Biodiversity Information

How do we measure biodiversity?

One of the greatest obstacles to the conservation of biodiversity is the lack of easily accessible information about the overall distribution and condition of the plants, animals, and ecosystems that sustain them. The problem is twofold: huge data gaps and poorly organized, inconsistent, and often unintelligible information that isn't useful to policy makers or the public.

We tend to measure what we care about. The Dow Jones Industrial Average is a metric well known to economists and the public. But we have failed to develop the environmental equivalent to help people understand how biodiversity is faring. Listed below are links to several notable programs that provide information about the distribution and status of biodiversity and biodiversity conservation.

State Wildlife Action Plans

In order to ensure that states are making strategic investment decisions and working effectively to prevent additional species from becoming endangered, Congress mandated that each state prepare a state wildlife action plan. These plans, or strategies, address eight required elements. One of the elements is a monitoring plan to assess the success of the conservation actions.
Read about Conservation Planning and State Wildlife Plans

To assist with these efforts, Defenders of Wildlife asked consultants Peter Schoonmaker, Ph.D. and Wayne Luscombe, Ph.D. to prepare a report called Habitat Monitoring: An Approach for Reporting Status and Trends for State Comprehensive Wildlife Conservation Strategies. This paper provides a framework for a habitat-based monitoring program for assessing overall impacts of state-based conservation efforts, as well as background and guidance for data collection and analysis.

Conservation Registry

One of the recommendations in the monitoring report (above) is for the states to track conservation actions on-the-ground. Although some agencies track their projects, there has not been a system in place to track all conservation actions across the landscape on public and private lands. Defenders and partners have created a conservation registry. The conservation registry is a user-friendly, mapped database that will record conservation actions for resource professionals, landowners, and the public.
Read more about the Conservation Registry >

Other Programs and Resources

NatureServe is a non-profit conservation organization that provides the scientific information and tools needed to help guide effective conservation action. NatureServe and its network of natural heritage programs are the leading source for information about rare and endangered species and threatened ecosystems.

MORAP is the Missouri Resource Assessment Partnership, a collaborative effort to develop and maintain GIS data for regional planning is an early example.

The Oregon Institute for Natural Resources was directed by the legislature to provide integrated, policy-relevant natural resources information to policy-makers and the public.

Gap Analysis Programs in each state have created GIS data bases on vegetation, species, land ownership and management.

The Heinz Center for Science, Economics and the Environment has developed a set of national environmental indicators described in a report called The State of the Nation's Ecosystems. Many states and towns have developed indicators too.

The National Biological Information Infrastructure (NBII) is a broad, collaborative program providing increased access to data and information on the nation's biological resources. NBII provides a variety of information about biodiversity in the United States, organized by region.

The Millennium Ecosystem Assessment is an international work program designed to meet the needs of decision makers and the public for scientific information concerning the consequences of ecosystem change. The assessment was released in 2005, and contains a summary of the state of biodiversity and human health worldwide.

Citizen Science involves citizens in the collection, interpretation, and application of information about biodiversity. It is a good way to educate people about the effects of human activities on the environment. Some common citizen-involved activities include: NatureMapping, bioblitz (see below), invasive species control and eradication, bird counts and stream monitoring. Chicago Wilderness is a biodiversity program that involves citizens in collecting data.

Biodiversity Blitz, or BioBlitz, is a rapid assessment of what lives in a particular area at a given point in time. These activities get people involved in their communities and promote a positive awareness of local conservation. There may be a Bioblitz program in your area! View a favorite Bioblitz website.

The Birds of North America Online. The Cornell Lab of Ornithology's online companion to the eighteen-volume reference features updates, new information, contributions from researchers, citizen scientists, and designated reviewers and editors. View demos or subscribe to get the full benefit of this site.

Frogwatch USA is a long-term frog and toad monitoring program managed by the National Wildlife Federation in partnership with the United States Geological Survey which collects information about frog and toad populations and promotes an appreciation for the diversity of these species. View Frogwatch USA website and learn about frogs and frog data collection efforts where you live.