A biodiversity hotspot losing its top predator: The challenge of jaguar conservation in the Atlantic Forest of South America

Abstract

The jaguar is the top predator of the Atlantic Forest (AF), which is a highly threatened biodiversity hotspot that occurs in Brazil, Paraguay and Argentina. By combining data sets from 14 research groups across the region, we determine the population status of the jaguar and propose a spatial prioritization for conservation actions. About 85% of the jaguar’s habitat in the AF has been lost and only 7% remains in good condition. Jaguars persist in around 2.8% of the region, and live in very low densities in most of the areas. The population of jaguars in the AF is probably lower than 300 individuals scattered in small sub-populations. We identified seven Jaguar Conservation Units (JCUs) and seven potential JCUs, and only three of these areas may have ≥50 individuals. A connectivity analysis shows that most of the JCUs are isolated. Habitat loss and fragmentation were the major causes for jaguar decline, but human induced mortality is the main threat for the remaining population. We classified areas according to their contribution to jaguar conservation and we recommend management actions for each of them. The methodology in this study could be used for conservation planning of other carnivore species.

Modeling the effects of deforestation on the connectivity of jaguar Panthera onca populations at the southern extent of the species’ range

“…Although jaguars still persist in the Atlantic forest of Argentina, Brazil and Paraguay, our modeling illustrates that continuing land conversion has exacerbated an already tenuous connectivity or completely isolated the Upper Paraná and Misiones JCUs so that if dispersal is still possible between these JCUs the most plausible movement pathway is through eastern Paraguay. This finding is consistent with previous Atlantic forest-specific connectivity modeling (De Angelo et al 2013, Paviolo et al 2016.…”

“…1 De Angelo et al 2011, 2013, Quiroga et al 2014, Thompson & Martinez 2015, Paviolo et al 2016, and consequently is of particular concern for the conservation of the species at the regional scale, and for range-wide efforts for the integrated management of the species. The loss of connectivity among the eastern-and southern-most JCUs in the study area suggested by our modeling is supported for the Atlantic forest, where connectivity of jaguar populations is considered to be greatly compromised due to historic deforestation (Haag et al 2010, Paviolo et al 2016. Although jaguars still persist in the Atlantic forest of Argentina, Brazil and Paraguay, our modeling illustrates that continuing land conversion has exacerbated an already tenuous connectivity or completely isolated the Upper Paraná and Misiones JCUs so that if dispersal is still possible between these JCUs the most plausible movement pathway is through eastern Paraguay.…”

“…Moreover, the need for data-based reassessments of the delineation of JCUs (such as that by De Angelo et al 2013) is evident in the face of the rapid and extensive changes in land use that are occurring in the region, and in the updated delineations of JCUs that we used in this analysis. There is also a need for robust population estimates and evaluations of habitat quality and connectivity within JCUs (Cuyckens et al 2014, Paviolo et al 2016, de la Torre et al 2017.…”

Ecology and Evolution of Melanism in Big Cats: Case Study with Black Leopards and Jaguars

“…As we know, the Amazon region has a large size and high population density of jaguars and can be considered a core habitat for the species [58]. In addition, the Brazilian Atlantic Forest region, despite the recent population decline [59][60][61] and the local loss of genetic diversity in jaguars [62], still has remaining populations. The presence of melanism in Brazilian moist and dry forests and Cerrado areas had already been documented and can reach high local frequencies in some remnant areas [44,63].…”

New record of the Jaguar, Panthera onca (Linnaeus, 1758) (Felidae), from a mosaic of Atlantic Forest in the Paraná state, Brazil

“…In the Brazilian Atlantic rainforest, where fragmentation and modification of the landscape have been intense, it is estimated that in the past 15 years the population of this felid has been reduced by at least 80% (Morato et al 2013). Currently, it is believed that the species is divided into eight subpopulations within the Atlantic Rainforest (Beisiegel et al 2012) and the total population size does not exceed 300 individuals (Paviolo et al 2016).…”