Makurhini

Makurhini is an R package developed for the comprehensive analysis of landscape fragmentation and connectivity, essential for conservation planning. It offers a suite of functions to identify the connectivity of protected area networks and to determine the significance of various landscape elements in maintaining these connections. The package facilitates the evaluation of different scenarios under changing landscape connectivity conditions, notably by integrating landscape heterogeneity as a constraining factor in its analyses.

The latest version, Makurhini 3.0, introduces significant enhancements. The MK_dPCIIC() function now fully supports three essential PC/IIC fractions: intra-patch connectivity (intra), direct inter-patch links (direct), and stepwise connectivity through intermediate patches (step). This provides a more nuanced and interpretable breakdown of how different landscape components contribute to overall connectivity.

Additionally, the new MK_dPC_SAMC() function offers powerful capabilities for estimating overall landscape connectivity and the importance of individual habitat patches using the Probability of Connectivity (PC) index. This function employs a Spatial Absorbing Markov Chain (SAMC) framework to model movement and settlement as a random-walk dispersal process, enabling a realistic, spatially explicit representation of species movement across diverse landscapes. Other new functions include MK_dPCIIC_links for estimating link importance and MK_Focal_nodes for calculating focal Integral Index of Connectivity (IIC f) or focal Probability of Connectivity (PC f).