Applying Electrical Circuit Theory to Optimizing Habitat Corridors for Panthera Pardus Saxicolor sp. in Golestan National Park

Golestan National Park as a unique region due to its special topography and its climate conditions has a special quality. Panthera pardus saxicolor is one of the flag’s species of the region, which is in the category of the International Union for Conservation of Nature and Natural Resources in the endangered class. The most important factor in reducing the population of this species is the destruction of its habitats. Therefore, recognizing the factors affecting the suitability of Panthera pardus habitat as an efficient tool, can help managers to manage and conserve the remaining habitats and select new spots. In this study, firstly, the most desirable locations for the Panthera Pardus saxicolor habitat were used. Four different patches were selected as optimum patches using the multi-criteria evaluation model. Then, electric circuit theory was used to investigate the connectivity between the Panthera pardus saxicolor habitat of these patches. Based on flow maps, the pattern of movement and functional connectivity were identified for the target species as well as the connectional area in the study area. three habitat patches along with a communication path between them from the northwest of the national park to the south-east of the park in the central area were proposed as the best corridor for the Panthera pardus saxicolor species. Although the electrical circuit theory is relatively new, it has shown that it can be very useful in modeling the corridor design on the landscape.