02394nas a2200301   4500008004100000022001400041245012200055210006900177260001200246300001100258490000800269520142600277653001501703653002401718653001901742653001901761653003401780653002301814100002801837700002001865700002501885700002401910700002201934700002101956700001901977700002101996856007502017       2025                        eng d  a0012-965800aRemote sensing for species distribution models: An illustration from a sentinel taxon of the world's driest ecosystem0 aRemote sensing for species distribution models An illustration f  c02/2025  ae700350 v1063 a<p>In situ observed data are commonly used as species occurrence response variables in species distribution models. However, the use of remotely observed data from high-resolution multispectral remote-sensing images as a source of presence/absence data for species distribution models remains under-developed. Here, we describe an ensemble species distribution model of black microbial mats (Nostoc spp.) using presence/absence points derived from the unmixing of 4-m resolution WorldView-2 and WorldView-3 images in the Lake Fryxell basin region of Taylor Valley, Antarctica. Environmental and topographical characteristics such as soil moisture, snow, elevation, slope, and aspect were used as predictor variables in our models. We demonstrate that we can build and run ensemble species distribution models using both dependent and independent variables derived from remote-sensing data to generate spatially explicit habitat suitability maps. Snow and soil moisture were found to be the most important variables accounting for about 80% of the variation in the distribution of black mats throughout the Fryxell basin. This study highlights the potential contribution of high-resolution remote-sensing to species distribution modeling and informs new studies incorporating remotely derived species occurrences in species distribution models, especially in remote areas where access to in situ data is often limited.</p>10aAntarctica10aMcMurdo Dry Valleys10amicrobial mats10aremote sensing10aspecies distribution modeling10aspecies occurrence1 aThapa‐Magar, Khum, B.1 aSokol, Eric, R.1 aGooseff, Michael, N.1 aSalvatore, Mark, R.1 aBarrett, John, E.1 aLevy, Joseph, S.1 aKnightly, Paul1 aPower, Sarah, N.  uhttps://esajournals.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/full/10.1002/ecy.7003502022nas a2200217   4500008004100000022001400041245004800055210004800103260001200151300000900163520139500172653001501567653001501582653001901597653002401616653001701640653001501657100001801672700002101690856009301711       2025                        eng d  a0954-102000aWinter warming of McMurdo Dry Valleys soils0 aWinter warming of McMurdo Dry Valleys soils  c01/2025  a1-183 a<p>Continuous permafrost is present across the McMurdo Dry Valleys of southern Victoria Land, Antarctica. While summer active-layer thaw is common in the low-elevation portions of the Dry Valleys, active layers have not significantly thickened over time. However, in some locations, coastal Antarctic permafrost has begun to warm. Here, based on soil and meteorological measurements from 1993 to 2023, we show that wintertime soil temperatures have increased across multiple sites in the Dry Valleys, at rates exceeding the pace of summer soil warming. Linear warming trends over time are significant (P &lt; 0.05) at six of seven soil monitoring sites. Winter warming is strongly correlated with increased numbers of down-valley wind events (Foehn/katabatics), but it may also be driven by increased incident longwave radiation at some stations (although winter longwave increase is not significant over time). While down-valley wind events increase winter warming, when down-valley wind events are excluded from the record, winter soil warming remains persistent and significant, suggesting that Antarctic soils are experiencing less cold winters over time in response to regional warming. Together, these observations suggest that some Antarctic permafrost may be approaching a transition to discontinuous permafrost in some regions as winter freezing intensity is reduced over time.</p>10aAntarctica10aFoehn wind10akatabatic wind10aMcMurdo Dry Valleys10amicroclimate10apermafrost1 aFowler, Gavin1 aLevy, Joseph, S.  uhttps://www.cambridge.org/core/product/identifier/S0954102024000488/type/journal_article