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Vol. 24 No. 33 (2015)

Integrating current range-wide occurrence data with species distribution models to map the potential distribution of Baird’s Tapir

Submitted
26 May 2025
Published
2015-06-25

Abstract

Identifying species distributions is fundamental to understanding their ecology and guiding conservation and management strategies. We compiled 756 unique range-wide Baird’s tapir (Tapirus bairdii) detections via camera trapping of track/sign surveys in eight countries. We then estimated the distribution of suitable tapir habitat within a Maxent-modeling framework. Though there are some clear areas of over- and under-predicted habitat, the resultant models allowed us to significantly update the potential distribution map of Baird’s tapir. We estimate that 39.4% of the available area is suitable for tapirs, but only 27.2% of that habitat occurs in protected areas. We discuss the areas that comprise suitable tapir habitat, and identify global and local threats in each country 

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