves and estimated multiple dimensions of diversity per site. Similarity analysis identified species clusters that best described the patterns of diversity across reserves. Multivariate ordination and linear mixed models were used to determine the influence of DTE on various dimensions of small mammal diversity. Results There was an increase in richness and abundance along a DTE gradient, and remnants with higher edge:area ratios showed higher richness and abundance, independent of remnant size. Species at edges were generalists, open‐habitat species or exotic species (spillover effect). We found higher phylogenetic diversity and functional richness and divergence towards forest edges. Spillover of non‐forest and invasive species best explained richness, generalist forest species best explained total abundance, abundance of Hylaeamys megacephalus best explained diversity and evenness metrics and the presence of Marmosa paraguayana best explained various phylogenetic diversity models. None of the models that included megafauna or social factors were shown to be important in explaining patterns as a function of DTE. Main Conclusions We found strong support for a spillover effect and mixed support for complementary resource use and enhanced habitat resources associated with ecotones. Generalists characterized edge assemblages but not all generalists were equivalent. Edges showed more phylogenetically and functionally distinct assemblages than the interior of remnants. There was a conservation of functional diversity; however, open‐habitat species, habitat generalists and exotic species boosted diversity near forest edges. Mechanisms governing diversity along forest edges are complex; disentangling those mechanisms necessitates the use of multiple dimensions of diversity.

Costa Rica has one of the greatest percentages (26%) of protected land in the world. The National Protected Areas System (NPAS) of Costa Rica was established in 1976 and currently includes >190 protected areas within seven different protection categories. The effectiveness of the NPAS to represent species, populations, and areas with high species richness has not been properly evaluated. Such evaluations are fundamental to understand what is necessary to strengthen the NPAS and better protect biodiversity. We present a novel assessment of NPAS effectiveness in protecting mammal species. We compiled the geographical ranges of all terrestrial Costa Rican mammals then determined species lists for all protected areas and the estimated proportion of each species' geographic range protected. We also classified mammal species according to their conservation status using the IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. We found almost complete representation of mammal species (98.5%) in protected areas, but low relative coverage (28.3% on average) of their geographic ranges in Costa Rica and 25% of the species were classified as underprotected according to a priori representation targets. Interestingly, many species-rich areas are not protected, and at least 43% of cells covering the entire country are not included in protected areas. Though protected areas in Costa Rica represent species richness well, strategic planning for future protected areas to improve species complementarity and range protection is necessary. Our results can help to define sites where new protected areas can have a greater impact on mammal conservation, both in terms of species richness and range protection.

Pressures are mounting for the adoption of a Global Biodiversity Framework that transforms conservation and sustainable use efforts worldwide. Underlying this challenge is the biodiversity paradox: biological diversity predominantly concentrates in the tropics, while human, institutional, and financial resources are primarily located at higher latitudes both north and south. Addressing the biodiversity paradox requires the expansion and mobilization of human, institutional and financial resources around the world. We outline a model championed by the IUCN Species Survival Commission (SSC) that builds on the Species Conservation Cycle (Assess-Plan-Act-Network-Communicate) and recognizes that most conservation action occurs at the national or local level. Various strategies are applied to this end by the partners of Reverse the Red, a global movement that ignites strategic cooperation and science-based action to ensure the survival of wild species and ecosystems. The SSC contributes to Reverse the Red through two primary strategies: National Species Specialist Groups and Centers for Species Survival. By building on existing expert networks and catalyzing efforts with established local institutions, we aim to significantly expand capacity to implement conservation action at the national level and reverse the negative trends indicated by the IUCN Red List of Threatened Species and the Red List of Ecosystems.