Ecological niche modelling and prioritizing areas for species reintroductions

Species reintroduction programmes, in prioritizing areas for reintroductions, have traditionally used tools that include measures of habitat suitability and evaluations of area requirements for viable populations. Here we add two tools to this approach: evaluation of ecological requirements of speci...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Oryx
Main Authors: Martínez-Meyer, Enrique, Peterson, A. Townsend, Servín, Jorge I., Kiff, Lloyd F.
Format: Article in Journal/Newspaper
Language:English
Published: Cambridge University Press (CUP) 2006
Subjects:
Online Access:http://dx.doi.org/10.1017/s0030605306001360
https://www.cambridge.org/core/services/aop-cambridge-core/content/view/S0030605306001360
Description
Summary:Species reintroduction programmes, in prioritizing areas for reintroductions, have traditionally used tools that include measures of habitat suitability and evaluations of area requirements for viable populations. Here we add two tools to this approach: evaluation of ecological requirements of species and evaluation of future suitability for species facing changing climates. We demonstrate this approach with two species for which reintroduction programmes are in the planning stages in Mexico: California condor Gymnogyps californianus and Mexican wolf Canis lupus baileyi . For the condor, we identify three areas clustered in the Sierra San Pedro Mártir, Baja California; for the wolf, we identify a string of suitable sites along the Sierra Madre Occidental of western Mexico. We discuss the limitations of this approach, identifying ways in which the models illustrated could be made more realistic and directly useful to reintroduction programmes.