Global primary predictors of extinction risk in primates

Area of Science:

• Ecology
• Conservation Biology
• Zoology

Background:

• Species extinction risk is a major conservation concern, particularly in tropical forests.
• Understanding the drivers of extinction is vital for effective conservation planning.
• Spatial and phylogenetic structures can influence extinction risk assessments.

Purpose of the Study:

• To identify key predictors of primate extinction risk across major geographic realms.
• To account for spatial and phylogenetic effects in extinction risk analysis.
• To inform conservation strategies for tropical primates.

Main Methods:

• Utilized a dataset of 22,705 primate occurrence locations across the Neotropics, mainland Africa, Madagascar, and Asia.
• Employed a novel Bayesian spatio-phylogenetic approach to assess extinction risk predictors.
• Estimated the contributions of fixed factors (e.g., forest amount, body mass, climatic instability) and random factors (space, phylogeny).

Main Results:

• Precipitation instability had varying effects on extinction risk across realms.
• Forest amount was generally protective, except in Madagascar.
• Body mass and home range influenced extinction risk differently depending on the geographic region.
• Evolutionary distinctiveness was only protective in mainland Africa.

Conclusions:

• Climate change mitigation and forest protection are critical for primate conservation.
• Conservation efforts should consider regional differences in extinction drivers.
• Protecting large primates and reducing hunting pressure are essential strategies.