Significance
Connectivity is critical for both increasing landscape resilience and species mobility during climate change, as well as for improving the safety of roads for wildlife and humans. Anthropogenic climate change will force shifts in species ranges to climates that encompass their preferred habitats. Habitat loss and fragmentation limits the ability of species to migrate into these new ranges and can leave small populations geographically isolated. Isolated preserves established by current conservation practices might not protect organisms if their entire ranges shift. Therefore, conservation managers must adopt adaptive management strategies that bolster the connectivity of the landscape to prevent extinctions due to habitat loss and fragmentation. |
Problem
The Nature Conservancy (TNC) has assessed structural connectivity throughout the NAPA region using measures of land use and land cover. To determine whether their conservation efforts are prioritizing the correct geographic locations and improving species mobility across the landscape, their structural connectivity models need to be calibrated with functional connectivity metrics. These updated models will help TNC and Staying Connected Initiative (SCI) partners to more effectively measure and monitor connectivity, inform management decisions, and enhance the impact of their conservation actions.
The Nature Conservancy (TNC) has assessed structural connectivity throughout the NAPA region using measures of land use and land cover. To determine whether their conservation efforts are prioritizing the correct geographic locations and improving species mobility across the landscape, their structural connectivity models need to be calibrated with functional connectivity metrics. These updated models will help TNC and Staying Connected Initiative (SCI) partners to more effectively measure and monitor connectivity, inform management decisions, and enhance the impact of their conservation actions.