The Map of Biodiversity Importance: Top 10
Findings from NatureServe's Map of Biodiversity Importance
In 2020, NatureServe unveiled the original Map of Biodiversity Importance, an innovative tool for identifying areas critical to sustaining our nation’s rich biodiversity.
With support from Esri, The Nature Conservancy, and Microsoft’s AI for Earth program, NatureServe created a comprehensive set of habitat models for over 2,200 at-risk species in the contiguous United States featured in the original MoBI (Map of Biodiversity Importance).
The species models covered a taxonomically and ecologically diverse set of our nation’s most imperiled plants and animals. The Map of Biodiversity Importance combines and analyzes the habitat models with existing protected areas boundaries to identify where underprotected, range-limited species are concentrated. The map highlights where conservation efforts can help prevent extinctions, delivering part of an intelligent nervous system for conserving the diversity of life.
The Map of Biodiversity Importance was only possible because of the 50 years of biodiversity survey data and unparalleled expertise of the NatureServe Network of state natural heritage programs that informed each of the models. Final products from the Map of Biodiversity Importance project are available on Esri’s Living Atlas of the World.
This project uncovered a plethora of information about biodiversity richness around the nation. Below are the Top 10 surprising findings from the 2020 Map of Biodiversity Importance initiative.
