Distribution and GIS modelling of the potential habitat of nine endemic insects at the Monahans sandhills in western Texas

The Monahans sandhills is a unique physical system and habitat for an extremely diverse fauna in western Texas. Nine insect species (Anomala suavis, Epitragosoma arenaria, Nicagus occultus, Polyphylla monahansensis, Polyphylla pottsorum, Prionus arenarius, Prionus spinnipenis, Stenopelmatus monahansensis, and Trigonoscutoides texanus) appear to be restricted within this dune system. Sand shinnery oak (Quercus havardii), along with dune-stabilizing grasses, likely constitutes an important food source for many of these insects. Loss and degradation of dune-stabilizing vegetation represents a potential threat to the survival of these highly-localized, psammophilic insects. In order to provide recommendations for future conservation actions, it is necessary to determine ranges and spatial distribution of these insects, as well as habitat associations. The objective of this work was to characterize the potential habitat and distribution of the nine focal species using a GIS approach. The approximate range of extent of the insects was determined using data from insect surveys conducted from March 2013 until present along with museum records. To model the potential distribution of the insects, land cover, aspect and elevation data and high resolution imagery were used. New county records for the Monahans dunes insects and maps of their potential distribution are provided.