USGS Gap Analysis Project - Additional Data – Forest/Open + Woodland/Shrubland

The ecotone (i.e., edge) between forested and non-forested environments can be a critical aspect of habitat. We grouped land cover types - ecological systems, human land use, and water - (subsequently referred to as map units) into forested, non-forested, and shrubland/woodland land cover types to create unique data layers. These data layers can then be buffered at specified distances to identify species' habitats. Aggregated map units can be compared and contrasted to identify areas of transition between these broad categories. They can also be used to identify core areas or contiguous blocks of similar type (i.e., interior) through buffering. This dataset was derived from the GAP National Land Cover data. Forested map units included [...]