Predicting Potential Habitats and the Conservation of the Tasar Silkworm ( Antheraea mylitta ) in the Similipal Biosphere Reserve, Odisha, India

Rakesh Ranjan Thakur, Debabrata Nandi (), Dillip Kumar Bera, Saranjit Singh, Roshan Beuria, Priyanka Mishra, Fahdah Falah Ben Hasher, Maya Kumari and Mohamed Zhran ()
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Rakesh Ranjan Thakur: Centre of Remote Sensing and Disaster Management, School of Civil Engineering, KIIT Deemed to be University, Bhubaneswar 751024, India
Debabrata Nandi: Department of Remote Sensing and GIS, Maharaja Sriram Chandra Bhanja Deo University, Baripada 757003, India
Dillip Kumar Bera: Centre of Remote Sensing and Disaster Management, School of Civil Engineering, KIIT Deemed to be University, Bhubaneswar 751024, India
Saranjit Singh: School of Mechanical Engineering, KIIT Deemed to be University, Bhubaneswar 751024, India
Roshan Beuria: Centre for Environment and Climate, Siksha ‘O’ Anusandhan Deemed to be University, Bhubaneswar 751030, India
Priyanka Mishra: School of Architecture & Planning, KIIT Deemed to be University, Bhubaneswar 751024, India
Fahdah Falah Ben Hasher: Department of Geography and Environmental Sustainability, College of Humanities and Social Sciences, Princess Nourah Bint Abdulrahman University, P.O. Box 84428, Riyadh 11671, Saudi Arabia
Maya Kumari: Amity School of Natural Resources and Sustainable Development (ASNRSD), Amity University, Sector 125, Noida 201313, India
Mohamed Zhran: Public Works Engineering Department, Faculty of Engineering, Mansoura University, Mansoura 35516, Egypt

Sustainability, 2025, vol. 17, issue 13, 1-17

Abstract: The tasar silk production of India’s sericulture industry supports tribal livelihoods and economic sustainability. However, Antheraea mylitta Drury, 1773, the primary species for tasar silk, faces habitat threats due to deforestation, climate change, and anthropogenic pressures. This study evaluates the distribution and habitat suitability of wild tasar silkworm using multi-criteria approach, Geographic Information System (GIS), Remote Sensing (RS), and ecological niche modeling using the MaxEnt algorithm. Field surveys were conducted to collect cocoon samples, and the analysis of environmental parameters and assessment of soil micronutrient influences were also carried out. The MaxEnt model predictions indicate that the Central, Western, and Southern zones of Mayurbhanj, encompassing the Similipal Biosphere Reserve, provide the most suitable habitats. The jackknife test confirmed that these climatic variables collectively contributed 68.7% to the habitat suitability model. This study highlights the impact of habitat fragmentation and deforestation on tasar silkworm populations, emphasizing the need for conservation strategies, sustainable forest management, and afforestation programs. The findings highlight the following key conservation strategies: restoring habitats in Similipal, enforcing anti-deforestation laws, promoting community-led planting of host trees, and adopting climate-resilient silk farming to protect biodiversity and support tribal livelihoods.

Keywords: ecological niche modeling; GIS; LULC; MaxEnt; habitat suitability (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: O13 Q Q0 Q2 Q3 Q5 Q56 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2025
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