Predicting primate local extinctions within "real-world" forest fragments: a pan-neotropical analysis

Area of Science:

• Ecology
• Conservation Biology
• Zoology

Background:

• Human-modified landscapes drive species extinction, impacting forest ecosystem integrity.
• Primates are crucial for forest functions, but their responses to habitat disturbance vary significantly.
• Understanding these responses is vital for effective conservation strategies.

Purpose of the Study:

• To quantitatively review the synergistic effects of habitat fragmentation on Neotropical forest primates.
• To identify key drivers of species extinction across diverse forest patches.
• To inform conservation planning for primate persistence in fragmented landscapes.

Main Methods:

• Compiled presence-absence data for 19 primate functional groups from 705 forest patches and 55 continuous forest sites across 61 landscapes.
• Classified functional groups by seven life-history traits and defined forest patches by size, matrix, and hunting pressure.
• Utilized generalized linear mixed models to analyze predictors of species persistence.

Main Results:

• Patch size, forest cover, hunting pressure, home range size, and trophic status were significant predictors of primate persistence.
• Species like Alouatta and Callicebus moloch showed high occupancy even in small patches.
• Brachyteles and Leontopithecus had lower occupancy rates, even in larger forest tracts.

Conclusions:

• Key predictors of platyrrhine primate extinction include anthropogenic disturbance history, landscape structure, and species life-history traits.
• Conservation planning should prioritize large, well-connected, and strictly protected forest reserves.
• Maximizing species persistence requires considering the full spectrum of primate life-history attributes.