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Remote sensing variables as predictors of habitat suitability of the viscacha rat (Octomys mimax), a rock-dwelling mammal living in a desert environment

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Abstract

Identifying high-quality habitats across large areas is a central goal in biodiversity conservation. Remotely sensed data provide the opportunity to study different habitat characteristics (e.g., landscape topography, soil, vegetation cover, climatic factors) that are difficult to identify at high spatial and temporal resolution on the basis of field studies. Our goal was to evaluate the applicability of remotely sensed information as a potential tool for modeling habitat suitability of the viscacha rat (Octomys mimax), a rock-dwelling species that lives in a desert ecosystem. We fitted models considering raw indices (i.e., green indices, Brightness Index (BI) and temperature) and their derived texture measures on locations used by and available for the viscacha rat. The habitat preferences identified in our models are consistent with results of field studies of landscape use by the viscacha rat. Rocky habitats were well differentiated by the second-order contrast of BI, instead of BI only, making an important contribution to the global model by capturing the heterogeneity of the substratum. Furthermore, rocky habitats are able to maintain more vegetation than much of the surrounding desert; hence, their availability might be estimated using SATVI (Soil Adjusted Total Vegetation Index) and its derived texture measures: second-order contrast and entropy. This is the first study that evaluates the usefulness of remotely sensed data for predicting and mapping habitat suitability for a small-bodied rock dwelling species in a desert environment. Our results may contribute to conservation efforts focused on these habitat specialist species by using good predictors of habitat quality.

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Acknowledgments

This research was supported by Agencia Nacional de Promoción Científica y Tecnológica (PICTO 07–38) through the project “El corredor bioceánico dentro del Parque Provincial Ischigualasto: efectos de la obra y operación de la ruta sobre la fauna silvestre”. We thank the staff of Ischigualasto Provincial Park for providing all the necessary facilities during fieldwork. This study is part of a doctoral thesis of the first author at the Universidad Nacional de Córdoba, Argentina. We acknowledge and are grateful for the help received from all the members of the INTERBIODES (Interacciones biológicas del desierto). We thank the reviewers that provide constructive and useful comments that improved the earlier version of this article. The authors are CONICET (Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones científicas y Técnicas) researchers and fellows. Jorgelina Brasca assisted us with language editing.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Interacciones Biológicas del Desierto (INTERBIODES), IMCN - Universidad Nacional de San Juan, Av. Ignacio de la Roza 590 (Oeste), 5400, Rivadavia, San Juan, Argentina

    Valeria E. Campos

  2. Departamento de Biología y Museo de Ciencias Naturales, Facultad Ciencias Exactas, Físicas y Naturales, Universidad Nacional de San Juan, San Juan, Argentina

    Valeria E. Campos & Gabriel Gatica

  3. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas (CONICET), Buenos Aires, Argentina

    Valeria E. Campos, Gabriel Gatica & Laura M. Bellis

  4. Instituto de Diversidad y Ecología Animal (IDEA) CONICET/UNC and Facultad de Ciencias Exactas Físicas y Naturales, Universidad Nacional de Córdoba, Córdoba, Argentina

    Laura M. Bellis

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  1. Valeria E. Campos
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  2. Gabriel Gatica
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Correspondence to Valeria E. Campos.

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Communicated by: Marietjie Landman

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Campos, V.E., Gatica, G. & Bellis, L.M. Remote sensing variables as predictors of habitat suitability of the viscacha rat (Octomys mimax), a rock-dwelling mammal living in a desert environment. Mamm Res 60, 117–126 (2015). https://doi.org/10.1007/s13364-015-0215-3

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