Between Grasslands and Mountains: Identification of valuable areas for landscape connectivity in the Tandilia Mountain System for carnivore species.

Abstract

Habitat loss and fragmentation threaten biodiversity, particularly for carnivores whose dispersion and population viability are compromised by reduced available habitat and anthropic elements in the landscape, such as roads and crops. In Argentina, the Pampas grasslands have experienced considerable degradation and replacement by crops and are currently limited to natural patches scattered throughout the region. In the Tandilia mountains, these grassland remnants persist as crucial refuges for the species that inhabit them. Our objectives were to identify and map priority sites and areas that can act as ecological corridors between grassland patches to contribute to the connectivity knowledge of the Tandilia mountain system. We performed connectivity analyses using Least-cost Path Models and Circuit Theory. To do this, we generated habitat suitability models by combining environmental and anthropic variables, from which resistance surfaces were generated. We highlight areas of high habitat suitability for carnivores in the Pampas region, with particular emphasis on the mountain systems of Tandilia. We identified potential corridors and least-cost paths for five carnivore species, obtaining multi-species corridors highlighting the importance of landscape connectivity to maintain healthy populations. Centrality analyses revealed crucial grassland remnants and valuable corridors. These findings address the challenges associated with habitat fragmentation in the Pampas region and provide guidelines for future research and carnivore conservation actions.