Resilient Sites and Connected Landscapes for Terrestrial Conservation in the Rocky Mountain and Southwest Desert Region

Abstract

This work was made possible by a grant from the Doris Duke Charitable Foundation, along with contributions from the State Chapter and Regional Offices of The Nature Conservancy (TNC) within this geography. It is part of a set of analyses to identify a comprehensive and connected network of resilient lands across the U.S.

In this project, we expanded the Conserving Nature’s Stage approach to the Rocky Mountain and Southwest Desert region, identifying the enduring geophysical drivers of biodiversity and the land characteristics that create resilience and mapping a suite of places that capture these features across the region. We will also identify important pathways that connect these places to allow for dispersal and migration of organisms and natural communities. We envision developing a blueprint for conservation priorities across this broad region, creating a resilient network that can link to similar networks previously identified in the eastern, central and northwestern regions of the U.S., ultimately seeking to support investments that enhance the resilience of biodiversity as the climate changes at a continental scale.

The focal geography of this study includes all or part of 10 states. The region is defined by the boundaries of 12 TNC ecoregions and encompasses portions of Montana, Idaho, Wyoming, Nevada, Utah, Colorado, California, Arizona, New Mexico and Texas. This analysis does not include portions of ecoregions that cross into Mexico.

The Rocky Mountain-Southwest Desert study area encompassed the following ecoregions:

Mountains: Arizona-New Mexico Mountains, Southern Rocky Mountains, Utah High Plateaus, Utah-Wyoming Rocky Mountains

Cold Deserts: Colorado Plateau, Great Basin, Wyoming Basins

Warm Deserts: Apache Highlands, Chihuahuan Desert, Mojave Desert, Sonoran Desert, Tamaulipan Thorn Scrub

Scientists and conservation planners from these states served on our Steering Committee and played an essential role in helping us to adapt the CNS methods to ecological drivers, biodiversity patterns and land use characteristics that define this geography.

Additional Resources

A storymap describing the components of Resilient Sites for Terrestrial Conservation in the Rocky Mountains and Southwest Deserts

Explore the data in the Resilient Land Mapping Tool

For the most up-to-date data see CRCS’s National Resilient and Connected Network Download Page

Download the original data that accompanies the report:

Resilience Data for Rocky Mountains and Southwest Deserts

Resilient and Connected Landscapes Data for Rocky Mountains and Southwest Deserts

Citation

Anderson, M.G., Clark, M.M., Olivero, A. & Prince, J. (2019). Resilient Sites and Connected Landscapes for Terrestrial Conservation in the Rocky Mountain and Southwest Desert Region. The Nature Conservancy, Eastern Conservation Science.