Final Report: Foundational Science Area: Assessing Climate Change Impacts to Wildlife and Habitats in the North Central U.S.
Dates
Publication Date
2018-03-29
Citation
Arjun Adhikari and Andrew J. Hansen, 2018, Foundational Science Area Activities: Assessing Climate Change Impacts to Wildlife and Habitats in the North Central U.S.
Summary
Rates of climate and land use change vary across the Great Plains and Rocky Mountains as do the responses of ecosystems to these changes. Knowledge of locations of rapid land use and climate change and changes in ecosystem services such as water runoff and ecological productivity are important for vulnerability assessment and crafting locally relevant adaptation strategies to cope with these changes. This project assessed the loss of public, private, and tribal lands due to ongoing land use intensifications and fragmentation extents across the NC CSC domain. In addition, the project evaluated how the climate, ecosystem processes, and vegetation have shifted over the past half century and how they are projected to change in the coming [...]
Summary
Rates of climate and land use change vary across the Great Plains and Rocky Mountains as do the responses of ecosystems to these changes. Knowledge of locations of rapid land use and climate change and changes in ecosystem services such as water runoff and ecological productivity are important for vulnerability assessment and crafting locally relevant adaptation strategies to cope with these changes. This project assessed the loss of public, private, and tribal lands due to ongoing land use intensifications and fragmentation extents across the NC CSC domain. In addition, the project evaluated how the climate, ecosystem processes, and vegetation have shifted over the past half century and how they are projected to change in the coming century under various future scenarios. These analyses were carried out in GWEs and EPA III level ecoregions centered at public, tribal, and private lands. These areas of natural vegetation provide ecosystem services important to local people and knowledge of patterns of climate and ecological change are important to resource managers. The results of the project can be used by the NC CSC Adaptation team to work with local stakeholders to develop strategies for coping with and adapting to the ongoing land use change and projected changes in climate.
