Setting priorities for trophic rewilding in the Neotropics: a large-scale framework for species and area selection

• Grant number: 25/12162-2
• Support Opportunities: Scholarships abroad - Research Internship - Doctorate
• Start date: November 15, 2025
• End date: November 14, 2026
• Field of knowledge: Biological Sciences - Ecology - Applied Ecology
• Principal Investigator: Mauro Galetti Rodrigues
• Grantee: Mateus de Melo Dias
• Supervisor: Jens-Christian Svenning
• Host Institution: Instituto de Biociências (IB). Universidade Estadual Paulista (UNESP). Campus de Rio Claro. Rio Claro , SP, Brazil
• Institution abroad: Aarhus University, Denmark
• Associated to the scholarship: 24/15742-7 - Re-Wilding the Neotropics: Prioritization approaches to reverse defaunation in megadiverse ecosystems, BP.DR

Abstract

Trophic rewilding has been gaining prominence as a novel ecological restoration approach worldwide, focusing on reintroducing species to restore trophic interactions and ecosystem functions. Although South America has undergone extensive defaunation, rewilding is still not regarded as a systematic tool for biodiversity restoration and, as such, is not seen as a priority or a feasible strategy for Neotropical ecosystems. To address this gap, our project aims to develop frameworks to prioritize species and areas in order to reverse defaunation through trophic rewilding in the Neotropics. We will build a decision-support framework based on 22 indicators grouped into five categories, designed to predict and identify vertebrate species most capable of restructuring trophic cascades over time in the Neotropics. Our species pool will include terrestrial vertebrates (mammals and birds) with current and historical distributions across the most defaunated ecoregions of Brazil, Paraguay, Uruguay, Argentina, and Chile. To test the applicability of this framework, we will focus on three defaunated Protected Areas, each representing distinct defaunation syndromes. Using Ensemble Ecosystem Modeling, we will simulate species introductions and predict potential trophic responses. For area prioritization, we will map and identify trophic rewilding hotspots across the Neotropics, integrating biodiversity, landscape, geodiversity, and disturbance metrics. The Protected Areas system within these ecoregions will serve as our spatial model, and we will apply the Area Rewilding Potential Score as a measurable indicator for each site. These standardized prioritization approaches are expected to provide a reliable and scientifically grounded basis for scaling up trophic rewilding and integrating it into conservation planning and global change mitigation initiatives led by governments, and research institutions in Neotropical countries.