Habitat suitability modelling, based on the maximum entropy algorithm, was used to evaluate four species of particular conservation interest within the protected areas of the Caribbean and the Colombian Pacific: the hawksbill turtle (Eretmochelys imbricata), the scalloped hammerhead shark (Sphyrna lewini), the staghorn coral (Acropora cervicornis) and the humpback whale (Megaptera novaeangliae). These were evaluated under two possible climate change scenarios (RCP 2.6 and RCP 8.5), for present and future projections. From these models and the protected marine areas, a GIS was built to map the extent of suitable habitat for these species under the climate scenarios. The overlap of the marine conservation areas with suitable habitat for the four species analyzed, found
that in the worst case scenarios of climate change (RCP 8.5), the marine protected areas will not conserve an extended suitable habitat for all species, in particularly the staghorn coral and the hammerhead shark.
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