Dr Mohammad Rahmani, Dr ّfarhan Ahmadi Mirghaed, Dr Sareh Mollaaghajanzadeh,
Volume 11, Issue 1 (5-2024)
This study aimed to assess the habitat quality of the Tajan watershed in northern Iran through land use changes from 1992 to 2052 and to investigate its relationship with landscape metrics, including number of patches (NP), patch density (PD), edge density (ED), largest patch index (LPI), landscape shape index (LSI), and splitting index (SPLIT). Landsat 8 and 4 images were processed to produce land use maps for 1992, 2022, and 2052 using maximum likelihood, cross-combination, and CA-Markov methods in ENVI and TerrSet software. Habitat quality was also assessed using InVEST in three scenarios based on the land use maps. Relationships were analyzed using least squares regression and Spearman's correlation test. The results showed that from 1992 to 2052, forest and agricultural areas had the most decreasing (-82,460 hectares) and increasing (76,392 hectares) changes, respectively. Habitats in the central part of the watershed had higher quality than those in the northern and southern parts. The relationship between habitat quality and land use changes is significant and inverse (-0.95
