Assessment of the landscape connectivity of the Puuc-Chenes region, Mexico, based on the habitat requirements of jaguar (Panthera onca)

Abstract

© 2017 Universidad Nacional Autonóma de México The Yucatan Peninsula is included as part of the initiative for the Mesoamerican Biological Corridor. In its central area, are located three Protected Natural Areas (PNA): the Biocultural Puuc Reserve (RBP, by its Spanish acronym), the Bala'an K'aax flora and fauna protected area (APB, by its Spanish acronym), Quintana Roo, and the Calakmul Biosphere Reserve (RBC, by its Spanish acronym), Campeche. The Puuc-Chenes region is located in the center of the Yucatan Peninsula - among these PNAs - which included important fragments of vegetation that in the past formed a continuum through the forests of the Yucatan Peninsula, constituting an important link to keep the connectivity of the Mayan forest. However, the expansion of the agricultural frontier is causing the fragmentation of the habitat. In the present study, the structural and functional connectivity of the Puuc-Chenes region is analyzed, based on habitat requirements of the Panthera onca (jaguar) by sex. Both, male and female, prefer tropical forest, however, P. onca males dare to transit in secondary vegetation and inclusively in agricultural areas. Males make inroads to villages more often than females, coming close to, and even crossing roads. P. onca males have a home range of 60 km2. In the present study, the ArcMap, FRAGSTATS and IDRISI software were used to analyses the structural and functional connectivity of the landscape, based on the known differences of habitat requirements for P. onca males and females. A vegetation and land use map of the studied area was elaborated, based on Landsat 7 ETM+ images, with 30 m size pixels. The following cover classes were differentiated: tropical forest, secondary forest, agriculture, urban, and water polls, which were validated in the fields. The Puuc-Chenes has an extension of 972 578 ha. Tropical forest was the dominant vegetation cover (49.8%) with the largest patch index covering 19.7% of the total landscape. The landscape had 2 509 fragments, from which 1 254 y 935 corresponded to secondary forest and anthropic patches, respectively. The contagion index was 62.5%, which indicates the existence oflarge and contiguous fragments. The total edge contrast index indicates the degree of landscape connectivity was 43.7%, meaning a medium contrast among the different class fragments. Likewise, forest had the highest area-weighted mean proximity index (PROX_AM de 8 701), confirming that the forest had bigger and less isolated fragments than the rest of the classes. The area of study, still have high value for the conservation of the habitat of the P onca. According to the results, we conclude that the Puuc-Chenes region has intermediate structural landscape connectivity, since a suitable corridor was identified for males and three corridors for both, males and females. Four priority fragments of forest were identified in the Puuc-Chenes landscape to be protected: the Puuc fragment with 1 916 km2, the Chenes fragment with 1 380 km2, the X'Panzil fragment with 679 km2and the Noh-Ha fragment with 88.5 km2, which in total adds 4 063 km2of identified landscape for the conservation of the jaguar. It is important to stress that the Puuc fragment — which has the largest extension — presents a high degree of perforation, this means, it does not conform a continuum forest mass, since other class of patches are immerse in it, which affects its connectivity and quality as a jaguar habitat. It was found that the habitat extension for the P. onca in the Puuc-Chenes landscape added to the adjacent ANPs’ area conform 15 943 km2, this ensure the persistence of the jaguar in the region. However, this zone has strong anthropic pressures, due to the expansion of ethnic groups and the establishment of new agricultural colonies in the Hopelchén municipality, resulting in extensive agriculture and use of heavy machinery, application of inorganic fertilizer and pesticides, which have detrimental effects in soil restoration and therefore in forest restoration. These changes are producing a cascade of negative effects for the habitat and game of the jaguar. For the reason that the jaguar is a cryptic organism, it is suggested to carry out more research in order to validate the identified corridors in the present study, utilizing field methods that enable to determine the presence and absence of the P. onca. It is also important, to elaborate habitat quality maps using variables such as game density, ecological conditions of the fragments and minor water sources, among them provisioning of minor water sources. This study provides robust elements based on scientific evidences that justified the conservation of four forest fragments in the Puuc-Chenes region that will help to preserve the habitat of the Panthera onca in this region.