Joining forces toward proactive elephant and rhinoceros conservation

Area of Science:

• Conservation Biology
• Wildlife Ecology
• Systematic Review

Background:

• Proactive conservation strategies are vital for biodiversity but hindered by knowledge gaps in wildlife habitat requirements.
• Effective conservation planning necessitates a comprehensive understanding of factors influencing habitat suitability.

Purpose of the Study:

• To systematically review and assess the available literature on elephant and rhinoceros habitat requirements.
• To identify knowledge gaps and collaboration opportunities in wildlife habitat research for proactive conservation.

Main Methods:

• Conducted a systematic literature review of 693 studies on elephant and rhinoceros habitat requirements.
• Employed vote counting, bibliometric analysis, and term mapping for data synthesis.
• Integrated quantitative findings with a narrative review for contextualization.

Main Results:

• Quantitative evidence is heavily biased towards African savanna elephants and ecological variables, with limited data on anthropogenic factors.
• Less than a third of studies holistically integrated ecological and anthropogenic variables.
• Identified segregation in conceptual frameworks and untapped collaboration potential, particularly among southern hemisphere researchers.

Conclusions:

• Integrating ecological and anthropogenic dimensions into habitat assessments is crucial for enhancing proactive conservation success.
• Improving quantitative evidence for anthropogenic variables and fostering inclusive collaborations across disciplines and borders is essential.
• Addressing these gaps will optimize resource allocation and increase the effectiveness of biodiversity conservation efforts.