Conservation of an endangered amazonian primate: priority areas for the pied tamarin (Saguinus bicolor) in Manaus, Brazil

The pied tamarin (Saguinus bicolor), a species that is emblematic of the Manaus region of Brazil, is threatened by the growth of the city and its peri-urban area. Our study aims to identify priority areas for biodiversity conservation in and around Manaus, the largest city in the Brazilian Amazon and home to over 2 million people. The geographic range of the pied tamarin, a critically endangered primate that is a symbol of conservation in the region, was used to define the boundaries of the study area. We treated the urban zone separately because of the greater barriers to conservation there and carried out systematic conservation planning for the rural zone. After defining biodiversity targets and variables and weighting for a cost surface (difficulty of protection), the map of priority areas was generated using MARXAN decision support software. Connectivity was strengthened using the LinkageMapper tool. Although protected areas already cover about 20% of the study area, most are in partially protected categories and are still losing vegetation. The results prioritize 56.1% of the pied tamarin distribution area, including urban and rural zones. The analysis of the current scenario causes concern because it shows that much of the effort to create protected areas is not as effective as it could be. The conservation of the pied tamarin, as well as other threatened primates, depends on a better understanding of the need to increase the amount of land set aside for their protection, improving monitoring, and restoring vegetation where possible.