Abstract
The Kingdom of Eswatini (formerly Swaziland) is characterized by high plant species richness and endemism. In this study, stacked species distribution models derived from maximum entropy and random forest models are applied on tree species distribution data to estimate and map taxonomic and phylogenetic diversity and endemism using six indices: species richness (SR), taxonomic weighted endemism (WE), corrected taxonomic weighted endemism (CWE), phylogenetic diversity (PD), weighted phylogenetic endemism (WPE) and corrected weighted phylogenetic endemism (CWPE). In addition, hotspots were identified by mapping the 95% percentile of the values from each index. Although weakly correlated, the hotspots overlap particularly in mountainous areas mainly in the north-western, eastern and mid- to south-central parts of the country. A combined hotspot measuring 1642 km2 or 9.42% of the total land area was also mapped, showing the priority areas for conservation. Between 69% and 85% of the identified hotspots are not protected. Conservation gaps were also mapped and quantified by overlaying protected areas with the identified hotspots. The combined hotspot of all indices indicates an overall conservation gap of 82.03% indicating that only 14.8% is covered by existing protected areas and another 3.17% within ungazetted conservation areas. Areas of priority conservation are highlighted.
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We sincerely appreciate the efforts of Kate Braun in curating the data used in this study.
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Dlamini, W.M.D., Loffler, L. (2023). Tree Species Diversity and Richness Patterns Reveal High Priority Areas for Conservation in Eswatini. In: Dhyani, S., Adhikari, D., Dasgupta, R., Kadaverugu, R. (eds) Ecosystem and Species Habitat Modeling for Conservation and Restoration. Springer, Singapore. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-981-99-0131-9_8
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