A biodiversity hotspot losing its top predator: The challenge of jaguar conservation in the Atlantic Forest of South America

AGUSTÍN PAVIOLO; CARLOS DE ANGELO; KATIA M. P. M. B. FERRAZ ; RONALDO G. MORATO; JULIA MARTÍNEZ PARDO; ANA C. SRBEK-ARAUJO; BEATRIZ DE MELLO BEISIEGEL; FERNANDO LIMA; DENIS SANA; MARINA XAVIER DA SILVA; MYRIAM C. VELÁZQUEZ; LAURY CULLEN; PETER CRAWSHAW JR; MARÍA LUISA S. P. JORGE; PEDRO M. GALETTI; MARIO S. DI BITETTI; ROGERIO CUNHA DE PAULA; EDUARDO EIZIRIK; T. MITCHELL AIDE; PAULA CRUZ; MIRIAM L. L. PERILLI; ANDIARA S. M. C. SOUZA; VERÓNICA QUIROGA; EDUARDO NAKANO; FREDY RAMÍREZ PINTO; SIXTO FERNÁNDEZ; SEBASTIAN COSTA; EDSEL A. MORAES JR; FERNANDO AZEVEDO

Montpellier

Congreso; ICCB : 27th International Congress for Conservation Biology - 4th European Congress for Conservation Biology; 2015

The jaguar is the top predator of the Atlantic Forest (AF), which is a highly threatened biodiversityhotspot that occurs in Brazil, Paraguay and Argentina. By combining data sets from 14 research groupsacross the region, we determine the population status of the jaguar and propose a spatial prioritizationfor conservation actions. About 85% of the jaguar?s habitat in the AF has been lost and only 7% remainsin good condition. Jaguars persist in around 2.8% of the region, and live in very low densities in most ofthe areas. The population of jaguars in the AF is probably lower than 300 individuals scattered in smallsub-populations. We identified seven Jaguar Conservation Units (JCUs) and seven potential JCUs, andonly three of these areas may have ≥50 individuals. A connectivity analysis shows that most of theJCUs are isolated. Habitat loss and fragmentation were the major causes for jaguar decline, but humaninduced mortality is the main threat for the remaining population. We classified areas according to theircontribution to jaguar conservation and we recommend management actions for each of them. Themethodology in this study could be used for conservation planning of other carnivore species.