Hidden in Plain Sight: The Role of Plants in State Wildlife Action Plans 2008. This report analyzes how well the state wildlife action plans consider plant species and address their conservation needs. It finds that only a modest number of the plans explicitly incorporated plant species of conservation concern into various aspects of their planning process, and makes recommendations to advance policies that promote plant conservation.
Executive Summary and PDF file
27 pages.
27 pages. Executive Summary and PDF File (1.4MB).
Ecological Integrity Assessment and Performance Measures for Wetland Mitigation 2006. This report presents NatureServe's approach to helping establish performance standards for wetlands mitigation using an improved version of our methodology for conducting ecological integrity assessments. In addition to the main report, separate reports are provided with indicators and metrics for assessing each of 18 wetland ecological systems of New England, the Rocky Mountains, and the Southeast.
38 pages.
Executive Summary and PDF File (1.3MB).
Coastal/Marine Systems of North America: Framework for an Ecological Classification Standard: Version II 2005. This report presents an ecosystem-oriented, science-based framework for a Coastal/Marine Ecological Classification Standard. It is intended to serve as the framework for developing a consistent and universally recognized inventory of all habitats of the North American coasts and oceans .
58 pages.Executive Summary and PDF File (1.5M).
This document is being superceded by Version III which is currently under review.
Biodiversity Values of Geographically Isolated Wetlands in the United States 2005. Some wetlands and other waters that are “isolated” from navigable waters are no longer under the jurisdiction of the Clean Water Act as a result of a recent Supreme Court decision (SWANCC, 2001). This report assesses the potential impacts of the decision on the at-risk species and natural communities associated with these isolated wetland systems. The analyses are designed to assist policymakers and land managers at federal, state, and local levels to better understand the biodiversity value of isolated wetlands in their jurisdiction and plan for their protection.
55 pages. Executive Summary and PDF File(1.8M).
Endangered By Sprawl: How Runaway Development Threatens America’s Wildlife 2005.Endangered by Sprawl integrates widely accepted measures of development density and projections of population growth with a new analysis of our comprehensive data on rare and endangered species. It shows that habitat for imperiled plants and animals is often intertwined with where most people live. The report analyzes the 35 fastest-growing large metro areas in the United States and makes recommendations to stem habitat loss.
53 Pages. Executive Summary and PDF File (4.5M).
Disappearing Jewels: The Status of New World Amphibians 2004. This report on the New World findings of the Global Amphibian Assessment provides a comprehensive analysis of the conservation status of the amphibians of North, Central, and South America and the Caribbean, where nearly two out of every five amphibians are threatened. Disappearing Jewels describes the diversity of amphibians, their fascinating life histories, threats to their survival, and recommendations for conservation action. Written in a lively and accessible style, the report includes 20 figures and 76 color photographs. 54 pages. Executive Summary and PDF File (3.7M).
Disponible en Español: Joyas que Están Desapareciendo: El Estado de los Anfibios en el Nuevo Mundo(Archivo PDF, 3M).
An Invasive Species Assessment Protocol: Evaluating Non-Native Plants for Their Impact on Biodiversity 2004. This new method provides a systematic, science-based way to evaluate the impact on biodiversity from non-native species. Assessments are based on 20 related questions pertaining to four key issues: Ecological Impact, Current Distribution and Abundance, Trend in Distribution and Abundance, and Management Difficulty.
40 pages. Executive Summary and PDF File (1.03M).
Ecological Systems of Latin America and the Caribbean 2003. This working ecological classification summarizes nearly 700 terrestrial ecological systems of Latin America and the Caribbean, and describes applications of these systems for conservation assessment, ecological inventory and monitoring, land management, and other uses. 47 pages. Executive Summary and PDF File (4.5M).
Conservation Priorities for Freshwater Biodiversity in the Upper Mississippi River Basin 2003. A comprehensive assessment of aquatic biodiversity across the entire Upper Mississippi. Includes a complete classification of aquatic systems, and identifies 22 areas of freshwater biodiversity significance. 90 pages. Executive Summary and PDF File (5.18M).
Ecological Systems of the United States 2003. This working ecological classification summarizes nearly 600 terrestrial ecological systems in the coterminous United States, southern Alaska, and adjacent portions of Mexico and Canada, and describes applications of these systems for conservation assessment, ecological inventory, land management, and other uses. 75 pages. Executive Summary and PDF file (4.35M).
States
of the Union: Ranking America's Biodiversity 2002. This state-by-state analysis of U.S. biodiversity ranks all
50 states on several key biological characteristics, including diversity
of species, endemism, levels of rarity and risk, and species already lost
to extinction. 25 pages. Executive Summary and PDF file (202K).
Plant Communities
of the Midwest 2001. A comprehensive listing and description of all natural plant communities
(588 associations) in the Midwest, using the concepts of the U.S. National Vegetation
Classification system.
Executive Summary. The 61-page Main Report, the 705-page Appendix,
and state-specific subsets for the 12 states covered, are each available
as PDF files (11.1M).
Precious Heritage:
The Status of Biodiversity in the United States 2000. The most complete analysis ever made of the conservation status
of plants, animals, and ecosystems of the United States, Precious Heritage documents
that one-third of the nation's species are at risk. 416 pages. Executive Summary and ordering information.
Terrestrial Vegetation
of the United States: Volume I 1998. An authoritative standardized classification of the terrestrial
ecological communities of the United States, naming and describing more than
4,000 community types. 126 pages. HTML synopses of Volumes I and II; Volume I available as
PDF file. To search for specific communities, use NatureServe
Explorer (2.13M).
Rivers of
Life: Critical Watersheds for Protecting Freshwater Biodiversity 1998. Documents the U.S. as a global leader in the diversity of
freshwater species, summarizes the conservation status of freshwater species
by group, identifies freshwater biodiversity hotspots by watershed, and
describes conservation solutions. 71 pages. Executive Summary and PDF file (7.26M).
America's
Least Wanted: Alien Species Invasions of U.S. Ecosystems 1996. Summarizes the threat to biodiversity posed by invasive alien
species, highlights 12 species that are especially damaging, and describes
conservation solutions. 36 pages. Executive Summary and PDF file (1.49M).
Conservation Effects Assessment Project
Comer, P., Diamond, S. Sowa, K. Goodin, D. Purcell, D. Butler, E. Cook, C. Hamilton, G. Hammerson, L. Master, T. Nigh, M. Ormes, D. True, and B. White. In cooperation with the Natural Resource Conservation Service, the University of Missouri Resource Assessment Partnership, and the Missouri Department of conservation, NatureServe conducted a pilot project to develop and evaluate methods assessing the benefits of NRCS conservation practices to at-risk wildlife species and habitats in Missouri. The key objective was to use NatureServe data and other data sources to demonstrated processes for documenting the effect of implementation of NRCS conservation practices on these species and to look for ways to inform future conservation program enrollment decisions. The results of this research study are provided in this technical report. 94 pages. PDF file (3 MB).
NatureServe Publications
