Conservation effectiveness of protected areas (PAs) is determined by conservation interventions within PAs, as well as anthropogenic impacts from local communities surrounding PAs. Accounting for spatial heterogeneity of anthropogenic impacts at the sub-PA scale, populations of threatened species in different sectors of a PA may respond differently, even though conservation interventions are usually implemented congruously throughout the PA. As a case study, we assessed the population change of the Critically Endangered western black crested gibbon (Nomascus concolor) over the past decade in Wuliangshan National Nature Reserve in China. We also conducted interviews with 605 residents in 99 villages surrounding the reserve to obtain their gibbon knowledge and attitude toward wildlife, as well as their production activities in and outside the reserve. We then assessed the impact of environmental variables and anthropogenic factors on the gibbon population change. We found an overall increase in gibbon population through the reserve, although it varied across different sectors. Gibbon population change was positively affected by elevation and local residents' gibbon knowledge and attitude toward wildlife. Furthermore, demographic factors such as age, gender, and education level, as well as conservation outreach, contribute to gibbon conservation indirectly through enhancing residents' gibbon knowledge and attitude toward wildlife. Our study underlines the importance of incorporating local communities in threatened species conservation, suggesting that conservation outreach and community-based conservation are essential to the improvement of PA conservation effectiveness.
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