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Rodentia is the most widely distributed, diverse, and numerous order of the class Mammalia. Nevertheless, rodents are poorly studied in terms of their conservation compared to other mammalian orders. Chile has one of the highest rates of extinction risk in the world for mammals (20%), where rodents have the highest risk (32%). The data of threatened rodent species is not comprehensive, as many species are still classified as data deficient. This lack of information could mean that the actual number of threatened species is higher than currently recognized. Using different databases, the biogeography, conservation status, ecological roles of rodent species in Chile are updated and described, and their potential zoonotic implication discussed. Results revealed that rodent species richness is highest in the northern and central-southern regions of Chile, where fewer protected areas exist, suggesting an inefficient role of public protected areas for the conservation of rodents and potentially other taxa. The conservation classification by the Chilean government did not match the conservation status from international classifications, revealing poor information for several species at national level. Functional traits of the species studied suggest that rodents are good predictors of ecosystem health due to their rapid life cycles and wide distribution, although distribution was predictive for only some species. Our results indicated that better information on the distribution and rodent species richness provide opportunities to understand complex rodent-borne diseases such as hantavirus. This study validates the use of rodents as indicators to assess ecosystem health and design effective biodiversity conservation plans.
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This content will become publicly available on December 1, 2026
Phylogenetic and Functional Biogeographic Approach for Rodent Conservation Across an Environmental Gradient in Chile
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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- PAR ID:
- 10670227
- Publisher / Repository:
- Wiley
- Date Published:
- Journal Name:
- Journal of Biogeography
- Volume:
- 52
- Issue:
- 12
- ISSN:
- 0305-0270
- Format(s):
- Medium: X
- Sponsoring Org:
- National Science Foundation
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