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Data In Use

Update of Geographic Patterns of At-Risk Species Helps Focus Biodiversity Conservation Efforts

(December 2008) Geographic Patterns of At-Risk Species is a technical document supporting the USDA Forest Service Interim Update of the 2000 RPA Assessment on the trends and geographic patterns of species formally listed as threatened or endangered. It examines the geographic occupancy of species to determine if new areas where species rarity may be concentrated emerge, and documents whether past trends and geographic occupancy patterns have changed over time, thereby providing resource planners and conservation practitioners with updated information on where they should focus biodiversity conservation efforts.

Finding: Climatic and Species Rarity Coincide

(October 2008) From Biology Letters 2008, 4:5: Ralf Ohlemuller and colleagues used NatureServe range maps for birds of the Western Hemisphere to compare their distribution with the distribution of range-restricted butterflies and plants in Europe, analyzing both in the context of patterns of climate diversity. They found that concentrations of small-range species tend to occur in areas that are higher and cooler than surrounding regions.In addition, these pockets of endemism tend to occur in climatically diverse regions, where species may have been buffered from extinction during past times of climate change.

Species and Communities Data Used as Indicators of Ecosystem Health in Heinz Center Report

(June 2008) The State of the Nation’s Ecosystems 2008 is a comprehensive report on the health and trends of U.S. ecosystems from The H. John Heinz III Center on Science, Economics, and the Environment. An update of the original 2002 report, the study relies on NatureServe and natural heritage program data for several important national indicators of ecosystem health, including at-risk freshwater plant communities and the numbers of at-risk native species in forests, freshwater, and grassland ecosystems.

Nature Paper Uses Freshwater Fish Dataset

(May 2008) A recent paper published in the prestigious journal Nature (8 May 2008) by an international team of researchers makes innovative use of a NatureServe dataset to test an influential but controversial theory for predicting patterns of biodiversity. The paper (“Neutral meta–community models predict fish diversity patterns in Mississippi–Missouri basin” by Muneepeerakul et al.) compared distribution patterns of freshwater fishes in the Mississippi–Missouri basin documented in the NatureServe dataset with those generated by models based on the neutral theory of biodiversity, a theory first developed and tested with tropical rainforest trees. The authors conclude that “river network structure acts as an effective template for characterizing spatial attributes of fish biodiversity.” The team used NatureServe’s “Distribution of Native U.S. Fishes by Watershed” data, which was compiled based on records from multiple sources, including state natural heritage program records, museum records, published literature, and expert opinion.

NatureServe Indicator Included in Key EPA Report

(2008) EPA’s 2008 Report (PDF, 6.7M, page 6–21) on the Environment includes an ecological health indicator on Fish Faunal Intactness developed by NatureServe scientists. The indicator compares the number of native fish currently found in a given watershed with the number historically found there. The EPA Report on the Environment helps policymakers and the public to better understand trends in the condition of the air, water, and land and related changes in human health.

First Map of Earth’s Freshwater Ecoregions Uses NatureServe Fish Dataset

(May 2008) A paper (PDF, 6.1M) published in BioScience (May 2008) presents the first global biogeographic map of Earth’s freshwater ecoregions. Authored by scientists from WWF, TNC, and an international group of researchers, the map is based on freshwater fish species distributions and incorporates major ecological and evolutionary patterns. Data for the United States came from NatureServe, which provided presence/absence data by watershed for each native fish species, at the scale of eight-digit hydrologic unit codes (HUCs). This ecoregion map, together with associated species data, is a useful tool for underpinning global and regional conservation planning efforts, particularly to identify outstanding and imperiled freshwater systems.