Modelling the future distribution of rare bryophytes in Scotland: the importance of the inclusion of habitat loss

Background Species distribution models (SDMs) have been widely used to predict species ranges and their future distribution under climate change scenarios, mostly using only climatic variables. An important factor that is usually neglected, is the habitat of the species that are being modelled. Even when included, it is often considered a fixed factor, but in reality, it is also subjected to changes.