Effect of primate protection on threatened and endemic vertebrates, plants, ecosystem services, and future climate refugia

Abstract

Primates, 69% of which are threatened with extinction, are the third most specious order of mammals. We used primates as model taxa to examine the umbrella effects of primates on ecosystem services and the protection of other vertebrates and seed plants in Yunnan Province, China. We identified areas of conservation priority for 16 primate species and determined which other threatened and endemic terrestrial vertebrates and seed plants would be protected through a program targeting primate conservation. Areas of high primate species richness were spatially correlated with the distribution of 601 species of threatened and endemic vertebrates and 4010 seed plants. Primate species richness was positively correlated with carbon sequestration and enhanced water and soil conservation and coincided with future areas of climate refugia. If 30% of Yunnan's land area were designated as primate conservation priority areas, then 52.3% of the province's average annual carbon sequestration, 51.7% of its water conservation, 54.1% of its soil retention, and 30-33% of its climate-stable areas would be protected. Protecting primates as umbrella taxa uniquely contributes to maintaining biodiversity and ecosystem services that promote ecosystem stability. Although we focused on a single mammalian order in a single region, our approach for umbrella taxa evaluation has broad applicability and can help achieve multiple conservation targets of the Kunming-Montreal Global Biodiversity Framework.