The demand for food resources is increasing quickly because of growth in human populations; therefore, food security may become one of the largest human challenges for this century (Tas et al., 2019). Crop wild relatives (CWRs) are the most valuable plant genetic resources (PGR) for the conservation of genetic diversity in crops. However, climate change is an added pressure on biodiversity, particularly on this valuable group of plants. Iran is considered a highly ranked country in terms of conservation priorities for CWRs in the world.In Iran, the important CWR Aegilops genus has been investigated for climate change effects. MaxEnt was applied to predict the spatial distribution of four Aegilops species under different climatic scenarios (RCP 2.6 and RCP 8.5) of 2050 and 2080 (Phillips et al., 2006). According to the findings, all species showed reduction and expansion responses under all future climatic scenarios. However, the range change was negative for some species (i.e. A. cylindrica Host, A. speltoides Tausch , A. tauschii Coss.) and positive for A. crassa Boiss. ex Hohen. The results of this study emphasize the need for conservation plans for the country's genetic resources, including regular monitoring and assessment of ecological and demographic changes.
