1. Biodiversity studies rely heavily on estimates of species' distributions often obtained through ecological niche modelling. Numerous software packages exist that allow users to model ecological niches using machine learning and statistical methods. However, no existing package with a graphical user interface allows users to perform model calibration and selection based on convex forms such as ellipsoids, which may match fundamental ecological niche shapes better, incorporating tools for exploring, modelling, and evaluating niches and distributions that are intuitive for both novice and proficient users.
2. Here we describe an r package, NicheToolBox (ntbox), that allows users to conduct all processing steps involved in ecological niche modelling: downloading and curating occurrence data, obtaining and transforming environmental data layers, selecting environmental variables, exploring relationships between geographic and environmental spaces, calibrating and selecting ellipsoid models, evaluating models using binomial and partial ROC tests, assessing extrapolation risk, and performing geographic information system operations via a graphical user interface. A summary of the entire workflow is produced for use as a stand‐alone algorithm or as part of research reports.
3. The method is explained in detail and tested via modelling the threatened feline species Leopardus wiedii. Georeferenced occurrence data for this species are queried to display both point occurrences and the IUCN extent of occurrence polygon (IUCN, 2007). This information is used to illustrate tools available for accessing, processing and exploring biodiversity data (e.g. number of occurrences and chronology of collecting) and transforming environmental data (e.g. a summary PCA for 19 bioclimatic layers). Visualizations of three‐dimensional ecological niches modelled as minimum volume ellipsoids are developed with ancillary statistics. This niche model is then projected to geographic space, to represent a corresponding potential suitability map.
4. Using ntbox allows a fast and straightforward means by which to retrieve and manipulate occurrence and environmental data, which can then be implemented in model calibration, projection and evaluation for assessing distributions of species in geographic space and their corresponding environmental combinations.

中文翻译：

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ntbox：具有图形用户界面的r包，用于建模和评估多维生态位

1. 生物多样性研究严重依赖于通常通过生态位建模获得的物种分布估计。现有许多软件包，允许用户使用机器学习和统计方法对生态位进行建模。但是，没有具有图形用户界面的现有程序包允许用户基于凸形（例如椭圆形）执行模型校准和选择，这可能会更好地匹配基本的生态位形状，并结合了用于直观地探索，建模和评估生态位和分布的工具适用于新手和熟练用户。
2. 在这里，我们描述一个ř包，N iche Ť OOL乙牛（ntbox），可以让用户进行参与生态位建模所有处理步骤：下载和策发生数据，获得和转化的环境数据的层，选择环境变量，探索关系在地理和环境空间之间进行校准，校准和选择椭球模型，使用二项式和部分ROC测试评估模型，评估外推风险以及通过图形用户界面执行地理信息系统操作。生成了整个工作流程的摘要，可用作独立算法或作为研究报告的一部分。
3. 对该方法进行了详细说明，并通过对濒临灭绝的猫科动物Leopardus wiedii进行建模进行了测试。查询该物种的地理参考事件数据，以显示点事件和IUCN发生范围多边形（IUCN，2007）。该信息用于说明可用于访问，处理和探索生物多样性数据（例如，发生的次数和收集的时间顺序）和转换环境数据（例如，用于19个生物气候层的摘要PCA）的工具。利用辅助统计数据开发了以最小体积椭球体为模型的三维生态位的可视化。然后将此利基模型投影到地理空间，以表示相应的潜在适用性地图。
4. 使用ntbox允许快速而直接的方式来检索和处理事件和环境数据，然后可以在模型校准，投影和评估中实施该模型，以评估物种在地理空间中的分布及其相应的环境组合。