Investigating on conservation value of Damgahan area as a habitat corridor of Wild Goat (Capra aegagrus) between Kalmand- Bahadoran protected area and Shirkouh hunting prohibited area

Today, habitat separation and fragmentation have serious effects on wildlife populations. Developing of protected areas and creating connection between them is one of the most important ways of dealing with this problem. Corridors play an important role in the distribution and survival of wildlife populations. This study aimed to evaluate the Damgahan region as a corridor between Kalmand- Bahaduran protected area and Shirkouh hunting prohibited area. Area of the studying region was 106 hectares. We used the present points of the species and environmental variables to asses the habitat suitability of Wild Goat by using Analysis Ecological Niche Factor. Then, corridors were defined by using habitat suitability maps and the least costly path in GIS. The most important variables influencing present of wild goats are rocky areas, slope, elevation and vegetation type. The marginality, and specialization were estimated 0.838, 3, respectively, that indicate the Wild Goat prefers the environmental conditions above than the regional average and, this species is dependent on the limited range of environmental conditions. More than 60% of the proposed corridors constitute the suitable habitat. By using these calculations, seven corridors were identified for connecting of the areas. Results showed Damgahan area has high suitable, lowest cumulative cost and the lowest human conflicts, among other corridors for Wild Goat.