Modelling landscape connectivity for greater horseshoe bat using an empirical quantification of resistance

1. Habitat fragmentation and isolation as a result of human activities have been recognized as great threats to population viability. Evaluating landscape connectivity in order to identify and protect linkages has therefore become a key challenge in applied ecology and conservation. 2. One useful approach to evaluate connectivity is Least-Cost Path (LCP) analysis. However, several studies have highlighted importance of parameterization with empirical, biologically-relevant proxies of factors affecting movements, as well as the need to validate the LCP model with an independent dataset. 3. We used LCP analysis incorporating quantitative, empirical data about behaviour of the greater horseshoe bat Rhinolophus ferrumequinum to build up a model of functional connectivity in relation to landscape connecting features. We then validated the accumulated costs surface from the LCP model with two independent datasets; one at an individual level with radio tracking data and one at a population lev...