Research overview: coupling climate and land-use projections for felids

The most realistic forecasts of cat futures combine climate change with land-use change, since for many forest cats habitat conversion is the faster, larger threat. This overview surveys how integrated assessments couple climate-driven niche shifts with deforestation and development scenarios to project combined impacts, and why considering either driver alone can mislead. It reviews the data and modeling frameworks that bring the two together and their compounded uncertainties. The synthesis frames coupled projection as best practice for felid climate-habitat research, explaining why a snow leopard study may emphasize climate while a Sumatran tiger study emphasizes land use, and why the leading edge of the field integrates both drivers to capture how they jointly reshape cat habitat.