Conservation of large carnivores, such as the African lion, requires preservation of extensive core habitat areas, linkages between them, and mitigation of human-wildlife conflict. However, there are few rigorous examples of efforts that prioritized conservation actions for all three of these critical components. We used an empirically optimized resistance surface to calculate resistant kernel and factorial least cost path predictions of population connectivity and conflict risk for lions across the Kavango-Zambezi Transfrontier Conservation Area (KAZA) and surrounding landscape. We mapped and ranked the relative importance of (1) lion dispersal areas outside National Parks, (2) corridors between the key areas, and (3) areas of highest human-lion conflict risk. Spatial prioritization of conservation actions is critical given extensive land use redesignations that are reducing the extent and increasing the fragmentation of lion populations. While our example focuses on lions in southern Africa, it provides a general approach for rigorous, empirically based comprehensive conservation planning based on spatial prioritization.

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Transfrontier conservation areas (TFCAs) have the potential to provide havens for large carnivores while preserving connectivity across wider mixed-use landscapes. However, information on the status of species in such landscapes is lacking, despite being a prerequisite for effective conservation planning. We contribute information to this gap for leopard (Panthera pardus) in Africa, where the species is facing severe range contractions, using data from transect surveys of a 30,000km 2 area across Botswana and Zimbabwe in the Kavango-Zambezi (KAZA) TFCA. We used occupancy models to assess how biotic, anthropogenic, and management variables influence leopard habitat use, and Nmixture models to identify variables influencing the species' relative abundance. Leopard were detected in 184 out of 413 sampling units of 64km 2 ; accounting for imperfect detection resulted in mean detection probability ̂̅ = 0.24 (SD = 0.06) and mean probability of site use ψ ̅ = 0.89 (SD = 0.20). Habitat use was positively influenced by prey availability and high protection. Relative abundance was best predicted by trophy hunting, which had a negative influence, while abundance was positively associated with high protection and availability of steenbok. Our findings suggest that securing prey populations should be a priority in conservation planning for leopard in Africa, and underline the necessity of preserving highlyprotected areas within mixed-use landscapes as strongholds for large carnivores. Our findings also support calls for better assessment of leopard population density in trophy hunting areas, and illustrate the value of N-mixture models to identify factors influencing relative abundance of large carnivores.

Calls to increase the global area under protection for conservation assume existing conservation areas are effective but, without adequate investment, they may not be. We collected survey data from expert respondents on perceived budgets, management, and threats for 516 protected areas and community conservation areas in savannah Africa to create a Conservation Area Performance Index. Combining this index with an indicative biodiversity outcome—population status of African lion, Panthera leo—we found that 82% of the sampled area was in a state of failure or deterioration, with only 10% in a state of success or recovery. A large proportion of succeeding or recovering conservation areas received external support through collaborative management partnerships. That Africa's current conservation area network—the foundation of conservation efforts—is crumbling complicates proposed strategies to protect additional land. We contend that investing in the effective management of existing conservation areas—potentially through well‐structured collaborative management partnerships—should be prioritized urgently.

The effectiveness of game fencing as a tool to promote coexistence between humans and wildlife is highly dependent on the maintenance of fences. It is vital to identify animal species, which dig holes under fences, and their digging behaviour to maintain game fences appropriately. We provide data on some of southern Africa's major hole‐digging animal species for a simple albeit effective method enabling stakeholders to categorize species that are digging holes underneath game fences in deep sand habitats by species‐specific knowledge on sizes and shapes of holes. Using Botswana's Khutse Game Reserve/Central Kalahari Game Reserve fence as an example, we highlight the temporal aspect in the process of hole digging and enlargement. We present a method to determine the pressure a fence experiences by a number of hole‐digging species. Furthermore, we provide data on the time frame of necessary maintenance actions, required to prevent large predators from transgressing this specific fence line. We were especially interested in the effectiveness of fences in excluding African lions from human‐dominated areas. The predators proved to be very difficult to fence in and extremely opportunistic. They mostly utilized holes that were initially excavated by other, even very small species.