Mapping Hotspots of Human Impact on Native Dendroflora Biodiversity in Cebu Island, Philippines

Abstract

The continuing pressure on the natural environment exerted by human activities such as land conversion has been threatening to drive tens of thousands of species to extinction globally for decades. Species conservation requires identifying species ranges impacted by threats, which helps predict localized extirpations and potential extinctions. This paper assessed the human pressures that threaten the local biodiversity in Cebu Island, Philippines, to help prioritize actions to manage and mitigate human impacts on local biodiversity. Hotspots, where modeled dendroflora species richness is compromised, were identified through a spatial overlay of pre-defined high-resolution human pressure variables. A notable observation was that the largest and only protected KBA – the Central Cebu Protected Landscape (CCPL) – had the highest percentage occurrence of medium to high threats within its boundaries, which could be attributed to its proximity to highly populated municipalities and cities. More importantly, possible areas of refuge for key species were identified. These areas could be appropriated as local restoration sites by the local government units of Mt. Lanaya and Nugas forest in the south of Cebu since these KBAs had high dendroflora richness but with less occurrence of high threats. The resulting maps could also be used as important references for targeted conservation management programs to help mitigate the threats that are driving local species to their decline and for preemptive planning of local and national conservation agenda.