Landscape Conservation Cooperatives The Right Science in the Right Places

21st century resource threats magnified by accelerating climate change demand increased science capacity. Shutterstock Landscape Conservation Cooperatives Why?

Landscape Conservation Cooperatives What are they? Applied conservation science partnerships. Partners include federal agencies, state fish and wildlife agencies, Tribes, NGOs, and universities within a geographically defined area. Fundamental units of planning and adaptive science to target the right science in the right places. A national and international network of conservation organizations and agencies supporting natural systems capable of sustaining abundant, diverse and healthy populations of fish, wildlife and plants.

 Help partners identify common goals and priorities.  Support biological planning, conservation design and adaptive management.  Provide a strong link between science and conservation delivery on the ground.  Regularly evaluate the effectiveness of scientific information and conservation actions. Landscape Conservation Cooperatives What do they do?

By functioning as a network of interdependent units, LCC partnerships can enable a level of conservation no single agency or organization can accomplish alone. Landscape Conservation Cooperatives The Power of Partnerships Brian Jonkers/USFWS

Forest Conservation Priority Areas Landscape Conservation Cooperatives Common core structure and function Key components:  A steering committee of partners  LCC Coordinator(s)  Planning and technical staff  GIS capability and other expertise

Landscape Conservation Cooperatives: Conservation in Action Across the country, LCC partnerships are already identifying priority species and habitats and launching projects that will inform conservation decisions and actions on the ground. Timothy Knepp

Landscape Conservation Cooperatives: Geographic Areas

Landscape Conservation Cooperatives Established in FY2010  Arctic  California  Great Northern  Great Plains  Gulf Coastal Plains & Ozarks  North Atlantic  Pacific Islands  Plains and Prairie Potholes  South Atlantic

Landscape Conservation Cooperatives Projects in Progress 4 Projects $ 370,000 3 Projects $ 920,000 5 Projects $ 815,000 4 Projects $ 180,000 3 Projects $ 475, Projects $1,268,000

Gulf Coastal Plains and Ozarks Project Snapshot: Identifying Shared Conservation Priorities The Nation’s Largest Floodplain: 27 million acre Mississippi Alluvial Valley Gulf Coastal Plains and Ozarks LCC

Changes in Climatic Habitat by 2100 A1B Scenario Lama, Diospyros sandwicensis New habitat Habitat retained Habitat lost Pacific Islands CCC Project Snapshot: Projections of Changes in Hawaiian Plant Distribution

Plains and Prairie Potholes LCC Project Snapshot: Regional Assessment of Fish Habitat Condition Develop a geodatabase of fish habitat conditions across the PPP LCC. Assess current species distribution and abundance. Project future species distribution and abundance in relation to climate change.

Broad-based partnership to sustain waterbirds during winter and migration in the eastern U.S. Coordinated across multiple landscape scales to inform decision makers. Enables us to assess waterbird population responses to climate change and other factors and identify adaptation and mitigation strategies to sustain waterbird populations. Integrated Waterbird Management and Monitoring Program South Atlantic LCC Project Snapshot:

Assess the current capability of habitats in the NALCC to support sustainable wildlife populations Predict the impacts of landscape-level changes (climate change, urban growth) on the future capability of these habitats Target conservation programs and evaluate alternatives for sustaining wildlife North Atlantic LCC Project Snapshot: Designing Sustainable Landscapes Habitat Maps & Models Landscape Change Models Decision Support Tools

Glacial Streams Arctic LCC Project Snapshot: Linking North Slope Climate, Hydrology and Fish Migration Partners: Alaska Cooperative Fish and Wildlife Research Unit UAF Geophysical Institute Permafrost Laboratory UAF Water and Environment Research Center USFWS Fisheries and Ecological Services USFWS Arctic NWR USGS Habitat availability for trust resources How will our trust resources respond to a changing arctic? Non-glacial streams Lakes and ponds

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