This analysis permits the development of stable strategies for the conservation and use of this genetic resource, whose importance derives from being the wild relative of a commercial crop.

The conservation status of wild Arachis spp. is not well characterized for its maintenance and possible future exploitation for the improvement of cultivated peanut, Arachis hypogaea (L.).

Our objectives were to use 2175 georeferenced observations of wild peanut (Arachis spp.) to assess the conservation status of the genus, and to biologically and geographically prioritize future conservation actions. Species distribution predictions were made based on 36 climate variables, and these data were synthesized with land-use data to map the potential distribution of each species, and hence the species richness of the whole genus, excluding A. hypogea. Hotspots of species richness were found in Mato Grosso around Cuiabá and Campo Grande in Brazil, and around the Serra Geral de Goias, northeast of Brasilia.

The current state of in situ conservation areas poorly represents wild peanut, with only 48 of the 2175 observations from National Parks. Several species were identified as being under threat of extinction. These included A. archeri, A. setinervosa, A. marginata, A. hatschbachii, A. appressipila, A. villosa, A. cryptopotamica, A. helodes, A. magna, and A. gracilis (based on highly restricted ranges and land-use pressures); and A. ipaënsis, A. cruziana, A. williamsii, A. martii, A. pietrarellii, A. vallsii, and A. monticola (based on insufficient observations and land-use pressures).

It is suggested that ex situ conservation efforts should focus on the area around Pedro Gomes (300 km southeast of Cuiabá), 170 km south along the planned road from Cuiabá to Corumbá, and around San José de Chiquitos in Bolivia, where some of the species adapted to lower temperatures may be found.