Zostera marina habitat suitability along French Coast in Bay of Biscay and Channel Sea

Ten Random Forest models were fitted in order to characterise the environmental niche and to predict the potential spatial distribution of Zostera marina along the French western seaboard. 3 rasters are provided: 1) Habitat suitability index (values ranging from 0 to 1 when conditions are estimated to be optimal), 2) standard deviation around the mean habitat suitability index, and 3) binary suitability estimates (0= not suitable, 1=suitable). These model estimates indicate areas where the species may occur and are overall consistent with field observations but note that these maps are model-based and do not correspond to actual field observations.