Figure 1
The figure shows three maps illustrating the study area in the Tigray region of Ethiopia. The bottom-left map shows the entire country of Ethiopia, with the Tigray region highlighted at the far north, and a scale bar at the bottom showing distances from 0 to 1,220 kilometers. The top-left map shows a zoomed-in view of the Tigray region divided by administrative boundaries, where some areas are highlighted. A scale bar below this map indicates distances from 0 to 220 kilometers. The right-side map presents an enlarged view of the highlighted study areas, along with a legend labeled “Key”. The legend lists the names of the study areas as Shire underscore Town, Shiraro underscore Town, Enticho underscore Town, Adwa underscore Town, Axum underscore Town, Tahitay underscore Adiyabo, Tahtay underscore Keraro, Tahtay underscore Machew, Wereda underscore Adwa, and Ahferom underscore Wereda. Five main areas are shown in the upper region of Tigray and are labeled from left to right as Tahitay underscore Adiyabo, Tahtay underscore Keraro, which is shown in two parts, one at the top and another slightly below it, followed by Tahtay underscore Machew, Wereda underscore Adwa, and Ahferom underscore Wereda. A scale bar below the right-side map shows distances from 0 to 300 kilometers. Each map includes a compass rose indicating north, south, east, and west, and coordinates are marked along the borders to indicate latitude and longitude. In the right map, two latitude markings are shown on the vertical axis, one at the top labeled fifteen degrees zero minutes zero seconds north and another at the bottom labeled twelve degrees forty minutes zero seconds north, and one longitude marking is shown on the horizontal axis labeled thirty-seven degrees forty-five minutes zero seconds east.Map of the study area. Source: Authors’ own ArcGIS 10.8 mapping (September 2024)