COMPREHENSIVE ANALYSIS OF REPTILE DIVERSITY IN MADIDI NATIONAL PARK AND NATURAL INTEGRATED MANAGEMENT AREA, ONE OF THE WORLD’S MOST BIOLOGICALLY DIVERSE PROTECTED AREAS

Abstract

The Amazon is the worlds largest tropical rainforest, hosting a myriad of plants, fungi and animals, and encompassing a wide diversity of ecoregions. Bolivia has allocated 17 % of its territory to national protected areas, among which Madidi National Park and Natural Integrated Management Area boasts the largest representation of ecoregions in the country. However, despite its significance, knowledge of Madidis herpetofauna remains limited. This study presents the most comprehensive survey of reptile diversity in and around Madidi, combining an extensive literature review with three years of fieldwork. We computed alpha, beta, gamma, and dark diversity indices to comprehend the composition of reptile species across the ecoregions represented within the protected area. We registered 110 reptile species within the park, with the Sub-Andean Amazon Forest ecoregion displaying the highest diversity. The diversity indices applied indicate the potential for discovering additional species in the area, and as expected for a mountainous area, there is a high turnover of species between ecoregions, each of them exhibiting a distinctive species composition. We recommend continuous monitoring in an area with such high reptile diversity, particularly considering the impacts that climate change will have on these species’ assemblages over time.