Habitat Suitability of Honey Badgers (Mellivora capensis) in Kerman Province

With the intensification of biodiversity decline and habitat loss due to destruction and fragmentation, scientists are looking for criteria for prioritizing wildlife habitats and expanding protected areas based on the high distribution and abundance of the species, especially indicator species. One of the Iranian middle-sized carnivores is Honey Badger with Afrotropical distribution the utmost spread of its northern dispersion reaches Iran. Its distribution and ecological information are scarce in Iran and in all its distribution range in the world. In this study, through gathering presence point data in Kerman province, potential habitats and effective biogeoclimatic parameters affecting the species distribution during the year were identified. The Maximum Entropy modeling approach was applied. According to the results, more than one-fifth of the province is suitable for the species. Most parts of the preferable habitats are in the western half of the province at an altitude of above 2000 meters above sea level. Habitats with the lower annual mean temperature and higher annual precipitation are more suitable for the species increasing annual mean temperature and dryness, the suitability of habitat decreases. Field surveys showed that damage to the poultries and beehives resulted in a high conflict between Honey Badger and local people.