Assessing Extinction Risk in Small Metapopulations of Golden‐headed Lion Tamarins ( L eontopithecus chrysomelas ) in Bahia State, B razil

Golden‐headed lion tamarins ( GHLT s; L eontopithecus chrysomelas ) are endangered primates endemic to the B razilian A tlantic Forest, where loss of forest and its connectivity threaten species survival. Understanding the role of habitat availability and configuration on population declines is critical for guiding proactive conservation for this, and other, endangered species. We conducted population viability analysis to assess vulnerability of ten GHLT metapopulations to habitat loss and small population size. Seven metapopulations had a low risk of extirpation (or local extinction) over the next 100 years assuming no further forest loss, and even small populations could persist with immediate protection. Three metapopulations had a moderate/high risk of extirpation, suggesting extinction debt may be evident in parts of the species’ range. When deforestation was assumed to continue at current rates, extirpation risk significantly increased while abundance and genetic diversity decreased for all metapopulations. Extirpation risk was significantly negatively correlated with the size of the largest patch available to metapopulations, underscoring the importance of large habitat patches for species persistence. Finally, we conducted sensitivity analysis using logistic regression, and our results showed that local extinction risk was sensitive to percentage of females breeding, adult female mortality, and dispersal rate and survival; conservation or research programs that target these aspects of the species’ biology/ecology could have a disproportionately important impact on species survival. We stress that efforts to protect populations and tracts of habitat of sufficient size throughout the species’ distribution will be important in the near‐term to protect the species from continuing decline and extinction. Micos‐leões‐da‐cara‐dourada ( MLCD s; Leontopithecus chrysomelas ) são primatas ameaçadas de extinção, endêmicas da Mata Atlântica brasileira, onde a perda de cobertura e conectividade das florestas ameaçam a sobrevivência das espécies. Compreender o papel da disponibilidade de habitat e sua configuração no declínio populacional é fundamental para orientar medidas de conservação proativa para esta e outras espécies ameaçadas de extinção. Conduzimos Análise de Viabilidade Populacional para avaliar a vulnerabilidade de 10 metapopulações de MLCD s à perda de habitat e tamanho populacional reduzido. Sete metapopulações tiveram um baixo risco de extirpação