El habitat potencial de la vicuña y su aprovechamiento turístico, mediante análisis geoestadístico y evaluación multicriterio, en la Parroquia San Andrés

In 1988, the Vicugna vicugna was reintroduced in Ecuador, specifically in the Chimborazo Fauna Production Reserve. The species is considered a focal object of conservation in the protected area, whose unique characteristics have allowed it to adapt to inhospitable areas and feed on native grasses. from high areas. The present study determines the zones with optimal conditions to be considered as the current habitat of the vicuña and predicts its potential zones in the San Andrés parish, in addition to prioritizing tourist routes that intersect with said zones. To define the current and potential zones, the following criteria and weights were used: Normalized Difference Vegetation Index NDVI (40%), height (30%), precipitation (15%) and temperature (15%), later the evaluation was applied. multicriteria using the “weighted overlay” tool; To prioritize the routes with potential for the tourist use of the vicuña, the "intersect" tool of the Arc Gis 10.8 software was used. The results obtained indicate that 1,834.8 hectares of the páramos in the upper area of the San Andrés parish constitute the current habitat of the Vicugna vicugna, while 2,975.39 hectares correspond to potential habitat areas for the vicuñas, since they comply with the ranges defined by the 4 criteria used in the study: NDVI between -0.112201 to 0.513279, height from 4130.66 to 5297 masl, 96 masl, precipitation between 628mm and 785mm and temperature from -1.26 °C to 4 .88°C. The areas defined as current and potential habitat of the vicuña intersect with the Hielero de Chimborazo route (RHC) and the Piedra de Bolívar route (RPB), these are medium-mountain modality with a medium-high level of difficulty, due to the altitude and pending, the study concludes the RHC and RPB ensure the direct observation of the species in the wild contributing to the diversification of the tourist offer of the routes. En 1988 se produjo la reintroducción de la Vicugna vicugna en el Ecuador concretamente en la Reserva de Producción de Fauna Chimborazo, la especie es considerada objeto focal de conservación del área protegida, cuyas características únicas le han permitido adaptarse a zonas inhóspitas y alimentarse de pastos nativos de zonas altas. El presente estudio determina las zonas con condiciones óptimas para ser consideradas como el hábitat actual de la vicuña y predice sus zonas potenciales en la parroquia San Andrés, además de priorizar rutas turísticas que intersecan con mencionadas zonas. Para definir la