“…Discontinuous spatial patterns in the Inter-Andean Dry Forest can decrease their functional connectivity and an alteration of the dispersal capacity of organisms (Bennett, 2003). For example, in the Rio Mira watershed of northern Ecuador, the functional connectivity loss of native forests has had substantial consequences for the distribution and persistence of populations of Dipsas elegans, a species that is at risk of extinction (Arévalo-Morocho et al, 2023). If the current trajectory of isolation of the Inter-Andean Dry Forest patches in the RCW continues, the dispersal capacity of organisms at risk of extinction, such as P. brevifolia, C. elegans, C. gracilis, and E. jamesonii (Oleas & Pitman, 2003;Neill & Pitman, 2004;Santiana et al, 2004aSantiana et al, , 2004b) can be altered.…”