Habitat suitability modeling for Thymus kotschyanus Boiss. & Hohen. using ecological-niche factor analysis (case study: rangeland of middle Taleghan)

The purpose of this study was habitat suitability modeling for Thymus kotschyanus Boiss. & Hohen. using ecological-niche factor analysis. This model was implemented in the Biomapper software. The information layers included species presence map, soil map (gravel percentage, pH, electrical conductivity, lime, organic matter, nitrogen, potassium, phosphorus, soil depth, sand, clay and silt percent), and the topography map (slope, aspect and elevation). The accuracy of the model was obtained 89% using Boyce index, indicating the high accuracy of the model. The Kappa coefficient obtained from matching the prediction map with the ground truth map was calculated to be 0.73, which is at a good level. The results showed that T. kotschyanus preferred soils with a pH of 7.5-8, an electrical conductivity of 0.20-0.25 dS/m and less than 21.5 percent of lime. The optimal habitat of this species is located at an altitude of over 2000 meters above sea level and in the northern and eastern slopes. Furthermore, the results of this study showed that T. kotschyanus is a specialized species in the study area with a relatively narrow ecological niche, tending to live in its own special habitat conditions.