Identification of priority areas for plant conservation in Madagascar using Red List criteria: rare and threatened Pandanaceae indicate sites in need of protection

Abstract

A major problem in establishing effective protocols for conserving Madagascar's biodiversity is the lack of reliable information for the identification of priority sites in need of protection. Analyses of field data and information from herbarium collections for members of the plant family Pandanaceae (85 spp. of Pandanus; 6 spp. of Martellidendron) showed how risk of extinction assessments can inform conservation planning. Application of IUCN Red List categories and criteria showed that 91% of the species are threatened. Mapping occurrence revealed centres of richness and rarity as well as gaps in Madagascar's existing protected area network. Protection of 10 additional sites would be required to encompass the 19 species currently lacking representation in the reserve network, within which east coast littoral forests are particularly under represented and important. The effect of scale on assessments of risk of extinction was explored by applying different grid cell sizes to estimate area of occupancy. Using a grid cell size within the range suggested by IUCN overestimates threatened status if based solely upon specimen data. For poorly inventoried countries such as Madagascar measures of range size based on such data should be complemented with field observations to determine population size, sensitivity to disturbance, and specific threats to habitat and therefore potential population decline. The analysis of such data can make an important contribution to the conservation planning process by identifying threatened species and revealing the highest priority sites for their conservation.