3.6 Distribution modeling
Species distribution modeling suggested widely overlapping ranges forT. blandingii and T. pulverulenta , with both species documented from both rainforest and woodland habitats (Fig. 7). Paleodistribution models for the LGM suggested a slight northern and southern contraction of suitable habitat for the genus in West and Central Africa. Toxicodryas pulverulenta showed evidence of a slight southward range expansion into Angola, while the range ofT. blandingii remained stable (Fig. 7a). The mid-Holocene distribution was highly similar to the present-day distribution for all data sets (Fig. 7b).
Continuous climate stability maps estimating the areas of persistent suitable habitat from the LGM to the present suggest that the core distribution of each species has remained stable through time (Fig. 7c). Instability in suitable habitat is only found on the edges of the species range, with the greatest potential for distribution change in southern Central Africa. No northward range expansion past the present day was estimated at any time scale in Central Africa, but lesser degrees of northward expansion may have been possible in West Africa.