| Abstract | This dissertation is based on field data collected in Phu Khieo Wildlife Sanctuary on the distribution of wildlife species and human impacts. These data were found to be very valuable for assessing habitat suitability (HS) and human threats (HT). Data sets on eight wildlife species and eight types of human impacts were integrated with four environmental factors. These factors were categorized into: 1) geographical features, 2) consumable features, 3) human-factor features, and 4) species interactions and specieshuman interaction features. Ecological niche factor analysis (ENFA) and environmental categorization were applied. The Sambar Cervus unicolor was selected from several large mammal species as a case study species for estimating HS in terms of model improvement. The research generated some valuable outputs, mainly consisting of the following elements: categorizing features; separation of niche analysis in each category, and finally integration of all the environmental variables (EnvVs) together. It was found that the results produced from this methodology were better than when running all the variables by ENFA simultaneously. In addition, this method explained the influence of each environmental feature on species distribution. The method was applied to assess the HS of eight selected wildlife species and HT of human impacts in Phu Khieo Wildlife Sanctuary, and to generate HS and HT maps. These maps were then classified into four classes, according to the degree of HS and HT. PKWS was assessed in terms of its wildlife conservation value (WCV) and human threat value (HTV). All HS and HT maps were combined to provide an overall case by case assessment according to HS and HT. Then, the WCV and HTV ratio was constructed to generate the conservation-threat index (CTI). Correlation and cluster analysis were utilized to evaluate the relationship among/between wildlife habitats and human-induced threats. The HS-HT correlation revealed a negative relationship. Furthermore, the dendrogram of similarity showed that HS was inversely related to HT, as expected. The habitat zone was located in the core of PKWS, far from villages, and separated from the human threat zone. It can be summarized that human pressure on the habitat of wildlife leads to localized movement away from such threats and into the interior in order to avoid human disturbances. Using the WCV, HTV and HS-HT relationship, the wildlife sanctuary was divided into eight zones depending on the importance of the wildlife habitat and the level of human threat. Utilizing the maps generated by HS and HT classification, WCV, HTV, HS-HT correlation, and finally by PKWS zoning, can support decision-making regarding PKWS management in terms of species and ecosystem management, wildlife research and monitoring, community-related research and human threat monitoring, wildlife re-habilitation, species’ reintroduction and species releasing, and law enforcement to reduce the tension of wildlifehuman interventions. The results obtained from this study can also be integrated with social-economic factors to provide management recommendations for PKWS in many other aspects. |