Conservation of vertebrates and plants in Uganda: Identifying Key Biodiversity Areas and other sites of national importance

Conservation Science and Practice

David N. Nkuutu¹  Tom G. Forrest²  Mary Namaganda³  Mathias Behangana³  Christine Kabuye³  Herbert Tushabe³  Derek Pomeroy³  Robert Kityo³  Hamlet Mugabe⁴  Grace Nangendo⁴  Simon Nampindo⁴  Ben Kirunda⁴  Sam Ayebare⁴  Andrew J. Plumptre⁴  Paul Hatanga⁴  Sarah Prinsloo⁴ 

[1] Geo‐Taxon Consult Limited Kampala Uganda;Kampala Uganda;Natural Sciences Makerere University Kampala Uganda;Uganda Country Program Wildlife Conservation Society Bronx New York;

关键词: biodiversity;    conservation planning;    Key Biodiversity Areas;    Marxan;    National Red List;   

DOI  :  10.1111/csp2.7

来源: DOAJ

【 摘 要 】

Uganda is one of the most species rich countries in Africa because of the presence of several major biomes. However, it is also a country that has lost much of its natural habitat to agriculture. Uganda is a country that has been better surveyed for its biodiversity than many African countries, but despite this, there has not been a comprehensive analysis of the critical sites that contribute to biodiversity conservation at a global, as well as at a national level. We here present such an assessment using mammals, birds, reptiles, amphibians, and plants as surrogate taxa. We identified 36 terrestrial sites that are of sufficient global importance to qualify as Key Biodiversity Areas (KBAs), using the Global Standard for the Identification of KBAs, which complement an additional nine freshwater sites. National red listing of species and ecosystems was used to identify sites of national importance for conservation. We employ a conservation planning approach using Marxan to identify the minimum set of sites needed to conserve all the globally and nationally threatened species and nationally threatened habitats in Uganda. The findings show that most of the remaining natural habitat in Uganda is important for the conservation of globally and nationally threatened species and threatened habitat. Large areas of irreplaceable habitat occur outside protected areas, although more extensive surveys of these areas would likely reduce the area that is irreplaceable.

【 授权许可】

Unknown