Restoration of giant panda habitat requires balancing single- and multi-species benefits

Efforts to restore habitat for wildlife often target single species, with limited consideration of the potential benefits provided to sympatric species. On the basis of range-wide data from the Fourth National Giant Panda Survey and infrared camera trapping, we used species distribution models to project the outcomes of five habitat restoration scenarios-designed to benefit giant pandas (Ailuropoda melanoleuca)-for giant pandas as well as for sympatric birds and mammals. Scenario outcomes, particularly those involving the conversion of plantation forests and shrublands into suitable forests, demonstrated a significant enhancement in giant panda habitat suitability, but with contrasting effects for sympatric species. Moreover, while restoration of giant panda habitat may enhance species richness and functional diversity, especially when shrublands are converted into forests, such action could also reduce phylogenetic diversity. Our findings suggest that single-species habitat restoration may have negative outcomes for sympatric species, highlighting the need to consider trade-offs between focal and non-focal taxa.