Dataset Information

Living on the sea-coast: ranging and habitat distribution of Asiatic lions.

ABSTRACT: Endangered Asiatic lions (Panthera leo persica) are renowned for their resilience and as a flagship of successful conservation and management. Lions dispersing out of the Gir forest have established themselves in the coastal habitats for about 25 years. We propose that the home range and spatial distribution of lions inhabiting the coastal habitats would be distinct from the forested habitats of the protected area. Each individual was monitored for an average of 367.2 ± 99.05 days from 2019 to 2021. The mean core area was 33.8 km² (50% FK, SE 8.7 km²) and the overall average range was 171.8 km² (90% FK, SE 40.5 km²). The home ranges were significantly larger for lions residing in the coastal area compared to lions in the protected area. The lion distribution model was built on MaxEnt, and inputs included location fixes of lions and variables, including 18 land use categories and Euclidean distance to linear infrastructures and human settlements. Lions were shown to use forest habitat patches extensively, followed by available habitats around water sources and wasteland. The study highlights the importance of corridors connecting to the Gir protected area and the importance of coastal forest patches for lion conservation and management.

SUBMITTER: Ram M

PROVIDER: S-EPMC9649791 | biostudies-literature | 2022 Nov

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature

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Living on the sea-coast: ranging and habitat distribution of Asiatic lions.

Ram Mohan M Sahu Aradhana A Tikadar Shyamal S Jayawant Harshal H Jhala Lahar L Zala Yashpal Y Venkataraman Meena M

Scientific reports 20221110 1

Endangered Asiatic lions (Panthera leo persica) are renowned for their resilience and as a flagship of successful conservation and management. Lions dispersing out of the Gir forest have established themselves in the coastal habitats for about 25 years. We propose that the home range and spatial distribution of lions inhabiting the coastal habitats would be distinct from the forested habitats of the protected area. Each individual was monitored for an average of 367.2 ± 99.05 days from 2019 to 2 ...[more]

PMID: 36357449

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Dataset Information

Living on the sea-coast: ranging and habitat distribution of Asiatic lions.

Publications

Living on the sea-coast: ranging and habitat distribution of Asiatic lions.

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