Occurrence and conservation of the Vulnerable titi monkey Callicebus melanochir in fragmented landscapes of the Atlantic Forest hotspot

André Luis Regolin,João Pedro Souza-Alves,Rodrigo Costa-Araújo,Milton Cezar Ribeiro,Tomas Hrbek,Felipe Martello

doi:10.1017/s0030605319001522

Abstract

AbstractTropical forest hotspots have a high diversity of species but have lost > 70% of their original vegetation cover and are characterized by a multitude of small and isolated fragments. Paradoxically, conservation actions in these areas are still mainly focused on protection of large tracts of forests, a strategy now infeasible because of the small area of forest remnants. Here we use the Vulnerable black-handed titi monkey Callicebus melanochir as a model to study the effects of habitat loss, fragmentation and degradation on arboreal mammals and to provide insights for science-driven conservation in fragmented landscapes in tropical forest hotspots. We surveyed 38 Atlantic Forest fragments in Bahia State, Brazil and assessed the effects of patch area, quality and visibility, and landscape connectivity on the occurrence of our model species. Patch area was the single best model explaining species occurrence. Nonetheless, patch quality and visibility, and landscape connectivity, positively affect occurrence. In addition to patch area, patch quality, patch visibility and landscape connectivity are useful for predicting the occurrence of arboreal mammals in the fragments of tropical forest hotspots. We encourage the assessment of habitat quality (based on remotely sensed vegetation indices) and habitat visibility (based on digital elevation models) to improve discoverability of arboreal mammal populations and selection of fragments for conservation purposes across fragmented landscapes of tropical forest hotspots. Large remnants of tropical forest hotspots are scarce and therefore we require baseline data to support conservation actions and management in small forest fragments.

Highlights

Biodiversity conservation is essential for the maintenance of ecosystem services that guarantee survival of wildlife and the quality of human life
Conservation science has focused on the impacts of deforestation on species distributions and abundance, and one of the main practical outcomes has been the protection of large tracts of forests (e.g. Soulé & Simberloff, ): the patch area paradigm in conservation
Our findings confirm that patch area has a major effect on the occurrence of our arboreal model species C. melanochir: the larger the forest fragment, the higher is the probability of occurrence

Summary

Introduction

Biodiversity conservation is essential for the maintenance of ecosystem services that guarantee survival of wildlife and the quality of human life. Stakeholders must work under a common agenda to put in place actions to protect biodiversity (Bisseleua et al, ; Tilman et al, ). Baseline data on species is paramount for biodiversity conservation. Deforestation is recognized as the major threat to terrestrial mammals (IUCN, ). Forest loss and fragmentation reduce the habitat of forest-dependent mammals and restrict their populations to small, isolated patches (Fahrig, ), leading to population declines and local extinctions (Estrada et al, ). Conservation science has focused on the impacts of deforestation on species distributions and abundance, and one of the main practical outcomes has been the protection of large tracts of forests (e.g. Soulé & Simberloff, ): the patch area paradigm in conservation

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Conclusion