Protected areas and the conservation of African bat diversity

Lack of knowledge on biodiversity hinders the inclusion of multiple diversity metrics in conservation programs, especially for tropical regions and neglected taxa. Here, using high resolution data (1 km2), we evaluate the representativeness of the protected areas (PAs) for the conservation of African bats considering taxonomic (TD), phylogenetic (PD), and functional (FD) diversity (calculated using Hill numbers), range-size rarity richness (RAR; calculated using the species' distribution range). For each index, we identified the hotspots of diversity by fitting a generalized additive model with TD as explanatory variable. Areas with positive residuals and significant z-scores were defined as hotspots of diversity. Using Zonation, we measured the coverage provided by PAs and identified the top priority non-protected areas. Hotspots of PD are concentrated in the Sahel belt and in Congo, while the west coast and southern Africa are important for FD. RAR is strongly concentrated in Madagascar. The existing PAs cover 13% of the continent, and, on average, 17% of each diversity index, with 80% of the species being covered from 10% to 25%. Expanding the existing PAs to a 30% target could ensure the conservation of 77% of all diversity indices, with 59% of the species covered for more than 75% of their distribution range. While existing PAs do not offer a reasonable protection to the diversity of African bats, the new priority areas that we identified could be considered by future efforts to improve the conservation of an important component of biodiversity.