KISSMig - a simple model for R to account for limited migration in analyses of species distributions

Abstract

Detecting the legacy of time-lagged migration in species ranges is an urgent matter for understanding range dynamics. KISSMig is a simple migration model which generates maps of accessibility from areas of origin and allows the generation and testing of hypotheses about the influence of specific spread patterns on species distributions. KISSMig has important applications: 1) uncovering the influence of limited migration relative to other drivers, 2) detecting areas of origin and their importance as sources of migration, and 3) accounting for limited migration in modeling species distributions. Here we introduce KISSMig and use the oak species Quercus cerris to illustrate these applications.