Historical data for conservation: reconstructing range changes of Chinese pangolin (Manis pentadactyla) in eastern China (1970-2016).

Minhao Chen,Chao Zhang,Xiaofeng Luan,Carly Waterman,Daniel W S Challender,Hongwei Liu,Zhaomin Huo,Li Yang

doi:10.1098/rspb.2018.1084

Abstract

The Chinese pangolin (Manis pentadactyla) has long suffered from intense exploitation driven by consumer demand for medicinal use and food. Effective conservation management is hampered by insufficient data on pangolin status and distribution. We integrated ecological niche modelling with long-term ecological records at the local scale (e.g. from local historical documents, grey and published literature and interviews) to estimate the magnitude of potential distribution change of the Chinese pangolin in eastern China (Fujian, Jiangxi and Zhejiang provinces) over time. Our results suggest that the range of the species decreased by 52.20% between the 1970s and early 2000s and that the population is now mainly confined to the Wuyi Mountains. This reduction in potential distribution range is attributable to anthropogenic pressures. According to our conservation prioritization analysis, the priority conservation area for the Chinese pangolin in eastern China is 51 268.4 km2, 5.62% of which is covered by nature reserves. There are 18 nature reserves and 46 prefectures which are priority areas for conservation in China. The priority-level nature reserves and prefectures in eastern China are mainly located in the centre of the Wuyi Mountains, and areas declared important tend to be around the Wuyi Mountains. We propose several actions to improve the conservation status of this species: establish or enlarge nature reserves, ensure local governments at the prefecture level prioritize conservation management and encourage local communities to participate in pangolin conservation.

Highlights

Pangolins (Pholidota: Manidae), African and Asian scaly mammals comprising eight species, are considered to be the most heavily trafficked wild mammals in the world [1,2,3]
Our results show that Chinese pangolins were once widely distributed in eastern China, especially in the mountainous area
Based on conservation recommendations for pangolins according to the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) SSC Pangolin Specialist Group [2], we suggest that such actions be addressed on two scales in eastern China: the regional scale for three areas and the local scale for different areas—nature reserves and areas outside nature reserves

Summary

Introduction

Pangolins (Pholidota: Manidae), African and Asian scaly mammals comprising eight species, are considered to be the most heavily trafficked wild mammals in the world [1,2,3]. Owing to a long history of exploitation driven by growing demand for their parts, Chinese pangolin populations have dramatically decreased, and the species is listed as ‘Critically Endangered’ on The International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) Red List of Threatened Species [5,6]. Few studies have focused on the distribution and population of Chinese pangolins on a large spatial scale [10,11] While these studies suggest that populations have decreased significantly, they provide insufficient data for designing conservation initiatives. We integrated ecological niche modelling with long-term ecological records to estimate the magnitude of change in Chinese pangolin distribution in eastern China over time. We (i) collected and combined local information with local historical documents; (ii) reconstructed climate data to represent environmental variables; (iii) estimated the ecological niche changes and 2 potential habitats for each period; and (iv) evaluated changes in the pangolin distribution range and their possible impact factors

Methods

Results

Findings

Discussion

Conclusion