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1. Spatial analysis of reptile endemism in Angola reveals conservation shortfalls

   Parrinha, D; Bandeira, S; Marques, MP; Bauer, AM; Ceriaco, LMP (December 2026, Oryx)

   Protected Areas (PAs) form the basis of biodiversity conservation and remain the primary strategy to mitigate the global biodiversity crisis. Accelerating population declines and extinctions at a global scale require the establishment of conservation priorities, often guided by the identification of biodiversity hotspots, with endemism serving as a key indicator of environmental uniqueness. Reptiles have often been overlooked in such assessments despite their vulnerability and contribution to biodiversity metrics. Angola, a highly biodiverse yet understudied African country, has been highlighted for its reptile diversity and endemism, although no conservation actions have been implemented towards this fauna. Here we present a first systematic analysis of spatial patterns of reptile endemism in Angola. Using two endemism metrics and spatial statistics, we identify hotspots and conservation priority areas for endemic reptiles and evaluate the effectiveness of existing PAs through a gap analysis. We update the endemism rate of Angolan reptiles from 12% to 28%, identifying significant hotspots in western Angola. Southwestern Angola emerges as the country’s main center of endemism, characterized by narrow ranged local endemics. Our results reveal substantial conservation gaps, with less than 10% of priority hotspots currently protected and over half of Angola’s endemic reptiles lacking formal conservation assessments and representation in the PA network. These findings underscore the need for targeted conservation planning and the establishment of new protected areas in southwestern Angola to safeguard the country’s unique reptile fauna. 

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2. Phylogenetic and Functional Biogeographic Approach for Rodent Conservation Across an Environmental Gradient in Chile

   https://doi.org/10.1111/jbi.70108  

   Hernández‐Mazariegos, Wendy C; Torres, Felipe I; Brennan, Reilly; Escobar, Luis E; Palma, R Eduardo; Ibáñez, Christian M (December 2025, Journal of Biogeography)

   ABSTRACT AimUnderstanding how abiotic factors influence species diversity, evolution and functional patterns of species is crucial for biodiversity conservation and for the management of terrestrial protected areas. We evaluate biogeographic and phylogenetic metrics in rodents to understand biodiversity patterns and improve wildlife conservation strategies. LocationChile, South America. TaxonRodents (Mammalia, Rodentia). MethodsWe updated the phylogeny of rodent species in Chile using gene sequences retrieved from GenBank. We used the phylogenetic tree to calculate different biodiversity indices. We analysed Species Richness (SR), observed and standard effect size (SES) of Phylogenetic Diversity (PD), Phylogenetic Endemism (PE), and Functional Diversity (FD) across different ecoregions, climatic regions, and terrestrial protected areas along gradients of temperature and precipitation. ResultsWe found high rodent diversity in north and central‐south Chile, and an association between phylogenetic and functional indices. Diversity indices (SR, SES.PD, SES.PE, SES.PE) were strongly associated with ecoregions, with the highest indices occurring in a high‐altitude ecoregion (i.e., Puna), Polar climatic region, and unprotected areas. Main ConclusionsSpatial congruence among diversity indices suggests that species composition and evolutionary history play a fundamental role in structuring rodent species assemblages. Areas with high diversity indices delineate regions with high species richness that experience higher species diversification (PD), leading to ecological specialisation (FD) and endemism (PE). The linkages between diversity indices and ecoregions suggest that environmental heterogeneity within ecoregions drives variation in community composition. Environmental variation may be more pronounced in harsh habitats (e.g., Atacama Desert), while weak in benign habitats (e.g., Puna). The spatial mismatch between biodiversity hotspots and protected areas suggests that key evolutionary and ecological processes could be occurring outside current protected areas, raising concerns about the effectiveness of biodiversity conservation strategies. 

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3. Predicting undetected native vascular plant diversity at a global scale

   https://doi.org/10.1073/pnas.2319989121  

   Daru, Barnabas H (August 2024, Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences USA)

   Vascular plants are diverse and a major component of terrestrial ecosystems, yet their geographic distributions remain incomplete. Here, I present a global database of vascular plant distributions by integrating species distribution models calibrated to species’ dispersal ability and natural habitats to predict native range maps for 201,681 vascular plant species into unsurveyed areas. Using these maps, I uncover unique patterns of native vascular plant diversity, endemism, and phylogenetic diversity revealing hotspots in underdocumented biodiversity-rich regions. These hotspots, based on detailed species-level maps, show a pronounced latitudinal gradient, strongly supporting the theory of increasing diversity toward the equator. I trained random forest models to extrapolate diversity patterns under unbiased global sampling and identify overlaps with modeled estimations but unveiled cryptic hotspots that were not captured by modeled estimations. Only 29% to 36% of extrapolated plant hotspots are inside protected areas, leaving more than 60% outside and vulnerable. However, the unprotected hotspots harbor species with unique attributes that make them good candidates for conservation prioritization. 

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4. Trees Inside and Outside of Forests in Guanacaste, Costa Rica: Comparisons Among Conservation Areas, Fencerows, and Urban Parks

   https://doi.org/10.1111/btp.70186  

   Powers, Jennifer S; Powers‐Tiffin, Finnegan; Choksi, Pooja; Fleischman, Forrest; Vargas_G, German; Becknell, Justin M; Hulshof, Catherine; O'Brien, Michael J; Aviles, Daniel Pérez; Arias, Damaris Pereira; et al (March 2026, Biotropica)

   ABSTRACT Many studies on the ecology of tropical trees occur in protected areas such as national parks. But we know little of the composition and structure of trees in areas outside protected forests, such as urban areas or along roads. Our goal was to contrast trees in three different land‐use types that represent an unmanaged or rural to urban gradient in Guanacaste, Costa Rica: forests inside conservation areas, fencerows, and urban parks. We hypothesized that: (1) trees in fencerows and urban parks have larger mean diameters, lower densities, and less plot‐level canopy cover and basal area; (2) tree diversity does not vary along rural to urban gradients, but trees in urban parks have comparatively more non‐native species and fewer native species. We measured and identified trees ≥ 7 cm diameter in replicated plots. Consistent with expectations, tree density and canopy cover were higher in conservation areas compared to fencerows or urban parks. However, basal area was lower in fencerows compared to both other land uses. Parks were dominated by large diameter trees, while conservation areas had smaller stems. When comparing land uses from the perspectives of biodiversity and provisioning ecosystem services such as edible fruit and shade, trees inside forests in conservation areas and outside forests in urban parks in Guanacaste provide complementary benefits to people and are not substitutable. We conclude that understanding trees both inside and outside of forests provides a broader context for studies situated in protected areas and an informative comparison for studies in urban areas. 

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5. Forecasting the Effects of Global Change on a Bee Biodiversity Hotspot

   https://doi.org/10.1002/ece3.70638  

   Buckner, Mark A; Hoge, Steven T; Danforth, Bryan N (December 2024, Ecology and Evolution)

   ABSTRACT The Mojave and Sonoran Deserts, recognized as a global hotspot for bee biodiversity, are experiencing habitat degradation from urbanization, utility‐scale solar energy (USSE) development, and climate change. In this study, we evaluated the current and future distribution of bee diversity, assessed how protected areas safeguard bee species richness, and predicted how global change may affect bees across the region. Using Joint Species Distribution Models (JSDMs) of 148 bee species, we project changes in species distributions, occurrence area, and richness under four global change scenarios between 1971 and 2050. We evaluated the threat posed by USSE development and predicted how climate change will affect the suitability of protected areas for conservation. Our findings indicate that changes in temperature and precipitation do not uniformly affect bee richness. Lower elevation protected areas are projected to experience mean losses of up to 5.8 species, whereas protected areas at higher elevations and transition zones may gain up to 7.8 species. Areas prioritized for future USSE development have an average species richness of 4.2 species higher than the study area average, and lower priority “variance” areas have 8.2 more species. USSE zones are expected to experience declines of up to 8.0 species by 2050 due to climate change alone. Despite the importance of solitary bees for pollination, their diversity is often overlooked in land management decisions. Our results show the utility of JSDMs for leveraging existing collection records to ease the inclusion of data‐limited insect species in land management decision‐making. 

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