Potential geographic distribution and habitat suitability of the Greater horseshoe bat, Rhinolophus ferrumequinum (Chiroptera: Rhinolophidae) in Iran

A comprehensive study on the greater horseshoe bat (Rhinolophus ferrumequinum) in Iran reveals significant new insights into its geographic distribution and habitat suitability. The research, combining historical records with 41 newly identified localities primarily across Zagros and Elburz ranges, used Maximum Entropy modeling (MaxEnt) to predict potential habitats. Key environmental variables such as annual precipitation, minimum temperature of the coldest month, and winter quarter precipitation emerged as critical predictors. The model demonstrated high accuracy (AUC=0.845), highlighting favorable conditions in northwest Iran while indicating limited suitability in southern, eastern, and southeastern regions. Notably, the vast deserts of Dasht-e Lut and Dasht-e Kavir were found to be unsuitable habitats for this species, with no recorded presence.

Shahabi, S., Sharifi, M., & Akmali, V. (2019). Potential geographic distribution and habitat suitability of the Greater horseshoe bat, Rhinolophus ferrumequinum (Chiroptera: Rhinolophidae) in Iran. Journal of Wildlife and Biodiversity, 3(2). https://doi.org/10.22120/jwb.2019.35013