Identifying priority reserves favors the sustainable development of wild ungulates and the construction of Sanjiangyuan National Park

Abstract

Sanjiangyuan National Park (SNP), the first national park in China, is one of the most important biodiversity conservation areas in the Sanjiangyuan National Nature Reserve (SNNR) and even the world. The threatened ungulates play an irreplaceable role in maintaining the ecosystem diversity and stability in SNNR. Here, based on 1434 occurrence records of six ungulates, the maximum entropy model, with two different strategies, was utilized to determine the priority reserves. The results indicated that the priority reserves in SNNR was mainly located in and around SNP, which were mainly distributed in the middle east, middle west, and southwest of SNNR. Six ungulates shared preference for altitude ranging 4000–5000 m, the average annual temperature below −3.0°C, and average annual precipitation ranging 200–400 mm on meadow, steppe, and unused land. The proportion of high and medium suitable areas for ungulates in SNP was higher than that in SNNR. As the SNP is not contiguously spaced in space, and some core wildlife habitats are not included, it is suggested to optimize the functional areas and adjust the boundary range on the basis of the pilot scope of SNP, so as to enhance the integrity and connectivity of each functional area.

Maxent modeling for predicting suitable habitats for wild ungulates: a case study of typical canyons in the Sanjiangyuan Nature Reserve of China

“…The mean annual temperature in the habitats of the two studied ungulates was below − 1.0°C, indicating a strong correlation with suitable habitats at higher altitudes. Studies within the Sanjiangyuan National Park have shown that the habitats of six ungulate species are typically above 4,300 meters, where the mean annual temperature falls below − 3.0°C 19 . The mean diurnal temperature range, spanning 12.5°C to 15.5°C, suggests that these ungulates inhabit areas with signi cant daily temperature uctuations.…”

“…Endemic species were mainly considered to be endemic to the Qinghai-Tibet Plateau. China Red List referred to the Red List of China's Vertebrates19 .…”