Habitat Suitability Evaluation of Polygala tenuifolia Based on MaxEnt Model and ArcGIS / 中国实验方剂学杂志

Objective:Polygalae Radix is mainly produced in Northeast，North，Northwest and Central China and Sichuan province. There are obvious differences in quality of <italic>Polygala tenuifolia</italic> from different areas. <italic>P. tenuifolia</italic> cultivation areas are relatively concentrated. Currently，there are only a few studies about the suitability zoning of <italic>P. tenuifolia</italic> nationwide，in order to determine the suitable zoning of <italic>P. tenuifolia</italic> in China. This paper made a habitat suitability evaluation of <italic>P. tenuifolia</italic> nationwide based on analysis of ecological factors in distribution areas of sampling points. Method:MaxEnt model was used to select ecological factors that affected the distribution of <italic>P. tenuifolia</italic> and construct an evaluation model. ArcGIS software was used to evaluate the suitability of different habitats of<italic> P. tenuifolia</italic>. The suitable areas were classified into high，medium，low suitability areas and unsuitable area of <italic>P. tenuifolia</italic> nationwide. Result:The evaluation model was highly accurate，and concluded that <italic>P. tenuifolia'</italic>s suitability distribution area in China was 3.21×10⁶ km²，including 0.52×10⁶ km² of high suitability area，0.96×10⁶ km² of medium suitability area and 1.73×10⁶ km² of low suitability area. High suitability areas were mainly distributed in Shanxi province，Hebei province，Shandong province，Shaanxi province，Liaoning province and Henan province. The main ecological factors affecting the distribution of <italic>P. tenuifolia</italic> were annual average temperature change range，mean temperature of driest quarter，precipitation of wettest quarter，altitude，slope and topsoil （0-30 cm） calcium carbonate. Conclusion:The results of the study are consistent with the records in relevant literatures，and can provide a theoretical basis for protection and cultivation of Chinese medicine resource <italic>P. tenuifolia</italic>.