NatureServe Around the Globe
For nearly 50 years, NatureServe and the NatureServe Network have been the authoritative source of biodiversity data in the Americas. Today, the reach of the NatureServe Network spans the globe.
To protect threatened biodiversity, NatureServe works with over 60 organizations and 1,000+ conservation scientists to collect, aggregate, and standardize biodiversity information, providing comprehensive data and expertise to land use decision-makers for strategic conservation efforts.
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Birth of a Network
The first natural heritage programs were established in 1974 in South Carolina and Mississippi, and the network continued to expand in the U.S. throughout the 1980s.
This network of institutions conducts biodiversity inventories to help determine what species and ecosystems exist, where they are found, how they are doing, and actions we can take for their conservation. The zoologists, botanists, and ecologists in each program are experts in their local biodiversity.
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Expansion to Canada
The first Canadian conservation data center began operations in Québec in 1988.
In 1999, a national affiliate of NatureServe called NatureServe Canada was established to coordinate among the conservation data centers, which are now nine network programs covering every Canadian province.
Emerald Lake and Mount Burgess, British Columbia, Canada. Photo by Bernd Thaller .
NatureServe and our network partners develop and manage the most comprehensive data for over 100,000 species and ecosystems by answering fundamental questions about biodiversity: What is it? Where is it found? And how it is doing? With this knowledge, we also answer two more important questions: What can we do to help? And are our actions working?
Species & Ecosystem Classification & Mapping
NatureServe ecologists are world-renowned experts in describing and mapping ecosystems, or patterns of relationships among plant and animal species in the natural world. Our classifications place these natural communities into a hierarchy at multiple levels, similar to the taxonomies used by biologists to describe where species fit on the tree of life. Once we classify and describe ecosystems, we can map their distributions and ask more questions we’ll need to answer for their conservation.
By conserving the diversity of natural ecosystems that support most species, we help to “keep common species common.”
But we also know that many species are already threatened with extinction, so we target at-risk species individually to secure their recovery and long-term viability. Through both field work and advanced modeling techniques, scientists in the NatureServe Network map the distributions of at-risk species to inform conservation efforts.
NatureServe's "coarse filter/fine filter" approach combines ecosystem-based efforts and species-based efforts, providing a practical means to conserve all biodiversity.
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Ecosystem Classification & Mapping
In 2000, NatureServe and NatureServe Canada initiated efforts to establish the Canadian National Vegetation Classification (CNVC).
The CNVC is a “dictionary” of ecosystem types with standardized names, specific definitions, and factsheet descriptions.
Parc Régional du Poisson Blanc, Québec, Canada. Photo by Ali Kazal.
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In 2003, NatureServe published the Terrestrial Ecological Systems classification for Latin America and the Caribbean. The classification, which describes nearly 800 ecological systems, is used for conservation assessment, ecological inventory, mapping, and land management at country, regional, and continental scales.
Cloud forest in Costa Rica. Photo by Patrick Comer, NatureServe.
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Using these ecosystem classifications, NatureServe developed an unprecedented and comprehensive set of maps for all terrestrial temperate and tropical ecosystems in the Americas through a series of efforts over 20 years.
These maps, which include both potential and current ecosystem distributions, form the foundation for continental-scale terrestrial ecosystem conservation in the Americas.
This example for North and South America depicts where over 300 vegetation types, called “macrogroups,” would likely exist today had land not been converted by widespread industrial and agricultural uses.
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Internationally recognized for their expertise in describing and mapping ecosystems, NatureServe ecologists worked with USGS and USAID to convene African ecologists and describe terrestrial ecosystems based on the International Vegetation Classification. In workshops from 2011-2013, NatureServe helped map those ecosystems across Africa.
Ecologists at a workshop in Nairobi, Kenya.
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Protecting at-risk species
While our ecosystem work helps "keep common species common" by protecting natural communities, NatureServe also focuses on identifying and mapping distributions for individual at-risk species.
In 2003, NatureServe published Distribution Maps of the Mammals of the Western Hemisphere and Distribution Maps of the Birds of the Western Hemisphere.
These were the first continental-scale, comprehensive digital distribution maps ever published. They formed the basis for hundreds of research projects to identify priorities for conservation in the hemisphere.
Emperor tamarin (Saguinus imperator), IUCN Conservation Status: Least Concern. Los Amigos Research Station, Peru. Photo by Oscar Dewhurst, ACCA-Conservación Amazónica.
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NatureServe created habitat suitability models for 782 plant and animal species endemic to the Andean slope of Peru and Bolivia. The work was part of the Andes-Amazon Initiative , a Gordon and Betty Moore Foundation-funded project from 2005 to 2007. The models help conservationists better understand where endemic species in the Andes are found.
NatureServe modeled habitat for species including the golden-collared tanager (Iridosornis jelskii). IUCN Conservation Status: Least Concern. Photo by Dominic Sherony .
Species & Ecosystem Assessment to Support Planning Decisions
Conservation status assessments answer questions about trends in the location, extent, and health of a given species or ecosystem type across its entire range, indicating which species and ecosystems are at risk and require urgent conservation attention.
In 2004, NatureServe published the results of the Global Amphibian Assessment in collaboration with the International Union for the Conservation of Nature (IUCN) and Conservation International.
This landmark study established that a third of the world’s amphibians were at risk of extinction. The paper describing the results was one of the 10 most cited papers in the journal Science for 2003.
Figure © AAAS.
In 2005, NatureServe published Disappearing Jewels: The Status of New World Amphibians, the first comprehensive assessment of the status of the amphibians of the Americas. 39% were found to be threatened with extinction.
Triangle treefrog (Dendropsophus triangulum), IUCN Conservation Status: Least Concern. Photo by Pascal Title, ACCA-Conservación Amazónica.
From 2002 to 2006, with support from the U.S. National Science Foundation, NatureServe coordinated the Research and Analysis Network for Neotropical Amphibians (RANA).
RANA was a network of 120 students and scientists from institutions throughout Latin America and the Caribbean that collaborated to understand amphibian declines. The major findings of these efforts were summarized in 50 scientific papers that exposed the dual roles of fungal disease and climate change in the mysterious declines of amphibian populations.
RANA's logo.
Variable harlequin frog (Atelopus varius), IUCN Conservation Status: Critically Endangered. Las Alturas, Costa Rica. Photo by Bruce Young, NatureServe.
Following on the heels of the Global Amphibian Assessment, NatureServe launched the Global Reptile Assessment in collaboration with the IUCN in 2005.
After dozens of workshops around the world, including eight facilitated by NatureServe in Latin America and the Caribbean, the Global Reptile Assessment is wrapping up in 2020.
Participants at first Global Reptile Assessment workshop at the Chamela Biological Station in Jalisco, Mexico, in 2005. Photo by Bruce Young, NatureServe.
Filling in the Gaps
Another common conservation assessment asks how much of a species' or ecosystem's distribution is found in protected areas, such as national parks and other conservation areas. Commonly called a “gap analysis," this type of assessment identifies conservation “gaps” that can be filled with new land protections. Gap analyses help identify urgent priorities for conservation action.
In 2020, NatureServe completed an analysis of long-term loss in extent and current protective status of terrestrial ecosystems across Latin America.
Global targets for representing ecosystem diversity in protected areas range from 17% to as much as 50% of land. The map shown here indicates where ecosystems are more (greens) or less (reds) protected.
Guiding Conservation Around the Globe
NatureServe uses our authoritative data and expertise to identify the most important places in need of conservation action. This can include governments designating new protected areas, private land trusts purchasing biodiversity-rich acreage, and helping to manage resources for the benefit of biodiversity.
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In 2003, project partners in Latin America and the Caribbean collaborated to identify priority sites for conservation in five globally significant ecoregions.
With funding from the Global Environment Facility, the network identified key areas for protection along the spine of the Andes from Panama to Paraguay.
Gocta Falls, Peru. Photo by orientalizing on flickr.
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NatureServe also completed a number of projects that helped direct conservation funding in South America.
In 2013, NatureServe prioritized Andes-Amazon watersheds for conservation investment by the MacArthur Foundation. The MacArthur Foundation used our results to direct the final years of funding for Andes conservation.
In 2015, NatureServe completed a profile of the Tropical Andes Hotspot to guide conservation investment. In collaboration with EcoDecisión, NatureServe developed a strategy to help the Critical Ecosystem Partnership Fund direct $10 million in funding to support conservation of the biodiversity of the Tropical Andes, including prioritizing Key Biodiversity Areas (KBAs) for investment.
Participants in one of the seven workshops that provided input to the Tropical Andes Hotspot profile. Quito, Ecuador, 2015.
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From 2010 to 2012, NatureServe worked with a consortium of non-profits to support environmental impact analysis for large-scale infrastructure planning across South America. This work helped the Initiative for the Integration of the Regional Infrastructure of South America (IIRSA) proceed with important economic projects while avoiding negative impacts to biodiversity.
NatureServe and Fundación Natura scientists look out over a patchwork landscape near Santuario de Flora y Fauna Iguaque in Santander, Colombia. Photo by Bruce Young, NatureServe.
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In 2018, NatureServe published a continental assessment of temperate grasslands from the Canadian Prairies south through the Chihuahuan Desert and recommended 177 potential conservation areas to protect the diversity of grasslands in North America.
Chihuahuan Desert in Big Bend National Park, Texas. Photo by Gary Nored .
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In 2016, NatureServe helped establish the Key Biodiversity Areas Partnership (KBA Partnership), an ambitious partnership among 13 global conservation non-profits whose goal is to map, monitor, and conserve the most important places for life on earth. The KBA Partnership helps ensure that scarce resources are directed to sites identified as priorities for protecting biodiversity.
In 2020, NatureServe is contributing a "red list" of threatened and endangered ecosystems to help identify KBAs in Canada.
Bow Lake in Banff National Park, Alberta, Canada. Photo by Bernd Thaller .
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Capacity Building
NatureServe also provides tools, training, and expert recommendations for other conservation organizations, many of which carry out on-the-ground work to protect biodiversity.
From 2009 to 2012, NatureServe provided technical training and support to ecoregional planning in China with The Nature Conservancy China program.
Yangshuo, China. Photo by Rod Waddington .
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NatureServe provided “ core methodology training” on our standard procedures for gathering, managing, and representing data for species and ecological systems. Training began in Beijing in 2010 and continued through 2013 with advanced training in Washington, D.C.
Black snub-nosed monkey (Rhinopithecus bieti), IUCN Conservation Status: Endangered. Yunnan, China. Photo by Rod Waddington .
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As part of the Andes-Amazon Initiative from 2005 to 2007, NatureServe provided technical training on habitat suitability modeling and integration of biodiversity data into land use planning.
Training on habitat suitability modeling in Lima, Peru in 2007.
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In 2011, NatureServe initiated pilot efforts in Africa, Asia, and Latin America to develop "biodiversity dashboards" that measure, track, and visualize how successful conservation actions have been using indicators, evidence-based measurements that assess the health and integrity of biodiversity and reveal trends across time and space.
Originally envisioned to support the MacArthur Foundation in understanding the efficacy of its conservation investments in tropical regions, the Biodiversity Indicators Dashboard portal grew to become a tool used by the national governments around the world to report on their progress toward biodiversity conservation targets set under the Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD).
In 2018, in collaboration with the Biodiversity Indicators Partnership and UN Environment World Conservation Monitoring Centre, NatureServe launched the global Biodiversity Indicators Partnership (BIP) Dashboard, a platform for streamlining target tracking and reporting for multilateral environmental agreements like the CBD.
The BIP Dashboard offers users many options for visualizing a given indicator. This map depicts change in the Protected Area Representativeness Index, which measures the degree to which protected lands represent the biodiversity of a region. The map compares improvements in different areas. Darker blues indicate greater improvements. Data source: Commonwealth Scientific and Industrial Research Organisation.
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In 2020, NatureServe began designing tools for Ghana and Uganda to mainstream biodiversity data into decision-making. Training on these biodiversity information products will begin this year.
White-necked rockfowl (Picathartes gymnocephalus), IUCN Conservation Status: Vulnerable. Bonkro, Ghana. Photo by Nik Borrow .
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In 2020, NatureServe initiated work with our partner the ASEAN Centre for Biodiversity to develop a Biodiversity Indicators Dashboard for Southeast Asia.
NatureServe is also working with the UN Environment World Conservation Monitoring Centre on developing a new global Target Tracker to serve the next phase of the Convention on Biological Diversity, transforming the current backward-looking assessment process to a continuous, forward-looking process. This will improve transparency and produce better outcomes for biodiversity.
Sumatran orangutan (Pongo abelii), IUCN Conservation Status: Critically Endangered. Bukit Lawang, Sumatra. Photo by Peter Seward .
With nearly 1 million species at risk of extinction across the globe and the extinction rate accelerating, the need for rapid assessment of the pulse of our planet's biodiversity has never been more urgent.
In the face of global change, NatureServe is thinking big about how the next generation of technology can be put to use for the good of biodiversity. We are developing tools to incorporate new and advanced inputs from citizen scientists, satellites, artificial intelligence, and open data from partners across the globe. This will allow us to collect and manage conservation data more efficiently, and in turn react to and manage threats to biodiversity appropriately. NatureServe will continue to lead the way in improving our understanding of biodiversity around the world to protect species and ecosystems from extinction.
