Reconsidering mammal extinctions in the Pernambuco Endemism Center of the Brazilian Atlantic Forest: a critique

Abstract

This is a reply to the critique made by Garbino et al. (2018) to our article (Mendes Pontes et al., 2016) in which we revealed an unprecedented mass extinction event in the Pernambuco Endemism Center (CEPE) and with which they disagreed. Here we critically review their arguments, and present incontrovertible evidence that the processes presented in our 2016 paper are real events. Additionally, we discuss the importance of providing up–to–date scientific data to prove the existence of a species, and the critical importance of historical records in formulating a better understanding of the mammalian diversity of the CEPE. We point out that a more rigorous approach towards historical and recent records is needed when producing checklists of CEPE mammals, given that ignoring evidence and allowing personal opinion to prevail may lead to loss of credibility and jeopardize conservation efforts.

Keywords

• mass extinction
• pernambuco endemism center
• atlantic forest of northeastern brazil
• medium– sized and large mammals
• conservation