Understanding the ecology of migratory birds during the non-breeding season is necessary for ensuring their conservation. Using satellite telemetry data we describe winter ranging behaviour and movements of pallid harriers Circus macrourus that bred in Kazakhstan. We developed an ecological niche model for the species in Africa, to identify the most suitable wintering areas for pallid harriers ...

There is increasing evidence that the global distributions of a large number of species are shifting with global climate change as they track changing surface temperatures that define their thermal niche. Modelling efforts to predict species distributions under future climates have increased with concern about the overall impact of these distribution shifts on species ecology, and especially wh...

Ecological Niche Modeling (ENM) is a branch of biology that uses algorithms to predict the distribution of species in a geographic area on the basis of a numerical representation of their preferred habitat and environment. Algorithmic maps can be produced for suitable or native habitats and require a review by human experts. During the review operation biologists use their knowledge about a spe...

The red-backed shrike (Lanius collurio L.) is a bird living in human-altered agricultural areas that are managed by extensive farming techniques. This passerine species has declined significantly in Western Europe over the last 30–40 years. The development of efficient species-specific conservation strategies relies on fine-grained information about the ecological resources and environmental co...

brown bear (ursus arctos) is one of the most important carnivores in iran. however, information on its habitat associations is scared. based on ecological niche factor analysis (enfa) method, a summer habitat suitability model was developed for this species in the southern part of alborz protected area. our results showed that, brown bears prefer higher altitudes and northern aspects in their p...

BACKGROUND Malaria transmission rates in Africa can vary dramatically over the space of a few kilometres. This spatial heterogeneity reflects variation in vector mosquito habitat and presents an important obstacle to the efficient allocation of malaria control resources. Malaria control is further complicated by combinations of vector species that respond differently to control interventions. R...

Maps of seafloor characteristics are in high demand for marine conservation and planning, including: marine park placement and zoning (Friedlander et al., 2003); marine resource management (Bax et al., 1999); human impact monitoring (Kendrick et al., 2002; Plummer et al., 2003); and integrative ecological research (Durako et al., 2002; Fonseca et al., 2002). Predictive habitat modelling is emer...

Pterocarpus santalinus L.f. (Red Sanders) is an endemic and endangered species largely confined to the southern portion of the Eastern Ghats, Andhra Pradesh, India. To understand its ecological and geographic distribution, we used ecological niche modelling (ENM) based on field sample-based distributional information, in relation to climatic and topographic datasets. Before modelling, hierarchi...

The importance of niche vs. neutral assembly mechanisms in structuring tropical tree communities remains an important unsettled question in community ecology [Bell G (2005) Ecology 86:1757-1770]. There is ample evidence that species distributions are determined by soils and habitat factors at landscape (<10(4) km(2)) and regional scales. At local scales (<1 km(2)), however, habitat factors and ...