Modeling of Asiatic Cheetah habitat suitability in Dareh-Anjir wildlife refuge in Yazd province

Cheetah (Acinonyx jubatus venaticus) is a threatened species that it’s population and distribution have decreased during last decades. Dareh-Anjir wildlife refuge is one of the known habitats of the species، therefore، studying on cheetah habitat suitability in this area can provide proper to predict distribution and habitats of the species. Ecological Niche Factor Analysis (ENFA) method and Biomapper software for habitat suitability modeling of this species by using presence point of the species were used. Data layers were provided as variables affect on presence of the species including slope، aspect، elevation، landforms، mean annual temperature، vegetation، water resources، development variables (such as villages and roads) and prey density. Results showed that 15 percent of the habitats of the wildlife refuge were suitable for cheetah. Based on habitat suitability layer cheetah prefer elevation ranged from 1200 to1800 meters above sea level and slope ranged from 10 to 30 percent. Prey density is one of the affected agents on presence of the species. High specialization in the model shows that cheetah depends on restricted range of environmental condition and has specialized act in its habitat.