Habitat-suitability modelling to assess the effects of land-use changes on Dupont’s lark Chersophilus duponti: A case study in the Layna Important Bird Area

Habitat-suitability modelling is being increasingly used as a tool for conservation biology. Although studies at large spatial scales are more appropriate for reserve design and management, there is a scarcity of published work on local, high-resolution applications of such models. In this work we develop high-resolution habitat models (1 ha) and study habitat preferences (focal points) of Dupont’s lark Chersophilus duponti, an endangered shrubsteppe passerine, in the partially overlapping Special Protected Area for birds (SPA) and Important Bird Area (IBA) of