Modelling the abundance and spatial distribution of mountain gorilla forage species in the Virunga massif

The mountain gorilla population has increased in since 1981 due to increased protection of their habitat. Moreover climate change was predicted to affect African mountains including the gorilla habitat. It is therefore very crucial to continuously monitor the availability of plant species consumed by gorillas. More specifically, their spatial distribution using GIS and Remote Sensing techniques has not been done so far. This study used a Boosted Regression Tree Model to map the five mostly preferred gorilla forage species in the Virunga massif; a protected area shared between Rwanda, Uganda and Democratic Republic of Congo. The model inputs included presence-absence data as well as biophysical parameters. The model output showed the probability of occurrence of each species consumed by mountain gorillas. These results are useful for park managers to understand the movement of gorillas as they concentrate where the food is abundant.