As habitat destruction leads to species extinctions globally, conservation planning that accounts for population-level connectivity and gene flow is an urgent priority.
Models that only approximate habitat potential are incomplete because areas of high habitat potential may be isolated, whereas intermixed areas of lower habitat potential may still be critical for maintaining connectivity between and among populations. We developed a range-wide, omnidirectional (coreless) connectivity model and map for the threatened Mojave desert tortoise at a high spatial resolution, based on empirical movement data and a circuit-theoretic approach to estimating connectivity. The resultant map products can help improve management decisions that have the potential to influence the conservation of habitat and the maintenance of connected desert tortoise populations throughout their range.
[The paper is available here.]