Data from: Assessing the umbrella value of a range-wide conservation network for jaguars (Panthera onca)

Umbrella species are employed as conservation short-cuts for the design of reserves or reserve networks. However, empirical data on the effectiveness of umbrellas is equivocal, which has prevented more widespread application of this conservation strategy. We perform a novel large-scale evaluation of umbrella species by assessing the potential umbrella value of a jaguar (Panthera onca) conservation network (consisting of viable populations and corridors) that extends from Mexico to Argentina. Using species richness, habitat quality, and fragmentation indices of ~ 1500 co-occurring mammal species, we show that jaguar populations and corridors overlap a substantial amount and percentage of high-quality habitat for co-occurring mammals, and that the jaguar network performs better than random networks in protecting high-quality, interior habitat. Significantly, the effectiveness of the jaguar network as an umbrella would not have been noticeable had we focused on species richness as our sole metric of umbrella utility. Substantial inter-order variability existed, indicating the need for complementary conservation strategies for certain groups of mammals. We offer several reasons for the positive result we document, including the large spatial scale of our analysis and our focus on multiple metrics of umbrella effectiveness. Taken together, our results demonstrate that a regional, single-species conservation strategy can serve as an effective umbrella for the larger community, and should help conserve viable populations and connectivity for a suite of co-occurring mammals. Current and future range-wide planning exercises for other large predators may therefore have important umbrella benefits.

伞护种（umbrella species）常被用作保护区或保护区网络设计中的便捷性保护手段。然而，有关伞护种有效性的实证数据尚存争议，这阻碍了该保护策略的更广泛应用。本研究针对伞护种开展了一项全新的大规模评估，通过评估一条从墨西哥延伸至阿根廷的美洲豹（Panthera onca）保护网络——该网络由可自我维持的种群与生态廊道构成——的潜在伞护价值。研究基于约1500种伴生哺乳动物的物种丰富度、生境质量及破碎化指数开展分析，结果显示：美洲豹种群与生态廊道覆盖了伴生哺乳动物大量且占比可观的高质量生境；且在保护高质量核心生境方面，美洲豹保护网络的表现优于随机构建的对照网络。值得注意的是，若仅以物种丰富度作为伞护效用的唯一衡量指标，美洲豹保护网络的伞护效应本不会被观测到。研究发现哺乳类不同类群间存在显著的异质性，这表明针对部分哺乳动物类群需辅以互补性保护策略。本研究针对所得的正向结果提出了若干解释，其中包括本次分析的大空间尺度，以及聚焦伞护效应的多维度衡量指标。综合来看，本研究结果表明：区域性的单物种保护策略可作为更大尺度生物群落的有效伞护手段，且有助于保护一系列伴生哺乳动物的可自我维持种群及其生境连通性。因此，当前及未来针对其他大型食肉动物的全域性保护规划工作，或可产生重要的伞护效益。