Evaluation of habitat quality and determining the distribution of Wild goat (Capra aegagrus) in Roodbarak prohibited hunting region, Kelardasht, Iran

In this study, we assessed the seasonal habitat suitability of Wild goat, Capra aegagrus in Roodbarak prohibited hunting region, located in Kelardasht, Northern Iran. We applied environmental variables including topographic factors (altitude, slope, and aspect), climatic factors (average rainfall and average monthly temperature), anthropogenic factors (distance from villages and roads), vegetation type, and water resources to analyse the connection of the species presence with its habitat. To model the species distribution, we benefitted from the three following modelling algorithms using biomod package implemented in R programming language: Generalized Linear Model (GLM), Generalized Boosted Models (GBM), and Random Forest (RF). The results of all models indicated altitude as a determining factor in wild goat’s habitat for all seasons in the studied area. In addition, climatic variables were critical in forming the species habitat in spring, summer and autumn. Moreover, in winter, distance to springs exhibited a significant impact. Applying the results of such ecological studies of habitat evaluation along with population surveys can be crucial in the species and consequently ecosystem conservation.