20.500.12556/RUL-177688 High habitat potential but limited connectivity for brown bears throughout europe Aim Large carnivores worldwide have experienced substantial range contractions due to human activities, though several species are recolonising parts of their historical range. We aimed to assess current and potential European brown bear (Ursus arctos arctos) habitat as well as habitat connectivity on a continental scale. Location The extended biogeographical regions of Europe, spanning from Portugal to central Russia, longitudinally, and from Norway to Türkiye, latitudinally. Excluding inland seas; this area covers 11,151,636 km². Methods We assessed habitat suitability throughout the study area using an ensemble species distribution model with nine submodels, using data from 10 European bear populations and Türkiye. We used the resulting habitat suitability maps to conduct a least-cost path connectivity analysis and an omnidirectional circuit connectivity analysis. Main Conclusions Habitat suitability was strongly associated with low percentages of agricultural cover, low percentages of human development, and proximity to forest. Of our entire study area, 37% (4.09 million km²) is occupied or potentially suitable for bears. Connectivity analyses identified corridors that could facilitate movement among southern European bear populations, though agricultural land and human development limit connectivity between northern and southern European bear populations. Previous research estimated bears occupied 0.5 million km² across the European Union, while our results estimate 1.82 million km² of this part of our study area is potentially suitable for bears, though connectivity is limited. Our results inform conservation strategies and policy development for the future of brown bears in Europe, emphasising the need for transboundary conservation efforts. habitat connectivity habitat suitability large carnivore recolonisation species distribution model Ursus arctos povezanost habitatov primernost habitata velike zveri ponovna naselitev model razširjenosti vrste rjavi medved true false true Angleški jezik Slovenski jezik Članek v reviji 2025-12-31 11:49:24 2025-12-31 11:49:26 2026-01-01 04:45:19 0000-00-00 00:00:00 2025 0 0 V članku je navedenih še več virov financiranja. 17 str. iss. 1, art. e70130 Vol.ǂ 32 Jan. 2026 0000-00-00 Zaloznikova Objavljeno NiDoloceno 0000-00-00 0000-00-00 0000-00-00 599.744.21:591.52(4) 1472-4642 10.1111/ddi.70130 263257347 RAZ_Van_den_Bosch_Merijn_2025.pdf RAZ_Van_den_Bosch_Merijn_2025.pdf 1 000AAE5EF2191805183B296E6970FA12 2123fe5ddfe1d3d6e89fa6fe2fdbdbbb0c178d76b7a53da05f54f48b906788b0 fd9d8fe5-e636-11f0-9328-0050569b8976 https://repozitorij.uni-lj.si/Dokument.php?lang=slv&id=224906 https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/ddi.70130 1 e8ed26d2-e635-11f0-9328-0050569b8976 https://repozitorij.uni-lj.si/Dokument.php?lang=slv&id=224905 Biotehniška fakulteta 0 0 0