Assessing the spatial knowledge gaps of Odonata diversity and conservation in the South American Pampa

Anthropogenic activities highly threaten neotropical freshwater habitats. Aquatic insects are sensitive to environmental alterations and thus considered under great risk due to such pressures. However, large‐scale gaps regarding the knowledge of the distribution of aquatic insect species remain in t...

Full description

Saved in:
Bibliographic Details
Published in:Aquatic conservation 2024-05, Vol.34 (5), p.n/a
Main Authors: Pires, Mateus, Martins, Fernanda, Palacio, Alejandro, Muzón, Javier, Vareira, Luisa, Juen, Leandro, Périco, Eduardo
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Anthropogenic factors
Aquatic habitats
Aquatic insects
Conservation
Conservation areas
distribution modelling
Ecological distribution
Ecological niches
Freshwater
Freshwater environments
freshwater insects
Geographical distribution
Grasslands
Inland water environment
Insects
Knowledge
neotropical region
Niches
Odonata
Pampas
Protected areas
Protected species
Río de La Plata grasslands
Sampling
sampling effort
Spatial data
spatial prioritization
Wallacean shortfall
Citations: Items that this one cites
Online Access:Get full text
Tags: Add Tag
No Tags, Be the first to tag this record!
Description
Summary:Anthropogenic activities highly threaten neotropical freshwater habitats. Aquatic insects are sensitive to environmental alterations and thus considered under great risk due to such pressures. However, large‐scale gaps regarding the knowledge of the distribution of aquatic insect species remain in the Neotropics, particularly in the South American temperate grasslands (Pampas), hindering the knowledge of hotspots of aquatic insect diversity and the prioritization of conservation areas destined to protect their populations. Here, we review the current knowledge regarding the geographical distribution of Odonata species and use ecological niche models to estimate the areas with the highest potential richness of Odonata species in the Pampas. We also calculate a sampling effort index and interpolate it with maps of protected areas to identify the spatial knowledge gaps regarding their conservation in the region Our compilation of Odonata species records retrieved 237 species for the Pampa. However, Odonata species were recorded in less than 2% of the Pampa. Our findings indicated a higher potential diversity of Odonata in northeastern Argentina, southern Uruguay and southern Brazil. Interpolations of sampling effort index and protected areas showed that 95% of the area potentially rich in Odonata species fall outside protected areas. Our study highlights the shortfall regarding the knowledge of the distribution of Odonata diversity in non‐forest landscapes of the Neotropical region. It also shows that protected areas of the Pampa cover a minor area of the Odonata species range in the region.
ISSN:1052-7613
1099-0755
DOI:10.1002/aqc.4161