Conservation Corridor April 2021 Newsletter
Large carnivores are crucial to ecosystem functioning, as they enhance the biodiversity of the native communities in which they live. However, most large carnivores are threatened with extinction resulting from human persecution, habitat encroachment, and the loss of habitat connectivity. One strategy to lessen negative consequences of habitat loss for large carnivores has been to promote landscape connectivity, a measurable feature of the landscape that serves as a proxy for population connectivity.
We conducted a recent study using multi-species analysis to identify suitable areas to facilitate landscape connectivity for puma (Puma concolor), black bear (Ursus americanus), and Mexican wolf (Canis lupus baileyi) across northwestern Mexico and the southwestern United States. The principal aim was to contribute to national and binational cooperative efforts towards conservation of these large carnivores, especially at present, when building a wall between the two countries is a real threat.
