Urbanization and mismatch with protected areas place the conservation of a threatened species at risk

Author(s)

Uehara-Prado‚ M. ; Fonseca‚ R.L.

• Document type: Journal article
• Source: Biotropica; v. 39, n. 2, p. 264-268, 2007.

Abstract

In this work, we report the predicted distribution of the threatened fluminense swallowtail butterfly, Parides ascanius (Cramer 1775), and correlate it to the presence of urban and protected areas within its range. The distribution was modeled using a genetic algorithm. The predicted distribution of the fluminense swallowtail shows high agreement within Rio de Janeiro state, in a near-continuous strip of 2,038,253 ha along the coastal lowlands, 17.8 percent of which is within urban areas. Only 8.7 percent (178,187 ha) of the remaining (nonurban) predicted model overlapped at least partially with protected areas (19 in all). Almost half of these protected areas also overlapped with urban areas, resulting in an additional loss of 58,751 ha. In seven of 19 protected areas, the distribution of P. ascanius was predicted by less than 50 percent of the models; five of the remaining protected areas are less restrictive reserves. Despite the wide distribution predicted by the models, only two of the observed occurrence points matched the predicted distribution within protected areas. Modeling threatened species distribution is a useful tool for highlighting gaps in networks of protected areas and should aid in planning to fill these gaps. However, in several developing countries with high biodiversity, there is insufficient basic biological information for many threatened species. In these cases, prospecting field studies are urgently needed. (AU)

• FAPESP's process: 98/05101-8 - Lepidoptera of the State of São Paulo: diversity, distribution, resources, and use for analysis and environmental monitoring
• Grantee: Keith Spalding Brown Junior
• Support Opportunities: BIOTA-FAPESP Program - Thematic Grants