Population status, connectivity, and conservation action for the endangered Baird's tapir

Although many large mammals currently face significant threats that could lead to their extinction, resources for conservation are often scarce, resulting in the need to develop efficient plans to prioritize conservation actions. We combined several methods in spatial ecology to identify the distribution of the endangered Baird's tapir across its range from southern Mexico to northern Colombia. Twenty-eight habitat patches covering 23% of the study area were identified, harboring potentially 62% or more of the total population for this flagship species. Roughly half of the total area is under some form of protection, while most of the remaining habitat (~70%) occurs in indigenous/local communities. The network with maximum connectivity created from these patches contains at least one complete break (in Mexico between Selva El Ocote and Selva Lacandona) even when considering the most generous dispersal scenario. The connectivity analysis also highlighted a probable break at the Panama Canal and high habitat fragmentation in Honduras. In light of these findings, we recommend the following actions to facilitate the conservation of Baird's tapir: 1) protect existing habitat by strengthening enforcement in areas already under protection, 2) work with indigenous territories to preserve and enforce their land rights, and help local communities maintain traditional practices; 3) re-establish connections between habitat patches that will allow for connectivity across the species' distribution; 4) conduct additional noninvasive surveys in patches with little or no species data; and 5) collect more telemetry and genetic data on the species to estimate home range size, dispersal capabilities, and meta-population structure.

Bibliographic Details

Main Authors:	Schank, Cody J. autor 14470, Cove, Michael V. autor 14471, Arima, Eugenio Y. autor, Brandt, Laroy S. E. autor, Brenes Mora, Esteban autor, Carver, Andrew autor, Diaz Pulido, Angelica autora, Estrada, Nereyda autora, Foster, Rebecca J. autora, Godínez Gómez, Oscar autor, Harmsen, Bart J. autor, Jordan, Christopher A. autor 14474, Keitt, Timothy H. autor, Kelly, Marcella J. autora 14472, Sáenz Méndez, Joel autor, Mendoza Ramírez, Eduardo autor 14473, Meyer, Ninon France Victoire Doctora autora 15092, Pozo Montuy, Gilberto autor, Naranjo Piñera, Eduardo Jorge 1963- Doctor autor 5447, Nielsen, Clayton K. autor, O´Farril Cruz, Elsa Georgina Doctora autora 15243, Reyna Hurtado, Rafael Ángel Doctor autor 10474, Rivero Hernández, Crysia Marina Maestra autora 14466, Carvajal Sánchez, José Pablo autor, Singleton, Maggie autora, Torre, J. Antonio de la autor, Wood, Margot A. autora 14479, Young, Kenneth R. autor, Miller, Jennifer A. autora
Format:	Texto biblioteca
Language:	eng
Subjects:	Tapirus bairdii, Conectividad del hábitat, Distribución de la población, Ecología espacial, Conservación de la vida silvestre,
Online Access:	https://doi.org/10.1016/j.biocon.2020.108501
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