Biodiversity In Areas Research Articles

METAGENOMICS BASED MICROBIAL BIOPROSPECTING STUDIES AT SELECTED BEACHES OF MUMBAI

Background: Bioprospecting studies play a crucial role in identifying species of specific value in different fields of science. Marine ecosystems are rich biodiverse areas with environmentally and economically viable microbes. The microbes play a prominent role in the sandy beach ecosystem. The microbial composition may reflect the richness, pollution levels, food chain intricacies, and distribution of dependent species. Primary biofilm constituting marine bacteria initiates the colonization pattern and survival of organisms in a food pyramid. Culturable microbes and their industrial applications constitute a major chunk of microbial research till recently. Metagenomics, a new innovative, and powerful approach helps to study the biomes of environmental systems, especially the missing and uncluturable species. Materials and methods: Soil samples collected from the upper 5cm stretch of intertidal sand sediments of Versova, Juhu, and Mahim beaches. Sampling was done fortnightly for three months. The pooled samples were analyzed using metagenomics. Results: The study indicated the richness and distribution of 262 bacterial genera. The common occurrence of 132 genera was observed across three stations. 23 specific genera were noticed at Juhu Beach. A wide variety of microbes were observed across the Versova beach with the predominance of ammonifying bacteria and their metabolic pathways. Conclusions: Rich biodiversity was seen at Juhu and Mahim beaches as well as the presence of common species. The Versova beach showed lower biodiversity at the phylum level and represented more varieties of bacteria.

Measuring Residents’ and Visitors’ Satisfaction with Sustainable Tourism—The Case of “Rusanda” Nature Park, Vojvodina Province

The Nature Park “Rusanda” (NPR) is a designated area under the second category of national protection. Situated in the Vojvodina Province, in the northern region of Serbia, its accessibility to a substantial number of international visitors is enhanced by its proximity to Romania and Hungary. Lake Rusanda and the salt marsh habitats render this region a sanctuary for rare avian species. This ecological significance has led to the NPR being designated as an IBA area—an Important Bird and Biodiversity Area by Birdlife. Beyond its natural attributes, the NPR stands out for its diverse cultural heritage, stemming from the local population residing in its immediate vicinity. A notable characteristic is the diverse ethnic makeup, contributing to a wide array of cultures, traditional attire, original folk music, customs, and cuisine, collectively forming a distinctive cultural heritage unique to this part of Vojvodina. To assess the status of sustainable tourism and its impact on the satisfaction of both residents and tourists within the NPR, the Prism of Sustainability model (PoS) is employed. In the quantitative approach, a survey questionnaire was utilized as a research tool, with a total of 840 participants included through a randomized sampling technique. Regression analysis of the study’s results indicates that sustainable tourism exerts a significant influence on the contentment of local people and tourists in the NPR. Given the presence of diverse ecological and societal elements, in addition to the existence of rare flora and fauna species, the central thrust in tourism development should focus on preserving and involving local residents in the planning and progress of tourism initiatives. The primary types of tourism that are poised for success in the NPR encompass ecotourism, wellness and spa tourism, nature-based tourism, birdwatching, scientific research tourism, and excursions.

A new species of Pinalia (Orchidaceae) with bell-shaped flowers from the mossy forest of southern Mindanao, Philippines

We present the first orchid species described from the Mount Busa Key Biodiversity Area (KBA 196) in southern Mindanao, Philippines. The new species was discovered growing on moss-covered tree trunks in the upper montane forest. It is primarily distinguished among the genus Pinalia by its very short inflorescence that bears few, closely spaced and relatively large campanulate flowers with trilobed, weakly keeled labellum and a dentate callus on disc. The discovery of this species brings the total number of Pinalia in the Philippines to 39. More importantly, it highlights the need for more field-based research on the flora of southern Mindanao to alleviate knowledge shortfalls that continue to limit our understanding of the region’s biodiversity.

Foraging movements and important sites for conservation of the West African Crested Tern Thalasseus albididorsalis breeding in Guinea-Bissau

Assessing at-sea distributions and behaviour of seabirds to identify critical foraging sites and spatial overlap with potential threats is a major step for delineating conservation guidelines. The West African Crested Tern (Thalasseus albididorsalis) is the most abundant breeding tern in West Africa, nesting from Mauritania to Guinea. Its restricted breeding range and exclusive nesting at coastal low-lying areas, place this species at particular risk of losing suitable breeding and resting sites as a consequence of current global changes, namely, sea-level rise. The at-sea distribution of this species is mostly unknown, and therefore, the specific threats faced are still unidentified. Here, we characterize the foraging behaviour and distribution of West African Crested terns breeding at the world’s second-largest colony of the species, in Guinea-Bissau, by tracking 20 individuals. Overall, terns took an average of 2 trips per day, travelling on average 100 km per trip, but often reaching areas up to 120 km from the colony. Shallow waters, usually not exceeding 10 m in depth, and upwelling areas were mostly used as foraging sites. Nocturnal movements, rarely reported on terns, suggest active foraging at night. Key foraging and resting sites were identified, which altogether may regularly hold 2.5–23% of the global breeding population of the West African Crested Tern. These areas are only partly (ca. 50%) covered by the existing marine Important Bird and Biodiversity Area (IBA). Therefore, our results should be considered in any re-evaluation of the IBA borders.

An integrative climate and land cover change detection unveils extensive range contraction in mountain newts

The global decline of amphibian populations, driven by anthropogenic activities, is a pressing conservation issue, with salamanders being of particular concern, as these species serve as ecological indicators vulnerable to environmental change. Mountain newts of the Neurergus genus, which are endemic to the Zagros Mountain chain from southeastern Turkey to northern Iraq and southwestern Iran, face a multitude of threats. Among these threats, climate change and land use alterations have been identified as major contributors to the decline of these species. Given the varying spatiotemporal scales at which these factors operate, in this study we aimed to assess the impacts of climate and land use/land cover (LULC) changes (LULCC) on the distribution of the Neurergus genus. We employed MaxEnt model to predict their habitat suitability under current climatic conditions. We projected the predicted model to the future, i.e., 2050, under two climate change scenarios. We then proceeded to map the LULC patterns of the identified suitable habitats for each species using Landsat satellite images, and conducted a hindcast of LULCC within these habitats for three time-slices 1988, 2005, and 2020. Finally, we evaluated the efficiency of current network of protected areas (PAs) and key biodiversity areas (KBAs) in Iran, Iraq, and Turkey to cover suitable habitats of the species. Our results revealed that climate changes would negatively influence all Neurergus species, with southern species in Iran and Iraq, i.e., N. derjugini, N. kaiseri, and N. crocatus exhibiting the greatest range loss. Conversely, LULC change detection indicated that northern species in Turkey, i.e., N. strauchii and N. barani, are more exposed to cropland developments and have experienced greatest habitat changes over the past 30 years. Ultimately, our findings underscore the insufficiency of extant conservation areas in protecting Neurergus habitats and urge the need for comprehensive conservation measures. We recommend promoting less strictly conserved areas, e.g., KBAs, implementing trans-boundary conservation plans, and designating new reserves to ensure long-term preservation of amphibians in the regions.

Cultural landscape management in context: Local communities' perceptions under Jadar mineral extraction project in Serbia

In 2004, a new lithium-rich mineral, 'jadarite', was discovered in Serbia. In 2020, the government of Serbia and mining giant Rio Tinto announced a plan to extract lithium, which sparked massive environmental protests across the country. In this paper, we study perceptions of local communities towards Jadar mineral extraction project, which is planned in the zone of the cultural landscape ‘Tršić Tronoša’.We employed a household-level face-to-face survey, conceptually following the sustainable livelihood approach. Results shows that local communities anticipate negative changes in environmental quality, lifestyle, and activities such as agriculture and tourism, which are seen as vital for future development compatible with the cultural landscape conservation goals. Local communities perceive a bias towards private companies by the government authorities, driven by economic interests that, as seen by locals, may also be influenced by international political pressures. Other factors, such as lack of participatory approaches and non-transparent communication were also negatively perceived. We argue that mineral extraction planning in high biodiversity and cultural heritage areas is sensitive because local communities are strongly tied through historical activities and traditions to the landscape and are not willing to trade off their environment for the economic benefits that the mineral industry could bring.

Protected zones in context: Exploring the complexity of armed conflicts and their impacts on the protection of biodiversity

AbstractProtected areas safeguard biodiversity of global ecological importance, even throughout armed conflicts. The International Law Commission's Principles on Protection of the Environment in Relation to Armed Conflicts propose that certain ecologically important areas could be designated as protected zones during armed conflicts. This article uses a geospatial analysis of armed conflicts and Key Biodiversity Areas and three case studies to inform recommendations on how the protection of ecologically important areas could be enhanced through visibility, local actors and international stakeholders as part of a broader interpretation of a protected zone.

Uncovering antagonisms in recovery planning for species at risk: A diagnostic approach

AbstractAmid Earth's ongoing sixth mass extinction event, numerous measures have been proposed to recover the populations of species at risk of extinction. However, the methods and objectives of different species' recovery plans sometimes conflict with each other, causing a conundrum we refer to as recovery–action antagonism. Recovery–action antagonism reduces the cost‐effectiveness of conservation programs and can increase the extinction risk of nontarget species. We describe a method to identify interactions between recovery actions, including antagonisms proposed for different at‐risk species in a given location. The method includes a process to evaluate potential drivers of recovery‐action antagonism and other interaction types using principal coordinates analysis and distance‐based redundancy analysis. We illustrate various applications of the method through case studies performed in Pelee Island and Rouge National Urban Park, two biodiverse areas in Ontario, Canada. Potential antagonism was identified between 1.5% (Pelee) and 5% (Rouge) of the evaluated recovery actions. Although the rate of antagonism was low in our case studies, the method allows the identification of a variety of interactions, which can help to prioritize similar and complementary actions that will benefit a large number of species while minimizing actions that may have competing outcomes.

Post Mining Ecosystem Life Of Vertebrate Animals In The Emil Salim Sawahlunto Biodiversity Park.

Emil Salim Sawahlunto Biodiversity Area, formerly a mining site, presents a significant case study concerning ecosystem transformation post-mining activities. Intensive mining activities have deeply impacted the ecology, dramatically altering the landscape and causing serious environmental damage. The decline in biodiversity is a crucial indicator of ecosystem degradation. Biodiversity, encompassing both flora and fauna, plays a central role in the reclamation and restoration processes of former mining lands. Being an integral part of the ecosystem, vertebrates play a vital role in aligning and expediting the natural recovery processes of the environment. This study aims to identify and document the vertebrate species still present in the Emil Salim Sawahlunto Biodiversity Area. The research employs a descriptive qualitative approach involving direct observations, trapping, and using calls to identify vertebrate species within the area. Direct observations revealed a total of 34 vertebrate species, distributed across 5 groups: 19 bird species, 5 reptile species, 6 amphibian species, 2 mammal species, and 2 fish classes. The identified vertebrate species within the area fall under the category of 'Least Concern' (LC) status, indicating a low risk of endangerment and are not protected by Law No. 92 of 2018."

High-resolution maps show that rubber causes substantial deforestation

Understanding the effects of cash crop expansion on natural forest is of fundamental importance. However, for most crops there are no remotely sensed global maps1, and global deforestation impacts are estimated using models and extrapolations. Natural rubber is an example of a principal commodity for which deforestation impacts have been highly uncertain, with estimates differing more than fivefold1–4. Here we harnessed Earth observation satellite data and cloud computing5 to produce high-resolution maps of rubber (10 m pixel size) and associated deforestation (30 m pixel size) for Southeast Asia. Our maps indicate that rubber-related forest loss has been substantially underestimated in policy, by the public and in recent reports6–8. Our direct remotely sensed observations show that deforestation for rubber is at least twofold to threefold higher than suggested by figures now widely used for setting policy4. With more than 4 million hectares of forest loss for rubber since 1993 (at least 2 million hectares since 2000) and more than 1 million hectares of rubber plantations established in Key Biodiversity Areas, the effects of rubber on biodiversity and ecosystem services in Southeast Asia could be extensive. Thus, rubber deserves more attention in domestic policy, within trade agreements and in incoming due-diligence legislation.

The EU policy on climate change, biodiversity and circular economy: Moving towards a Nexus approach

The EU has traditionally adopted a ‘silo approach’ in the policy areas of climate change (CC), biodiversity (BIO) and circular economy (CE), which does not reflect the actual interlinkages between these different domains. The European Green Deal (EGD), in contrast, has been shaped as an integrated growth strategy, which aims at transforming the EU into a climate neutral and resource efficient economy, while protecting, conserving and enhancing the EU's natural capital. The present article carries out an in-depth qualitative analysis to investigate whether the ambition of making the EU environmental policy more consistent with the ‘Nexus thinking’ has been really embedded in the policy design of the whole EGD strategic framework (which currently comprises almost 30 strategic documents). It emerges that, while many CC-BIO-CE interlinkages have been addressed, others that may be critical to meeting the EGD goals still need to be fully understood and managed. Among trade-offs, a special attention should be paid to the planned use of the maritime space according to different objectives that seem difficult to reconcile, the ‘substitution process’ triggered by the large-scale deployment of zero-emission vehicles, and the potential effects on biodiversity of the increasing use of biomaterials. With regard to synergies, the CE-BIO connection may be strengthened through a stricter focus of the CE concept on how resources are extracted (which could include the implementation of regenerative practices). Moreover, in order to truly incorporate CE into CC policy, the real impact of the former on GHG emissions should be better demonstrated and measured.

Assessing the taxonomic identity and distribution of endemic and critically endangered Cynometra cebuensis F. Seid. (Fabaceae) in Cebu Island, Philippines

Abstract. Lillo EP, Malaki AB, Alcazar SMT, Chavez MLM, Cañarijo III DM, Pantinople EM, Redoblado BR, Margate MA, Diaz JL, Flores KMC, Lillo JMP, Gonzaga CFO, Rosales R, Almirante A, Tomol CJ. 2023. Assessing the taxonomic identity and distribution of endemic and critically endangered Cynometra cebuensis F. Seid. (Fabaceae) in Cebu Island, Philippines. Biodiversitas 24: 4854-4861. Cynometra cebuensis F. Seid. is a newly discovered species and considered endemic to Cebu Island, Philippines. Yet, it faces extinction threats, making it a critically endangered species. Information on the taxonomical certainty and geographical ranges is important to facilitate its protection and conservation. Therefore, this study focuses on the identification and distribution of C. cebuensis in Cebu Island, Philippines. Field surveys were conducted across various Key Biodiversity Areas and the Cebu Central Protected Landscape, specifically the Tabunan forest, to ascertain the distribution of these species. The Leaf Architectural Working Group Manual was employed to meticulously describe leaf characteristics, supplemented by information from published literature. Contrary to previous assumptions that C. cebuensis F. Seid. exclusively inhabited the Tabunan forest within Cebu Central Protected Landscape, this study reveals its presence in multiple areas outside Tabunan. Notably, C. cebuensis F. Seid. displays several distinct characteristics that differentiate it from other congeners, encompassing leaf structure, shape, fruit dimensions, growth patterns, and a unique identification key. Given its confinement to Cebu Island, C. cebuensis F. Seid. is acknowledged as an endemic species. Accurate identification of this species assumes pivotal importance in steering effective conservation endeavors. However, its distribution is observed to be confined to a few remaining forested patches. This emphasizes the urgency of safeguarding the Key Biodiversity Areas within Cebu Island, Philippines, where the exclusive presence of C. cebuensis F. Seid. has been ascertained.

Greenness and biodiversity of open spaces in primary schools and their local surroundings in England

SummaryThere is increasing disconnect between children and nature in the UK. Given that childhood nature experiences are important for the development of nature connection, well-being benefits and aspects of children’s development, mapping the existing biodiversity that children are exposed to on a daily basis in schools and their grounds is vital to identifying areas of low biodiversity and to developing strategies to increase exposure to nature. Despite children spending a large portion of time at schools, there has not yet been an in-depth, in situ assessment of the biodiversity present in school grounds. Using a sample of 14 English schools, including state-funded and non-state-funded schools, we used remote images to quantify green-space area within a 3–km buffer around (buffer greenness) and within (school greenness) each school, including the school’s grounds surrounding the buildings, and in situ images to quantify vegetation visible to children within each school’s grounds (visible vegetation). We also surveyed trees, ground plants, ground invertebrates and birds within school grounds. School greenness correlated positively with visible vegetation, but buffer greenness was not related to either school greenness or visible vegetation. Buffer greenness correlated positively with plant richness, and school greenness correlated positively with tree abundance and richness. Visible vegetation correlated positively with tree abundance and richness, maximum tree diameter at breast height, plant richness and invertebrate abundance. Non-state-funded schools had higher visible vegetation than state-funded schools. Our sample indicates that schools can support considerable biodiversity and that this is broadly consistent across state-funded and non-state-funded schools. We suggest that increasing the amount of vegetation, through planting of trees, shrubs and borders, may be the most effective method of increasing school biodiversity, as visible vegetation had effects on the greatest number of taxa.

Climate and land-use changes threaten the effectiveness of protected areas for protecting Galliformes in Southeast Asia

Climate and land-use changes and their interactions have a profound effect on biodiversity, especially in biodiverse areas such as Southeast Asia (SEA) where aggregations of endemic species are widespread. To increase the effectiveness of biodiversity protection, it is crucial to understand the effect of climate and land-use changes on biodiversity. In the present study, we predicted future land-use changes based on a Cellular automaton Markov chain model (CA-MARKOV), and took Galliformes species as an example to assess the impact of climate and land-use changes on the effectiveness of protected areas in SEA. In addition, we used an ensemble of species distribution models (SDMs) to assess the potential habitats and their dynamics of 62 Galliformes species currently and in the 2070s. Our results showed that climate and land-use changes would reduce the suitable habitats of these Galliformes species. Among them, 22 or 31 species would migrate upward because of a decrease in habitat suitability at lower elevations caused by climate and land-use changes, while other 40 or 30 species were predicted to migrate downward because of land use changes under two dispersal scenarios. These changes would expand the area with low and high diversity, but there would be a mismatch between the current protected areas (PAs) and future suitable habitats with high diversity. In order to effectively ensure biodiversity protection and conserve 30% of the planet by 2030, our findings suggest that we should establish new PAs or adjust the range of PAs based on the impact of climate and land-use changes.

Conservation gaps identification through patterns of species richness established from species niche models of mammals in a sector of Chaco Seco ecoregion

The identification of biodiversity conservation priority sectors that are not formally protected, have an essential part of conservation strategies and goals at global and local scale. Ecological niche modeling is a relevant and important tool for analysis and distribution of species, also is used to determine the biodiversity patterns through the regions. The main objective of this work was to identify the sites with high biodiversity patterns in a sector of Chaco Seco ecoregion that haven’t been protected with environmental legislation. Through biodiversity sampling with foot transects, camera traps and interviews, it was registered the presence of large and medium mammals in Santiago del Estero Province. Biodiversity pattern maps were then developed from potential distribution models (SDMs) of 5 mammalian species selected for being relevant for conservation. To define zones that could be characterized like conservation gaps, pattern maps were contrasted with protected areas layers and legal schemes of land use planning and also, protected forest. For the SDM, 171 records were used, 43 for M. gouazoubira, 40 for P. concolor, 20 for M. trydactila, 43 on P. tajacu and 25 on C. wagneri. Three models were used to make the biodiversity patterns, one of these, Fuzzy union, were used for the subsequent calculation. The total area of high biodiversity increases to 39.486 km², which represents the 29% of provincial area. In consequence the 81% remaining represents the conservation gaps areas for that sector of the ecoregion.

Two new species of South Asian Cnemaspis Strauch, 1887 (Squamata: Gekkonidae) from the Gingee Hills, Tamil Nadu, India

Abstract We describe two new small-bodied, sympatric species of south Asian Cnemaspis belonging to the mysoriensis + adii clade from the Gingee Hills in Tamil Nadu, peninsular India. The two new species can be easily distinguished from the other eight described members of the mysoriensis + adii clade by their dorsal pholidosis, the configuration of femoral and precloacal pores in males, a number of meristic characters and subtle differences in colouration, beside 6.7–20.8 % uncorrected pairwise ND2 sequence divergence. The two species represent different ecomorphs, one a stouter, microhabitat generalist and the other a more slender, elongate rock specialist. The discovery of two new species from granite boulder habitats and Tropical Dry Evergreen Forests is indicative of the importance of these areas for biodiversity. It is likely that similar rocky habitats across southern peninsular India will harbour many more undescribed species.

Opportunity mapping for nature-based solutions: Mitigating storm surge and land erosion in the Caribbean

The islands of the Caribbean are particularly susceptible to the effects of climate change due to their low-lying coastal areas and location within the Atlantic basin's hurricane belt. The UK Overseas Territory of Anguilla is one such island. The predicted increase in the severity of hurricanes and sea-level rise is highly likely to increase the flood risk of already vulnerable island communities. In this study, flood risk and erosion models are used to prioritise opportunity areas for nature-based restoration and to identify those that would have the greatest impact on coastal and in-land flood risk reduction. Two study sites in Anguilla were selected to highlight this ecologically-based modelling approach; Cove Bay and Pond, a degraded sand dune system and brackish pond, and the East End Pond, an Important Bird and Biodiversity Area that floods following heavy rainfall events. At the coastal site, the restoration of mangroves, sand dunes and coral reefs have the potential to provide flood risk reduction up to 500 m inland and protect homes, infrastructure and tourism developments. For the in-land East End Pond, areas of high erosion risk were predominately identified as bare or disturbed land within 1 km of the pond's basin. Habitat restoration of these areas was identified as having the greatest impact on reducing flood risk. The creation of flood risk, opportunity and impact models are invaluable tools that can be used to inform, advocate and justify the implementation of nature-based solutions to a range of stakeholders from policy-makers to local communties.

Bridging the gap between the scale of protected areas and the conservation target of Kunming-Montreal Global Biodiversity Framework in Anhui Province

Kunming-Montreal Global Biodiversity Framework sets specific targets for future protected area (PA) scale. To bridge the gap between the scale of PA and conservation targets in Anhui Province, we identified priority conservation areas under different scenarios based on systematic conservation planning theory with biodiversity and key ecosystem services as conservation objects and HAI as conservation costs, and then identified conservation gap areas based on GAP analysis, and finally set specific PA construction targets for each city. The results of the study show that due to the small scale of established PA in Anhui Province, effective conservation of important areas for biodiversity and key ecosystem services cannot be achieved. Identifying priority conservation areas based on systematic conservation planning theory can effectively enhance conservation benefits of biodiversity and key ecosystem services. Therefore, we propose to use the conservation gap area as the potential construction area of PA and expand PA network which accounts for 23.08% of the total area of Anhui Province. Our work provides spatially explicit potential construction areas of PA to bridge the gap between the scale of PA and the conservation target of Kunming-Montreal Global Biodiversity Framework in Anhui Province, and provides a reference for cities to set construction targets for PA.

HAVOC: Small-scale histomic mapping of cancer biodiversity across large tissue distances using deep neural networks.

Intratumoral heterogeneity can wreak havoc on current precision medicine strategies because of challenges in sufficient sampling of geographically separated areas of biodiversity distributed across centimeter-scale tumor distances. To address this gap, we developed a deep learning pipeline that leverages histomorphologic fingerprints of tissue to create "Histomic Atlases of Variation Of Cancers" (HAVOC). Using a number of objective molecular readouts, we demonstrate that HAVOC can define regional cancer boundaries with distinct biology. Using larger tumor specimens, we show that HAVOC can map biodiversity even across multiple tissue sections. By guiding profiling of 19 partitions across six high-grade gliomas, HAVOC revealed that distinct differentiation states can often coexist and be regionally distributed within these tumors. Last, to highlight generalizability, we benchmark HAVOC on additional tumor types. Together, we establish HAVOC as a versatile tool to generate small-scale maps of tissue heterogeneity and guide regional deployment of molecular resources to relevant biodiverse niches.

An early warning for better planning of agricultural expansion and biodiversity conservation in the Orinoco high plains of Colombia

The eastern high plains of the Orinoco region in Colombia are known as ‘Altillanura’. They are considered the future agricultural frontier of Colombia. Unfortunately, an agricultural expansion without taking in consideration areas of high biodiversity and conservation of fragile ecosystems that are ecologically irreplaceable will likely fail in providing a sustainable grow. An orderly management planning of the territory based on scientific evidence is currently lacking for this region. Specifically, studies that combine biodiversity data and agricultural information are a major research gap. This study analyses the spatial patterns of species richness and endemism of flora and fauna at the site and subregional levels. We compared the spatial changes of biodiversity patterns with aspects related to the expansion of the agricultural frontier and its possible impacts. We found a west-to-east pattern; sites closer to the Andes were more exposed to ecological degradation than those in the east. Santa Rosalía and Puerto Lopez are the municipalities with the most remarkable species diversity. Conversely, La Primavera municipality has the most significant number of endemic species. Our spatial changes results raise the alarm showing that hotspots of diversity closer to the municipalities of Puerto Lopez and Puerto Gaitan are under more pressure than underdeveloped municipalities (La Primavera and Puerto Carreño). Our results could serve as a baseline to identify spatial changes of agrobiodiversity and a guideline for land-use planning, regional policies and local decision-makers to improve regional development in Colombia’s eastern plains region.