RESUMO
Protected areas (PAs) are an essential tool for conservation amid the global biodiversity crisis. Optimizing PAs to represent species at risk of extinction is crucial. Vertebrate representation in PAs is assessed using species distribution databases from the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) and the Global Biodiversity Information Facility (GBIF). Evaluating and addressing discrepancies and biases in these data sources are vital for effective conservation strategies. Our objective was to gain insights into the potential constraints (e.g., differences and biases) of these global repositories to objectively depict the diversity of threatened vertebrates in the global system of PAs. We assessed differences in species richness (SR) of threatened vertebrates as reported by IUCN and GBIF in PAs globally and then compared how biased this information was with reports from independent sources for a subset of PAs. Both databases showed substantial differences in SR in PAs (t = -62.35, p ≤ 0.001), but differences varied among regions and vertebrate groups. When these results were compared with data from independent assessments, IUCN overestimated SR by 575% on average and GBIF underestimated SR by 63% on average, again with variable results among regions and groups. Our results indicate the need to improve analyses of the representativeness of threatened vertebrates in PAs such that robust and unbiased assessments of PA effectiveness can be conducted. The scientific community and decision makers should consider these regional and taxonomic disparities when using IUCN and GBIF distributional data sources in PA assessment. Overall, supplementing information in these databases could lead to more robust and reliable analyses. Additional efforts to acquire more comprehensive and unbiased data on species distributions to support conservation decisions are clearly needed.
Capacidad de los macrodatos para capturar la diversidad de vertebrados amenazados en las áreas protegidas Resumen Las áreas protegidas (AP) son una herramienta esencial para la conservación en medio de la crisis mundial de biodiversidad. Es crucial optimizar las AP para que representen a las especies en peligro de extinción. La representación de vertebrados en las AP se evalúa con las bases de datos de distribución de especies de la Unión Internacional para la Conservación de la Naturaleza (UICN) y del Sistema Global de Información sobre Biodiversidad (GBIF). Es muy importante evaluar y abordar las discrepancias y sesgos en estas fuentes de datos para tener estrategias de conservación eficaces. Nuestro objetivo es conocer las limitaciones potenciales (por ejemplo, diferencias y sesgos) de estos repositorios globales para representar objetivamente la diversidad de vertebrados amenazados en el sistema global de AP. Analizamos las diferencias en la riqueza de especies (RE) de vertebrados amenazados según los informes de la UICN y GBIF en AP a nivel mundial y luego comparamos el grado de sesgo de esta información con los informes de fuentes independientes para un subconjunto de AP. Ambas bases de datos mostraron diferencias sustanciales en la RE en las AP (t = 62.35, p = <0.001), pero las diferencias variaron entre regiones y grupos de vertebrados. Cuando comparamos estos resultados con datos de evaluaciones independientes, la UICN sobreestimó la RE en un 575% en promedio y el GBIF la subestimó en un 63% en promedio, de nuevo con resultados variables entre regiones y grupos. Nuestros resultados indican la necesidad de mejorar los análisis de representación de los vertebrados amenazados en las AP para que se puedan llevar a cabo evaluaciones sólidas e imparciales de la efectividad de las AP. La comunidad científica y los responsables de la toma de decisiones deberían tener en cuenta estas disparidades regionales y taxonómicas al utilizar las fuentes de datos distribucionales de la UICN y del GBIF en la evaluación de AP. En general, complementar la información de estas bases de datos podría conducir a análisis más sólidos y fiables. Está claro que se necesitan esfuerzos adicionales para adquirir datos más completos e imparciales sobre la distribución de las especies para apoyar las decisiones de conservación.
RESUMO
Human advance on natural habitats is a major cause of biodiversity loss. This transformation process represents a profound change in wooded environments, disrupting original communities of flora and fauna. Many species are highly dependent on forests, especially parrots (Psittaciformes) with almost a third of their species threatened by extinction. Most parrot species occur in tropical and subtropical forests, and given the forest dependence of most species, this is the main reason why habitat loss has been highlighted as the main threat for the group. Such habitat loss acts in synergy with other important threats (e.g., logging and poaching), which become especially problematic in certain developing countries along tropical latitudes. In this study, we used available information on parrot distributions, species traits, IUCN assessment, habitat loss and timber extraction for different periods, and distribution of protected areas, to determine conservation hotspots for the group, and analyze potential changes in the conservation status of these species. We detected four conservation hotspots for parrots: two in the Neotropics and two in Oceania, all of them facing different degrees of threat in regard of current habitat loss and agricultural trends. Our results suggest that the future of the group is subject to policymaking in specific regions, especially in the northeastern Andes and the Atlantic Forest. In addition, we predicted that agricultural expansion will have a further negative effect on the conservation status of parrots, pushing many parrot species to the edge of extinction in the near future. Our results have conservation implications by recommending protected areas in specific parrot conservation hotspots. Our recommendations to mitigate conservation risks to this group of umbrella species would also benefit many other coexisting species as well.