Towards the automation of Species Distribution Modelling: The AutoMaxEnt routine

Abstract

Species distribution models are widely used for the evaluation and analysis of species spatial distributions and responses to environmental changes. Due to this, there's a wide diversity of tools and algorithms to perform these types of analyses. However, despite being a mature field of study, SDM still requires a large amount of research intervention and decision-making to produce reliable models. This is a natural consequence of each species unique response to environmental factors, but in practice it hinders the potential of SDMs to be used effectively and with confidence across large sets of species. Here we present the AutoMaxEnt repository, a collection of functions and tools for the automation of maximum entropy species distribution models. AutoMaxEnt offers a flexible environment to model species distribution models, automating most of the data pre-processing and preparation and giving the user the possibility of exploring multiple model scenarios automatically or with control over how those scenarios are generated. AutoMaxent offers model fit control, multiple background points generation algorithms, automatic model and variable selection, and study area configuration, among other parameters. AutoMaxEnt allows for the automation of model fitting, evaluation and model selection across different species, study areas and time periods.