Call census, habitat suitability modeling and local communities’ perceptions for the conservation of a globally threatened avian flagship species

The Western tragopan (Tragopan melanocephalus) is recorded in the IUCN Red List of 2017 as a Vulnerable bird species in Pakistan.  This study was conducted to investigate and resolve the conservation challenges surrounding the species in two major habitat zones - Salkhala Game Reserve and Machiara National Park. The study was arranged in May-June 2020 for the call count census. Local residents’ perceptions and a habitat suitability map were developed for the species using MaxEnt model based on previously recorded occurrence points as well as recorded in the survey. A total of 26 western Tragopans were identified by call count during the sampling period. Results of modeling habitat suitability of the Western tragopan showed that the species suitable habitats are small and patchy in Pakistan. We found that the Normalized Difference Vegetation Index (NDVI) with 40.6 percent contribution was the most important variable in shaping the species distribution. Our model identified some new suitable patches which can be the target of future field monitoring for finding new populations of the species. This study provides valuable information for conservation of Western tragopan a globally threatened avian flagship species in Pakistan.