Contribution of geostatistics to predict bird diversity in Gouraya National Park (Algeria)

Contribution of geostatistics to predict bird diversity in Gouraya National Park (Algeria). - The present study emphasizes the contribution of geostatistics techniques in ornithology. We used kriging interpolation to predict avian diversity in the Gouraya National Park. The punctual index abundance method was used to census birds based on a grid network (250 m x 250 m). An exploratory analysis with the variogram has characterized the spatial variability of studied variable. The ordinary kriging was used to realize diversity map prediction which shows the spatial behaviour trend of this variable. The standard deviation map has given an assessment of the quality of the estimate. The diversity map prediction is thus an important tool for decision support directly applicable to the management and conservation of birds in Gouraya National Park.