Forthcoming

Impacts of rising temperatures and precipitation on the survival of Near-Threatened reptiles in Pakistan

Authors

  • Fatima Ameer Institute of Zoology, Bahauddin Zakariya University, Multan, Pakistan
  • Sahrish Naqvi Institute of Zoology, Bahauddin Zakariya University, Multan, Pakistan
  • Shakeel Ahmad Institute of Zoology, Bahauddin Zakariya University, Multan, Pakistan
  • Maryam Arshad Institute of Zoology, Bahauddin Zakariya University, Multan, Pakistan
  • Aimen Malik Institute of Zoology, Bahauddin Zakariya University, Multan, Pakistan
  • Momil Liaqat Institute of Zoology, Bahauddin Zakariya University, Multan, Pakistan
  • Tahira Ruby Institute of Zoology, Bahauddin Zakariya University, Multan, Pakistan

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.17229644

Keywords:

Species distribution modeling, Temperature, Precipitation, Near-Threatened species, RCP 4.5 and 8.5

Abstract

The Near-Threatened reptilian species of Pakistan are particularly vulnerable to climate change, especially due to variations in temperature and precipitation. This country hosts a diverse and exceptional reptilian fauna, owing to its varied ecological gradients and complex zoogeographic regions. In the present study, we evaluated the impact of temperature and precipitation on Near-Threatened reptile species viz. (Crossobamon orientalis, Eryx conicus, Eryx johnii, and Python molurus) under the current and future conditions for the years 2050 and 2070. To achieve this, we utilized present and projected climatic data from Worldclim and species occurrence records from GBIF (Global Biodiversity Information Facility). We modelled current distributions (1980-2019) and future distributions (averaged between 2050 and 2070) using MaxEnt. For future climatic scenarios, we considered two peak carbon-emission pathways: RCP 4.5 and RCP 8.5, providing an overview of environmental conditions and habitat suitability for the species in question. Our results indicate that under both RCP 4.5 and RCP 8.5 scenarios, the distribution of all four targeted reptilian species is projected to shift toward higher northern altitudes and from central-eastern regions extending into lower eastern altitudes. Compared to current suitable habitats, we estimate an average habitat loss of approximately 35 % by 2050 and 50 % by 2070. These findings are critical for policymakers and conservationists as they highlight specific geographic areas and timeframes where habitat loss is most severe.

References

Alvarez, G., Salas, E. A. L., Harings, N. M., & Boykin, K. G. (2017). Projections of future suitable bioclimatic conditions of parthenogenetic whiptails. Climate, 5(2), 34.

Araújo, M. B., Alagador, D., Cabeza, M., Nogués‐Bravo, D., & Thuiller, W. (2011). Climate change threatens European conservation areas. Ecology Letters, 14(5), 484–492.

Araújo, M. B., & New, M. (2007). Ensemble forecasting of species distributions. Trends in Ecology & Evolution, 22(1), 42–47.

Araújo, M. B., Thuiller, W., & Pearson, R. G. (2006). Climate warming and the decline of amphibians and reptiles in Europe. Journal of Biogeography, 33(10), 1712–1728.

Biber, M. F., Voskamp, A., & Hof, C. (2023). Potential effects of future climate change on global reptile distributions and diversity. Global Ecology and Biogeography, 32(4), 519–534.

Boone, M. D., Corn, P. S., Donnelly, M. A., Little, E. E., & Niewiarowski, P. H. (2003). Physical stressors. Amphibian Decline: An Integrated Analysis of Multiple Stressor Effects. SETAC Press, Pensacola, 129–151.

Bradshaw, A. D., & McNeilly, T. (1991). Evolutionary response to global climatic change. Annals of Botany, 5–14.

Brotons, L., Thuiller, W., Araújo, M. B., & Hirzel, A. H. (2004). Presence‐absence versus presence‐only modelling methods for predicting bird habitat suitability. Ecography, 27(4), 437–448.

Brown, W. S. (1993). Biology, status and management of the timber rattlesnake (Crotalus horridus): a guide for conservation. Herpetological Circulars, 22, 1–78.

Collins, J. P., & Storfer, A. (2003). Global amphibian declines: sorting the hypotheses. Diversity and Distributions, 9(2), 89–98.

Elith, J., Phillips, S. J., Hastie, T., Dudík, M., Chee, Y. E., & Yates, C. J. (2011). A statistical explanation of MaxEnt for ecologists. Diversity and Distributions, 17(1), 43–57.

Gibbons, J. W., & Stangel, P. W. (1999). Conserving amphibians and reptiles in the new millennium. Proceedings of the Partners in Amphibian and Reptile Conservation (PARC) Conference, 2–4.

Halpin, P. N. (1997). Global climate change and natural‐area protection: management responses and research directions. Ecological Applications, 7(3), 828–843.

Hernandez, P. A., Graham, C. H., Master, L. L., & Albert, D. L. (2006). The effect of sample size and species characteristics on performance of different species distribution modeling methods. Ecography, 29(5), 773–785.

Janzen, F. J. (1994). Climate change and temperature-dependent sex determination in reptiles. Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, 91(16), 7487–7490.

Jetz, W., & Rahbek, C. (2002). Geographic range size and determinants of avian species richness. Science, 297(5586), 1548–1551.

Jones, M. M., Olivas Rojas, P., Tuomisto, H., & Clark, D. B. (2007). Environmental and neighbourhood effects on tree fern distributions in a neotropical lowland rain forest. Journal of Vegetation Science, 18(1), 13–24.

Khan, M. S. (2004). Annotated Checklist of Amphibians and Reptiles of Pakistan.

Khan, M. S. (2011). Herpetology of Pakistan part I-Frogs. Nia Zamana Publications, 14, 1–96.

Kingsolver, J. G. (2009). The Well-Temperatured Biologist: (American Society of Naturalists Presidential Address). The American Naturalist, 174(6), 755–768.

Mac, M. J. (1998). Status and trends of the nation’s biological resources (Vol. 2). US Department of the Interior, US Geological Survey.

Markham, A. (1996). Potential impacts of climate change on ecosystems: a review of implications for policymakers and conservation biologists. Climate Research, 6(2), 179–191.

Phillips, S. J., Anderson, R. P., & Schapire, R. E. (2006). Maximum entropy modeling of species geographic distributions. Ecological Modelling, 190(3–4), 231–259.

Segurado, P., & Araujo, M. B. (2004). An evaluation of methods for modelling species distributions. Journal of Biogeography, 31(10), 1555–1568.

Thuiller, W. (2003). BIOMOD–optimizing predictions of species distributions and projecting potential future shifts under global change. Global Change Biology, 9(10), 1353–1362.

Xu, J., Grumbine, R. E., Shrestha, A., Eriksson, M., Yang, X., Wang, Y. U. N., & Wilkes, A. (2009). The melting Himalayas: cascading effects of climate change on water, biodiversity, and livelihoods. Conservation Biology, 23(3), 520–530.

Zachos, J., Pagani, M., Sloan, L., Thomas, E., & Billups, K. (2001). Trends, rhythms, and aberrations in global climate 65 Ma to present. Science, 292(5517), 686–693.

Downloads

Published

2025-09-30

How to Cite

Ameer, F. ., Naqvi , S., Ahmad, S., Arshad , M. ., Malik , A., Liaqat , M. ., & Ruby , T. (2025). Impacts of rising temperatures and precipitation on the survival of Near-Threatened reptiles in Pakistan. Journal of Wildlife and Biodiversity, 9(X), 16–33. https://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.17229644

Issue

Section

Original Article