Predicting the distribution and characteristics of Chinese pangolin habitat in China: Implications for conservation

Abstract

The Chinese pangolin (Manis pentadactyla) is on the verge of extinction. Overuse and habitat loss have decimated the pangolin population across China. Understanding the habitat status of pangolins is a prerequisite for conservation, but this understanding is lacking due to difficulties in surveying and monitoring this species. This study used the MaxEnt model to analyze the current habitat distribution of Chinese pangolins by summarizing distribution records for China from 2010–2022. Moderate- and high-quality habitat of Chinese pangolins covers about 554,025 km2, mainly in 10 provinces in East and South China, together with a small area in Yunnan and Tibet. The majority of pangolin habitats (89.32%) were distributed in the forests of low mountains and hills; only 8.92% of habitats overlap with protected areas. Prey abundance and climate are key factors affecting pangolin distribution. Land-use changes leading to habitat encroachment and/or affecting prey abundance, and climate change may underlie their shrinking distribution. Considering that the current protected area coverage of Chinese pangolin habitat is low, we recommend adjusting or expanding the boundaries of protected areas to improve coverage. The focus should be on strengthening the population and habitat management of Chinese pangolin outside protected areas. Within pangolin ranges, conservation can be achieved through improving the education of community residents, implementing stronger community economic development policies, replacing lost logging income from residents’ private forest land with economic compensation, and strictly regulating the location of infrastructure and residential area construction. The goal of these four key actions is to increase the public’s awareness and enthusiasm for pangolins, reduce the willingness of community residents to hunt pangolin, and prevent the destruction of and encroachment into existing pangolin habitat.