Underrepresentation of bats in Africa's protected areas

Cecilia Montauban^{1

2}, Ivana Budinski³, Paul W Webala⁴, Theresa M Laverty⁵, Iroro Tanshi^{6

7}, Laura Torrent^{8

9}, Eric Bakwo-Fils¹⁰, Peter J Taylor^{11

12

13}, Adam Kane¹⁴, Ara Monadjem^{15

16}

Affiliations

¹ Department of Life Sciences, Imperial College London, Ascot, UK.
² Department of Life Sciences, Natural History Museum London, London, UK.
³ Department of Genetic Research, Institute for Biological Research "Siniša Stanković" - National Institute of the Republic of Serbia, University of Belgrade, Belgrade, Serbia.
⁴ Department of Forestry and Wildlife Management, Maasai Mara University, Narok, Kenya.
⁵ Department of Fish, Wildlife and Conservation Ecology, New Mexico State University, Las Cruces, New Mexico, USA.
⁶ Department of Biology, University of Washington, Seattle, Washington, USA.
⁷ Small Mammal Conservation Organization, Benin City, Nigeria.
⁸ BiBio Research Group, Natural Sciences Museum of Granollers, Granollers, Spain.
⁹ CIBIO-InBIO, Research Centre in Biodiversity and Genetic Resources, University of Porto, Vairão, Portugal.
¹⁰ Department of Environmental Sciences, University of Ebolowa, Ebolowa, Cameroon.
¹¹ Department of Zoology & Entomology and Afromontane Research Unit, University of the Free State, Qwaqwa Campus, Phuthaditjhaba, South Africa.
¹² Department of Biological Sciences, University of Venda, Thohoyandou, South Africa.
¹³ Department of Biological Sciences, University of KwaZulu-Natal, Durban, South Africa.
¹⁴ School of Biology and Environmental Science and Earth Institute, University College Dublin, Dublin, Ireland.
¹⁵ Department of Biological Sciences, University of Eswatini, Kwaluseni, Eswatini.
¹⁶ Mammal Research Institute, Department of Zoology & Entomology, University of Pretoria, Hatfield, South Africa.

PMID: 40660817
DOI: 10.1111/cobi.70108

Underrepresentation of bats in Africa's protected areas

Cecilia Montauban et al. Conserv Biol. 2025.

. 2025 Jul 15:e70108.

doi: 10.1111/cobi.70108. Online ahead of print.

Authors

Affiliations

¹ Department of Life Sciences, Imperial College London, Ascot, UK.
² Department of Life Sciences, Natural History Museum London, London, UK.
³ Department of Genetic Research, Institute for Biological Research "Siniša Stanković" - National Institute of the Republic of Serbia, University of Belgrade, Belgrade, Serbia.
⁴ Department of Forestry and Wildlife Management, Maasai Mara University, Narok, Kenya.
⁵ Department of Fish, Wildlife and Conservation Ecology, New Mexico State University, Las Cruces, New Mexico, USA.
⁶ Department of Biology, University of Washington, Seattle, Washington, USA.
⁷ Small Mammal Conservation Organization, Benin City, Nigeria.
⁸ BiBio Research Group, Natural Sciences Museum of Granollers, Granollers, Spain.
⁹ CIBIO-InBIO, Research Centre in Biodiversity and Genetic Resources, University of Porto, Vairão, Portugal.
¹⁰ Department of Environmental Sciences, University of Ebolowa, Ebolowa, Cameroon.
¹¹ Department of Zoology & Entomology and Afromontane Research Unit, University of the Free State, Qwaqwa Campus, Phuthaditjhaba, South Africa.
¹² Department of Biological Sciences, University of Venda, Thohoyandou, South Africa.
¹³ Department of Biological Sciences, University of KwaZulu-Natal, Durban, South Africa.
¹⁴ School of Biology and Environmental Science and Earth Institute, University College Dublin, Dublin, Ireland.
¹⁵ Department of Biological Sciences, University of Eswatini, Kwaluseni, Eswatini.
¹⁶ Mammal Research Institute, Department of Zoology & Entomology, University of Pretoria, Hatfield, South Africa.

PMID: 40660817
DOI: 10.1111/cobi.70108

Abstract
in English, Spanish

Biodiversity is severely threatened globally, with habitat loss and other human pressures accelerating species extinctions. Protected areas (PAs) are a critical conservation tool; however, their effectiveness in safeguarding many taxa, such as bats, remains unclear. Using georeferenced occurrence records and species distribution models (SDMs) for 263 sub-Saharan African bat species, we evaluated the coverage of bats in 7875 terrestrial PAs. Eighty-nine percent of bat species were recorded in at least 1 PA, yet 28 species, including 5 threatened and 15 data deficient species, were absent from all PAs. Species with large extents of occurrence were represented in more PAs, and fruit bats occupied significantly more PAs than clutter, edge, or open-air insectivorous foragers. The SDMs revealed high species richness in some undersurveyed areas, particularly in West and Central Africa and the Albertine Rift, emphasizing the need for targeted surveys. Our findings underscore critical data deficiencies related to bat conservation and stress the urgency of integrating bats into broader conservation planning. More surveys, enhanced data-sharing, and tailored conservation strategies are needed to improve bat representation in PAs and safeguard their ecological roles in Africa's biodiverse landscapes.

Subrepresentación de los murciélagos en las áreas protegidas de África Resumen La biodiversidad sufre una amenaza grave en todo el mundo, y la pérdida de hábitats y otras presiones humanas aceleran la extinción de especies. Las áreas protegidas (AP) son una herramienta de conservación fundamental; sin embargo, su eficacia para proteger muchos taxones, como los murciélagos, sigue sin estar clara. Utilizamos registros georreferenciados de presencia y modelos de distribución de especies (MDE) de 263 especies de murciélagos del África subsahariana para evaluar la cobertura de murciélagos en 7,875 AP terrestres. El 89% de las especies de murciélagos se registraron en al menos una AP, sin embargo 28 especies, incluyendo 5 especies amenazadas y 15 especies con datos deficientes, estuvieron ausentes en todas las AP. Las especies con presencia extensa estuvieron representadas en más AP, y los murciélagos frugívoros ocuparon significativamente más AP que los insectívoros forrajeros de densidad vegetal, de borde o al aire libre. Los MDE revelaron una alta riqueza de especies en algunas áreas poco estudiadas, particularmente en África Occidental y Central y en la falla Albertina, lo que resalta la necesidad de estudios específicos. Nuestros hallazgos destacan las graves deficiencias de los datos relacionados con la conservación de los murciélagos y enfatizan la urgencia de integrar a los murciélagos en una planificación de conservación más amplia. Para mejorar la representación de los murciélagos en las áreas protegidas y salvaguardar su papel ecológico en la biodiversidad de los paisajes africanos se necesitan más estudios, un mejor intercambio de datos y estrategias de conservación adaptadas.

Keywords: Chiroptera; bat conservation; biodiversidad; biodiversity; conservación de murciélagos; conservation planning; especie amenazada; parks; parques; planeación de la conservación; threatened species.

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References

REFERENCES

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Underrepresentation of bats in Africa's protected areas

Affiliations

Underrepresentation of bats in Africa's protected areas

Authors

Affiliations

Abstract
in English, Spanish

References

REFERENCES

LinkOut - more resources

Full Text Sources

Abstract in English, Spanish

References

REFERENCES

LinkOut - more resources

Full Text Sources

Abstract
in English, Spanish