Habitat Suitability Modeling for Porcupine (Hystrix indica) by Maximum Entropy Model (MaxEnt) in Khojir national park, Iran

Awareness of the factors affecting the habitat desirability of species and also the distribution of desirable habitats are essential issues in planning for dynamic and sustainable management and conservation of species which consequently might lead to balance in ecological relationships of habitat. Regarding  the lack of field research on the ecological status of the Porcupine (Hystrix indica)  and its unique characteristics in morphological, behavioral and its effects on the sustainability of the ecological status of the country's habitats, in this research we are trying to  model the habitat of this species as the  largest rodent species in the country from October 2017 to December  2018, during 30 rounds of accurate field monitoring in Khojir National Park to determine the most important habitat variables affecting species distribution. In this study, 130 points of presence were recorded by GPS based on direct and indirect indices obtained from species activity. MaxEnt method was used to model the habitat suitability of Hystrix indica. The AUC value was 0.9, which indicates a good accuracy of Maximum entropy's model. The results showed that the type of vegetation, geographical direction, altitude, slope and distance from the road have the greatest impact on the presence and activity of the species, respectively. The results of this research can be used as an efficient tool to identify the factors affecting the presence of the species and also help to the proper management of Porcupine in the study area and other habitats of this species.