Important but not a priority? Conservation concerns and priorities for the Philippine bats in the Anthropocene

Anthropogenic environmental changes coupled with rapid population growth are altering the Earth’s biota at an unprecedented rate, posing an alarming threat to the long-term persistence of many species of both animals and plants. The Philippine archipelago includes over 7000 islands, and of its diverse mammalian biota bats make up a significant proportion, and fulfil vital roles to maintain ecosystem health. Given the high species richness, endemism, vulnerability, and disparity in efforts, the Philippines is a conservation priority for bats. In this study, we aim to determine the vulnerability of Philippine bat species from different threats in order to establish effective conservation decision making and prioritisation in the future. Habitat loss and direct human-driven factors (e.g., hunting) are the main threats to more than half of Philippine bat species. We found that body size and number of threats are important correlates of species vulnerability. While there is no correlation in neither threat levels nor body size with research effort and allocation. We suggest that priorities should consider multiple facets of knowledge gaps, levels of threats and species vulnerability for effective conservation. Carefully looking at the emerging threats, increasing conservation education, and forging equitable partnerships and capacity building to bolster bat conservation in the Philippines.