Projects

The South Atlantic LCC is seeking technical assistance in evaluating the past, current, and future condition of the ecological systems of the South Atlantic.

The Virginia Department of Conservation and Recreation – Natural Heritage Program (DCRDNH) and the Florida Natural Areas Inventory (FNAI) at Florida State University (collectively, Project Partners) were funded by the South Atlantic Landscape Conservation Cooperative (SALCC) in April 2015 to deve

Project 1. Coordinated monitoring of fire impacts throughout the South Atlantic

A strategy has been suggested for developing regionally specific Rapid Assessment Methods (RAMs) to evaluate wildlife-related issues associated with wind development at specific sites.

This carbon sequestration research is part of a new pilot grassland conservation program to protect at-risk grasslands from conversion to cropland in the northern Great Plains. Natural resources partners have leveraged more than $3 million in private and federal funding to support an innovative p

The Midwest Glacial Lakes Partnership (MGLP), a Fish Habitat Partnership (FHP) recognized by the National Fish Habitat Action Plan (NFHAP) Board in March 2009, has been developing a dataset for the Midwest glacial lakes, equivalent to the NHD, since 2008.

Rural America has changed dramatically over the last century, from having over half the population living in rural settings to only 20 percent residing in a rural area today, and outmigration of younger populations from rural communities remains a constant issue for local governing officials.

A collaborative research project sponsored by the National Park Service and the Appalachian LCC seeks to integrate cultural resources, such as historic bridges and Civil War Battlefields, into landscape conservation planning and design to emphasize both natural and cultural resources in defining

Submersed aquatic vegetation, a critical component of highly productive coastal ecosystems, is greatly affected by sea level rise.

Today more than 80% of Americans live in urban areas and by 2050 it is estimated that 70% of the world’s population will call a city ‘home’. Our cities are built on lands and river systems that connect to larger natural areas.

The EPiC / Urban Conservation Core Team is a small group of volunteers that provides leadership and direction for the EPiC / Urban Conservation Technical Advisory Group.

Monarch butterfly habitat—including milkweed host plants and nectar food sources—has declined drastically throughout most of the United States.

The goal of the project is to determine biodiversity impacts of land restoration associated with clean and renewable energy development; specifically, natural gas production through anaerobic digestion of hog manure and native plant material, as being forwarded by Roeslein Alternative Energy (RAE

The Floodplain Forest Workshop that was held in Dubuque on September 15-17, 2015. The agenda included presentations and discussions regarding floodplain forest issues ranging from system level influences to floodplain forest threats to site level management.

How did this multi-LCC initiative develop?

The purpose of Landscape Conservation Cooperatives (LCCs) is to inform the management of natural and cultural heritage resources in response to shifts in climate, habitat fragmentation and loss, and other landscape level challenges.

FWS and USGS will collaborate to improve the decision science foundation of the South Atlantic Conservation Blueprint. The Blueprint prioritizes areas for shared conservation action in the South Atlantic geography.

Urban communities are increasingly shaping the conservation future of the South Atlantic. Major metropolitan areas present both direct threats, such as loss habitat and open space, and indirect threats, such as creating barriers to connectivity.

This proposal outlines a collaborative regional effort to build a South Atlantic Ecosystem Model that will facilitate the connection of inland and coastal marine management strategies and actions to potential resource and economic impacts in estuarine and coastal marine environments, with the fol

Information on the sources of sediment production and amount is necessary to better understand the relationship between landscape-scale ecosystem drivers (fire, large-scale invasive species removal, recreation, oil and gas development, and grazing) and sediment loading in rivers, streams, and res

The Colorado River Cutthroat Trout (CRCT) conservation team identified a need to further develop a long-term approach to updating and maintaining the CRCT GIS-based database that was created using the Inland Cutthroat Trout Protocol (ICP).

The Shivwits Band of the Paiute Indian Tribe of Utah (PITU) has recognized the need to identify and assess the potential impacts of landscape-level stressors, such as climate change and drought, on tribal and ancestral lands and resources, such as water resources and culturally significant specie

The Desert Landscape Conservation Cooperative (Desert LCC) is designing a process that will:

Native Nations face unique challenges related to climate change, many of which are detailed in recent reports as part of the U.S. National Climate Assessment (Bennett et al. 2014; Hiza Redsteer et al.

The Desert LCC will provide the 50% of the Federal component of funds, and the work designed will support the science objectives for the Desert LCC and its partners as well as provide needed improvements to the National Hydrography Dataset (NHD) in the Lower Colorado River Region, and beyond.

There are few resources that provide managers cross-scale information for planning climate adaptation strategies for species and taxa at risk. Appropriate allocation of resources requires an understanding of mechanisms influencing a species’ risk to global change. Dr.

The project had four explicit objectives: 1) Conduct a climate vulnerability assessment of Species of Greatest Need of Conservation and major habitat types 2) Identify conservation strategies that increase resiliency or adaptive capacity, or mitigate the effects of climate change 3) Outline an ad

After two funding cycles, the Upper Midwest and Great Lakes (UM&GL) Landscape Conservation Cooperative (LCC) decided a more strategic approach was needed to address theconservation priorities of the region.

In the United States, many resources devoted to conservation are routed through states, but animal and plant populations do not conform to state boundaries. Consequently, neighboring states can enhance their collective conservation impact by coordinating natural resources management.

Researchers downscaled projections of maximum and minimum temperature and precipitation across a large extent east of the Rocky Mountains to the Atlantic Coast.  The data is probabilistic in nature, providing flexibility in incorporating climate information into impact assessments.  Statistical t

This project connects scientists and managers from federal, tribal and state agencies and nongovernmental organizations to exchange information and establish common priorities for management of terrestrial wildlife populations.

    As a major threat to global biodiversity, climate change will alter where and how we manage conservation lands (e.g., parks, refuges, wildlife management areas, natural areas).

Capacity to prioritize barrier removals in the Great Lakes basin is currently limited by lack of data on the passability of road crossings and dams for both unwanted invasive species and desirable native migratory fishes.

Control of invasive sea lamprey recruitment from tributary streams is a major management objective in the Great Lakes, and benefits from barriers that prevent access to spawning habitat.

An experienced team of wetland ecologists, geographers, and software engineers used a geodesign process to develop and host a web-based geospatial application that will support the identification and restoration of potential coastal wetlands (i.e., areas that could be restored to coastal wetlands

In June 2015, the Eastern Tallgrass Prairie and Big Rivers Landscape Conservation Cooperative (LCC) of the U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service (USFWS) granted $80,000 to the City of St.

Habitat fragmentation is considered to be a leading cause that is responsible for the long-term population declines of Northern Bobwhites.

Habitat loss and degradation due to urban expansion and other human activities have raised concerns for the Western Gulf Coast Mottled Duck population. This species relies on tidal, palustrine, and agricultural wetlands as well as grasslands for all of its life cycle needs.

Flow alteration -- from new and existing water supply projects, increased urbanization, and drought conditions -- is a pervasive threat to aquatic wildlife throughout the Gulf Coast Prairie region.

Alligator Gar, *Atractosteus spatula*, is an iconic species native to lowland floodplain river systems where they play an important role as top predators and by linking landscapes through their movement. Alligator Gar is also an important native fisheries species in the Trinity River.

The southeast United States’ rivers and streams support the most diverse unionid (freshwater mussel) fauna on earth.

Oyster reefs are one of the most important environmental and economic resources within the coastal regions of the United States.  Although oyster reefs in deeper water have been mapped, the extent and condition of intertidal reefs has not been sufficiently inventoried in most states.  Understandi

Habitat fragmentation and degradation are considered to be a leading causes of long-term population declines of Northern Bobwhites and many other species of grassland birds, such as Eastern Meadowlark.  Research is needed to understand the factors causing habitat loss and fragmentation and to ide

Grasslands are among the most threatened ecosystems on the planet (Hoekstra et al 2004). Recently, the bird conservation and grasslands communities have united around a forward looking approach to conservation planning. To accomplish this the following information is needed:

This project will result in development of an information management and delivery system to coordinate science communication platforms and to build a catalog inside of the USGS ScienceBase data and information management platform.

The Desert Landscape Conservation Cooperative (LCC) is a partnership formed and directed by resource management entities as well as interested public and private entities in the Mojave, Sonoran, and Chihuahuan Desert and montane sky island regions of the southwestern United States and northern Me

The multi-LCC Mississippi River Basin/Gulf Hypoxia Initiative is a joint effort to find the nexus of water quality, wildlife, and people in the Mississippi River Basin.

The best hope for recovering and maintaining ecosystem function and services for the tallgrass prairie ecosystem is reconstruction.

This project proposes development of a spatial decision support system (DSS) designed to address an identified major conservation goal of the Eastern Tallgrass Prairie and Big Rivers Landscape Conservation Cooperative (ETPBR LCC), in collaboration with adjacent LCCs in the Midwestern U.S.

Monarch butterfly and other pollinators are in trouble. Monarch butterfly habitat— including milkweed host plants and nectar food sources—has declined drastically throughout most of the United States.