Abstract Urgent strategies for the conservation of the Neotropical flora are needed in the face of accelerated habitat loss and a severe biodiversity crisis. To assess the conservation status and to propose protection programs for taxa under potential risk, such as the Cactaceae, a group strongly affected by disturbances and habitat loss, detailed data describing patterns of richness, diversity, and endemism is paramount. Among cacti, Pilosocereus is considered a good model to study biodiversity patterns because of its remarkable occurrence in Neotropical xeric environments. Here we analyzed species occurrence under climate, soil, and biomes data using a similarity analysis and a parsimony analysis of endemicity to provide an overview on the patterns of distribution, richness, and endemism of Pilosocereus. To further evaluate whether current protected areas ensure the conservation of the group’s taxonomic and phylogenetic diversity we performed a gap analysis. We found the greatest species richness and phylogenetic diversity in eastern Brazil and areas of endemism are highlighted in eastern Brazil as well as in Mexico. As these areas shelter great diversity and uniqueness, we recommend they become a focus for the conservation of the group and possibly for other Neotropical drought-adapted taxa.

中文翻译：

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新热带干旱环境下毛刺仙人掌的保护、空间分布和特有性

摘要 面对栖息地加速丧失和严重的生物多样性危机，需要采取紧急措施保护新热带植物群。为了评估潜在风险下的分类群的保护状况并提出保护计划，例如仙人掌科，一个受干扰和栖息地丧失影响很大的群体，描述丰富度、多样性和特有性模式的详细数据至关重要。在仙人掌中，Pilosocereus 被认为是研究生物多样性模式的良好模型，因为它在新热带干旱环境中显着出现。在这里，我们使用相似性分析和地方性的简约分析分析了气候、土壤和生物群落数据下的物种发生情况，以概述毛毛尾螈的分布、丰富度和特有性模式。为了进一步评估当前的保护区是否确保保护该群体的分类和系统发育多样性，我们进行了差距分析。我们发现巴西东部的物种丰富度和系统发育多样性最高，并且在巴西东部和墨西哥突出了特有地区。由于这些地区拥有巨大的多样性和独特性，我们建议它们成为保护该类群的重点，并可能成为其他新热带干旱适应类群的重点。