Multi-use landscapes are now recognized for their value in supporting biodiversity and aiding species conservation, including charismatic megafauna. However, semi-arid open-canopy human-use landscapes have faced multiple anthropogenic stressors over the past centuries and have received meager conservation attention, especially in South Asia. A growing body of evidence suggests that such ecosystems, even with intermittent human use, can provide habitats for globally threatened species and support their conservation.