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Bayliss J, Bittencourt-Silva GB, Branch WR, Bruessow C, Collins S, Congdon TCE, Conradie W, Curran M, Daniels SR, Darbyshire I, Farooq H, Fishpool L, Grantham G, Magombo Z, Matimele H, Monadjem A, Monteiro J, Osborne J, Saunders J, Smith P, Spottiswoode CN, Taylor PJ, Timberlake J, Tolley KA, Tovela É, Platts PJ. A biogeographical appraisal of the threatened South East Africa Montane Archipelago ecoregion. Sci Rep 2024; 14:5971. [PMID: 38472297 PMCID: PMC10933300 DOI: 10.1038/s41598-024-54671-z] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/19/2023] [Accepted: 02/15/2024] [Indexed: 03/14/2024] Open
Abstract
Recent biological surveys of ancient inselbergs in southern Malawi and northern Mozambique have led to the discovery and description of many species new to science, and overlapping centres of endemism across multiple taxa. Combining these endemic taxa with data on geology and climate, we propose the 'South East Africa Montane Archipelago' (SEAMA) as a distinct ecoregion of global biological importance. The ecoregion encompasses 30 granitic inselbergs reaching > 1000 m above sea level, hosting the largest (Mt Mabu) and smallest (Mt Lico) mid-elevation rainforests in southern Africa, as well as biologically unique montane grasslands. Endemic taxa include 127 plants, 45 vertebrates (amphibians, reptiles, birds, mammals) and 45 invertebrate species (butterflies, freshwater crabs), and two endemic genera of plants and reptiles. Existing dated phylogenies of endemic animal lineages suggests this endemism arose from divergence events coinciding with repeated isolation of these mountains from the pan-African forests, together with the mountains' great age and relative climatic stability. Since 2000, the SEAMA has lost 18% of its primary humid forest cover (up to 43% in some sites)-one of the highest deforestation rates in Africa. Urgently rectifying this situation, while addressing the resource needs of local communities, is a global priority for biodiversity conservation.
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Affiliation(s)
- Julian Bayliss
- Department of Biological and Medical Sciences, Oxford Brookes University, Oxford, OX3 0BP, UK.
- African Butterfly Research Institute, P.O. Box 14308, Nairobi, 0800, Kenya.
- Rede Para Gestão Comunitária de Recursos Naturais (ReGeCom), Maputo, Mozambique.
| | | | - William R Branch
- Port Elizabeth Museum (Bayworld), P.O. Box 13147, Humewood, 6013, South Africa
| | - Carl Bruessow
- Mount Mulanje Conservation Trust, P.O. Box 139, Mulanje, Malawi
| | - Steve Collins
- African Butterfly Research Institute, P.O. Box 14308, Nairobi, 0800, Kenya
| | - T Colin E Congdon
- African Butterfly Research Institute, P.O. Box 14308, Nairobi, 0800, Kenya
| | - Werner Conradie
- Port Elizabeth Museum (Bayworld), P.O. Box 13147, Humewood, 6013, South Africa
- Department of Nature Conservation Management, Faculty of Science, Nelson Mandela University, George, South Africa
| | - Michael Curran
- Department of Food System Science, Research Institute of Organic Agriculture (FiBL), Ackerstrasse 113, P.O. Box 219, 5070, Frick, Switzerland
| | - Savel R Daniels
- Department of Botany and Zoology, University of Stellenbosch, Private Bag X1, Matieland, 7602, South Africa
| | | | - Harith Farooq
- Faculty of Natural Sciences, Lúrio University, Pemba, Mozambique
- Center for Macroecology, Evolution and Climate, Globe Institute, University of Copenhagen, Copenhagen, Denmark
| | - Lincoln Fishpool
- BirdLife International, The David Attenborough Building, Pembroke Street, Cambridge, CB2 3QZ, UK
| | - Geoffrey Grantham
- Department of Geology, University of Johannesburg, Johannesburg, South Africa
| | - Zacharia Magombo
- National Herbarium and Botanical Gardens of Malawi, Zomba, Malawi
| | - Hermenegildo Matimele
- Herbarium, Instituto de Investigaçao Agraria de Moçambique, P.O.Box 3658, Maputo, Mozambique
- DICE, University of Kent, Canterbury, CT2 7NZ, UK
- Wildlife Conservation Society, 163 Orlando Mendes Street, Maputo, Mozambique
| | - Ara Monadjem
- Department of Biological Sciences, University of Eswatini, Kwaluseni, Eswatini
- Mammal Research Institute, Department of Zoology & Entomology, University of Pretoria, Hatfield, South Africa
| | - Jose Monteiro
- Rede Para Gestão Comunitária de Recursos Naturais (ReGeCom), Maputo, Mozambique
| | - Jo Osborne
- Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew, Richmond, Surrey, TW9 3AE, UK
| | - Justin Saunders
- Africa Bees Ltd, Belgrave House, 39-43 Monument Hill, Weybridge, Surrey, KT13 8RN, UK
| | - Paul Smith
- Botanic Gardens Conservation International (BGCI), 199 Kew Road, Richmond, Surrey, TW9 3BW, UK
| | - Claire N Spottiswoode
- Department of Zoology, University of Cambridge, Cambridge, CB2 3EJ, UK
- FitzPatrick Institute of African Ornithology, Department of Biological Sciences, University of Cape Town, Cape Town, South Africa
| | - Peter J Taylor
- Biological Sciences Department, University of Venda, Thohoyandou, South Africa
- Afromontane Research Unit and Department of Zoology & Entomology, University of the Free State, Bloemfontein, South Africa
| | | | - Krystal A Tolley
- South African National Biodiversity Institute, Kirstenbosch Research Centre, Claremont, Private Bag X7, Cape Town, 7735, South Africa
- Centre for Ecological Genomics and Wildlife Conservation, University of Johannesburg, Auckland Park, Johannesburg, 2006, South Africa
| | - Érica Tovela
- Museu de História Natural, Praça Travessia do Zambeze, 104, Maputo, Mozambique
| | - Philip J Platts
- Department of Environment and Geography, University of York, Wentworth Way, Heslington, York, YO10 5NG, UK
- BeZero Carbon Ltd, 25 Christopher Street, London, E2, UK
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Cox N, Young BE, Bowles P, Fernandez M, Marin J, Rapacciuolo G, Böhm M, Brooks TM, Hedges SB, Hilton-Taylor C, Hoffmann M, Jenkins RKB, Tognelli MF, Alexander GJ, Allison A, Ananjeva NB, Auliya M, Avila LJ, Chapple DG, Cisneros-Heredia DF, Cogger HG, Colli GR, de Silva A, Eisemberg CC, Els J, Fong G A, Grant TD, Hitchmough RA, Iskandar DT, Kidera N, Martins M, Meiri S, Mitchell NJ, Molur S, Nogueira CDC, Ortiz JC, Penner J, Rhodin AGJ, Rivas GA, Rödel MO, Roll U, Sanders KL, Santos-Barrera G, Shea GM, Spawls S, Stuart BL, Tolley KA, Trape JF, Vidal MA, Wagner P, Wallace BP, Xie Y. A global reptile assessment highlights shared conservation needs of tetrapods. Nature 2022; 605:285-290. [PMID: 35477765 PMCID: PMC9095493 DOI: 10.1038/s41586-022-04664-7] [Citation(s) in RCA: 64] [Impact Index Per Article: 32.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/12/2021] [Accepted: 03/16/2022] [Indexed: 11/29/2022]
Abstract
Comprehensive assessments of species’ extinction risks have documented the extinction crisis1 and underpinned strategies for reducing those risks2. Global assessments reveal that, among tetrapods, 40.7% of amphibians, 25.4% of mammals and 13.6% of birds are threatened with extinction3. Because global assessments have been lacking, reptiles have been omitted from conservation-prioritization analyses that encompass other tetrapods4–7. Reptiles are unusually diverse in arid regions, suggesting that they may have different conservation needs6. Here we provide a comprehensive extinction-risk assessment of reptiles and show that at least 1,829 out of 10,196 species (21.1%) are threatened—confirming a previous extrapolation8 and representing 15.6 billion years of phylogenetic diversity. Reptiles are threatened by the same major factors that threaten other tetrapods—agriculture, logging, urban development and invasive species—although the threat posed by climate change remains uncertain. Reptiles inhabiting forests, where these threats are strongest, are more threatened than those in arid habitats, contrary to our prediction. Birds, mammals and amphibians are unexpectedly good surrogates for the conservation of reptiles, although threatened reptiles with the smallest ranges tend to be isolated from other threatened tetrapods. Although some reptiles—including most species of crocodiles and turtles—require urgent, targeted action to prevent extinctions, efforts to protect other tetrapods, such as habitat preservation and control of trade and invasive species, will probably also benefit many reptiles. An extinction-risk assessment of reptiles shows that at least 21.1% of species are threatened by factors such as agriculture, logging, urban development and invasive species, and that efforts to protect birds, mammals and amphibians probably also benefit many reptiles.
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Affiliation(s)
- Neil Cox
- Biodiversity Assessment Unit, IUCN-Conservation International, Washington, DC, USA
| | | | - Philip Bowles
- Biodiversity Assessment Unit, IUCN-Conservation International, Washington, DC, USA
| | - Miguel Fernandez
- NatureServe, Arlington, VA, USA.,Smithsonian-Mason School of Conservation and Department of Environmental Science and Policy, George Mason University, Fairfax, VA, USA.,Instituto de Ecología, Universidad Mayor de San Andrés, La Paz, Bolivia
| | - Julie Marin
- Université Sorbonne Paris Nord, INSERM, IAME, Bobigny, France
| | - Giovanni Rapacciuolo
- Institute for Biodiversity Science and Sustainability, California Academy of Sciences, San Francisco, CA, USA
| | - Monika Böhm
- Institute of Zoology, Zoological Society of London, London, UK
| | - Thomas M Brooks
- IUCN, Gland, Switzerland.,World Agroforestry Center (ICRAF), University of The Philippines, Los Baños, The Philippines.,Institute for Marine & Antarctic Studies, University of Tasmania, Hobart, Tasmania, Australia
| | - S Blair Hedges
- Center for Biodiversity, Temple University, Philadelphia, PA, USA
| | - Craig Hilton-Taylor
- Science & Data Centre: Biodiversity Assessment & Knowledge Team, IUCN, Cambridge, UK
| | - Michael Hoffmann
- Conservation and Policy, Zoological Society of London, London, UK
| | - Richard K B Jenkins
- Science & Data Centre: Biodiversity Assessment & Knowledge Team, IUCN, Cambridge, UK
| | - Marcelo F Tognelli
- Biodiversity Assessment Unit, IUCN-Conservation International, Washington, DC, USA
| | - Graham J Alexander
- Animal, Plant and Environmental Sciences, University of the Witwatersrand, Johannesburg, South Africa
| | | | - Natalia B Ananjeva
- Department of Herpetology, Zoological Institute, St Petersburg, Russian Federation
| | - Mark Auliya
- Department of Herpetology, Leibniz Institute for the Analysis of Biodiversity Change, Zoological Research Museum Alexander Koenig, Bonn, Germany
| | - Luciano Javier Avila
- Grupo Herpetología Patagónica (GHP-LASIBIBE), Instituto Patagónico para el Estudio de los Ecosistemas Continentales (IPEEC-CONICET), Puerto Madryn, Argentina
| | - David G Chapple
- School of Biological Sciences, Monash University, Clayton, Victoria, Australia
| | - Diego F Cisneros-Heredia
- Colegio de Ciencias Biológicas y Ambientales, Museo de Zoología, Instituto de Biodiversidad Tropical iBIOTROP, Universidad San Francisco de Quito USFQ, Quito, Ecuador.,Instituto Nacional de Biodiversidad, Quito, Ecuador
| | - Harold G Cogger
- Australian Museum Research Institute, Sydney, New South Wales, Australia
| | - Guarino R Colli
- Departamento de Zoologia, Universidade de Brasília, Brasília, Brazil
| | - Anslem de Silva
- South Asia Regional Office, Crocodile Specialist Group, Gampols, Sri Lanka
| | | | - Johannes Els
- Environment and Protected Areas Authority, Government of Sharjah, Sharjah, United Arab Emirates
| | - Ansel Fong G
- Centro Oriental de Ecosistemas y Biodiversidad (BIOECO), Museo de Historia Natural "Tomás Romay", Santiago de Cuba, Cuba
| | - Tandora D Grant
- Conservation Science & Wildlife Health, San Diego Zoo Wildlife Alliance, San Diego, CA, USA
| | | | | | - Noriko Kidera
- Department of Biosphere-Geosphere Science, Okayama University of Science, Okayama, Japan.,National Institute for Environmental Studies, Tsukuba, Japan
| | - Marcio Martins
- Departamento de Ecologia, Universidade de São Paulo, São Paulo, Brazil
| | - Shai Meiri
- School of Zoology & the Steinhardt Museum of Natural History, Tel Aviv University, Tel Aviv, Israel
| | - Nicola J Mitchell
- School of Biological Sciences, The University of Western Australia, Crawley, Western Australia, Australia
| | | | | | - Juan Carlos Ortiz
- Departamento de Zoología, Universidad de Concepción, Concepción, Chile
| | - Johannes Penner
- Chair of Wildlife Ecology and Management, University of Freiburg, Freiburg, Germany.,Museum für Naturkunde - Leibniz Institute for Evolution and Biodiversity Science, Berlin, Germany
| | | | - Gilson A Rivas
- Museo de Biología, Universidad del Zulia, Maracaibo, Venezuela
| | - Mark-Oliver Rödel
- Museum für Naturkunde - Leibniz Institute for Evolution and Biodiversity Science, Berlin, Germany
| | - Uri Roll
- Ben-Gurion University of the Negev, Midreshet Ben-Gurion, Israel
| | - Kate L Sanders
- University of Adelaide, Adelaide, South Australia, Australia
| | | | - Glenn M Shea
- Australian Museum Research Institute, Sydney, New South Wales, Australia.,Sydney School of Veterinary Science B01, University of Sydney, Sydney, New South Wales, Australia
| | | | - Bryan L Stuart
- Section of Research & Collections, North Carolina Museum of Natural Sciences, Raleigh, NC, USA
| | - Krystal A Tolley
- Animal, Plant and Environmental Sciences, University of the Witwatersrand, Johannesburg, South Africa.,South African National Biodiversity Institute, Cape Town, South Africa
| | | | - Marcela A Vidal
- Departamento de Ciencias Básicas, Facultad de Ciencias, Universidad del Bío-Bío, Chillán, Chile
| | | | | | - Yan Xie
- Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, China
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