Prioritization of Potential Linkages among Protected Areas in East Azerbaijan

As a major threat to biodiversity, habitat fragmentation has increased the local extinction of species due to a function of inbreeding and demographic stochastic factors. Creating or maintaining of corridors among core areas of protected areas decreases the negative impacts of fragmented habitat. This study attempts to prioritize wildlife linkage areas among current protected areas of East Azerbaijan based on the biological importance and threat-opportunity. The prioritization process was done through assembling stakeholders’ opinions. Then, for the highest priority linkage, the focal species that are sensitive to habitat loss and fragmentation were determined based on the ideas of environmental officials. The distribution maps of focal species (Persian leopard, lynx, ibex, wild sheep, and two reptile species) were modeled based on four different modelling techniques: GLM, MARS, MaxEnt, and RF using species presences. Although all of the individual models showed good overall prediction accuracy for Persian leopard and ibex; MaxEnt and RF models indicated a good discrimination ability for wild sheep and only RF for lynx. However, no models had good prediction accuracy for reptiles (Coluber and Vipera; AUC < 0.7). Models with good discriminate accuracy are finally summarized in an ensemble forecasting approach to estimate the distribution of suitable habitats for the species of interest. To identify potential routes among the protected areas, GIS methods we used (CorridorDesigner package) to identify a biologically best corridor for each focal species to move among these protected blocks. The findings of the present study indicated that making corridors among Marakan-Kiamaky protected areas is the first priority that is followed by identification of corridors between Dizmar-Kiamaky linkage. The delineated corridors for the highest priority linkage were consistent with field observations of Tabriz environmental officials from animal movements gathered for several years.
Extended Abstract
1-Introduction
Habitat loss and fragmentation are the leading threats to biodiversity. These threats can be mitigated by conserving well-connected networks of large wildland areas where natural ecological and evolutionary processes operate over large spatial and temporal scales. Large wildland blocks connected by corridors can maintain top-down regulation by large predators, natural patterns of gene flow, pollination, dispersal, energy flow, nutrient cycling, inter-specific competition, and mutualism. Corridors allow ecosystems not only to recover from natural disturbances such as fire or flood, but also to respond to human-caused disturbance such as climate change and invasions by exotic species. Although East Azerbaijan has hopefully conserved vast wildlands, they are suffering from lack of interconnection due to habitat loss and fragmentation that is basically inherited from human mismanagement. In this study, we used a scientific approach to design a corridor (Linkage Design) that will conserve and enhance wildlife movement for the highest priority linkage between two preserved wildlands in East Azerbaijan.
2-Materials and Methods
To begin the process of designing this linkage, because of resource limitations especially for conservation measures, the potential linkages have been first identified and prioritized in East Azerbaijan landscape. Since conserving a linkage requires coordinated action by transportation agencies, the owners of conservation lands, donors, and others, we coordinated a one-day workshop in which land management agencies (forest and rangeland experts), wildlife management agencies, conservation NGO’s, transportation agencies from East Azerbaijan were invited. A rational and transparent prioritization procedure was developed to obtain the stakeholders’ agreement on a prioritized list. East Azerbaijan’s potential linkage areas were defined in terms of the protected areas they connect. Potential linkages have been ranked in two dimensions, namely biological importance and threat & opportunity. Linkages with high rankings in both dimensions became in the highest priority for developing and implementing linkage conservation designs. For both biological importance and threat and opportunity, 8 and 7 quantitative criteria were developed respectively, so that the process was transparent. By the end of workshop, up the scores of biological importance and threat & opportunity of each participant were summed up to identify the highest potential linkage. In the next step, we worked with biologists who know the analysis area to select several focal species that collectively would serve as an umbrella for all native species and ecological processes. These focal species that likely possess some certain characteristics including 1) area-sensitive, 2) habitat specialists, 3) conservation status, 4) sensitive to barriers, 5) umbrella were chosen to corridor design. The distribution maps of focal species were modeled based on four different modelling techniques using species presences. Models with good discriminate accuracy are finally summarized in an ensemble forecasting approach to estimate the distribution of habitats suitable for species of interest as the main input for corridor design. To identify potential corridors among existing conservation areas, GIS methods were used (CorridorDesigner package) to identify a biologically best corridor for each focal species to move from high priority linkage.
3-Results and Discussion
The findings of the present study indicated that making corridors among Marakan-Kiamaky protected areas is in the first priority followed by identification of corridors between Dizmar-Kiamaky linkage. The delineated corridors for the highest priority linkage were consistent with field observations of Tabriz environmental officials from animal movements gathered during several years. The intersection of two high traffic roads i.e. Marand-Jolfa and Ivughli-jolfa with identified corridors may impede animal movement among Marakan and Kiamaky protected areas which leads to high mortality rate of car collisions. The identified corridor for Armenian wild sheep is highly degraded due to Aras Free Trade-Industrial Zone. Although, the southern corridors for other focal species (leopard, lynx, and ibex) have good topographic conditions, the fragmentation by two mentioned roads makes main challenges for animal movement.  But a few simple enhancements, such as underpasses and overpass along roads and railroads, and restoring vegetation in the degraded parcels, would greatly enhance utility of this corridor. While acknowledging the challenges and costs, we believe that conserving and enhancing this linkage is achievable. Certainly without prompt and strong action to shape development in the linkage design, this linkage will be lost within a few years.
4-Conclusion
Although the occurrence of basic habitat models have some shortcoming due to lack of considering of mating and dispersal movements, they are of great importance to corridor design when genetic data are not available.  However, using species distribution models as a robust tool for conservation efforts depends completely on the availability of reliable and long-term species occurrences. Thus, we would recommend that Department of Environment or others agencies as the responsible representatives to natural recourses management and conservation must develop and organise online biodiversity database like global biodiversity information facility (GBIF) but in national level.