The Role of Conservation Data Centres for Documenting and Monitoring Mountain Biodiversity
Mountains are naturally diverse places, with different animals and plants living in forests and in the alpine, on windward and leeward slopes, in wet and dry meadows. With the latest advances in technology, it has become easier to document this diversity, but the sheer numbers of species to keep track of make this a daunting task. Where to start and how to set priorities?
Figure 1. Bioblitz participants surveying the mountains in Kluane National Park. Photo: Syd Cannings
Figure 2. Examining alpine lichens during the Tombstone Territorial Park Bioblitz. Photo: Bruce Bennett
NatureServe, and its member programs, have been tackling this issue for more than forty years. NatureServe is a network of eighty-six governmental and non-governmental programs in Canada, the United States, and Latin America. Network Programs in Canada – often called Conservation Data Centres (CDCs) – and their staff work to document, protect, and conserve the plants, animals, and ecosystems in their provinces and territories. They list every species in their jurisdiction, rank each according to their conservation status, and then focus data collection efforts on those species that need special attention. Rare or threatened species are mapped as precisely as possible.
With the help of partners such as Environment and Climate Change Canada, Parks Canada, and the Nature Conservancy of Canada, CDCs undertake biological inventories to document rare species and ecological communities. CDC staff also gather and analyze conservation data, provide tailored information products and services, and strive to make data widely available. A CDC serves as the source for reliable and up-to-date scientific information for the plants, animals, fungi, and ecological communities within their respective jurisdiction.
Increasingly, the NatureServe network has been working with the citizen science project iNaturalist (www.iNaturalist.ca) to help gather spatial data on wild species. It is the goal of iNaturalist to connect people to nature through technology with the specific goals of: increasing natural history literacy, understanding, and interest among the public; generating high-quality biodiversity data for science and conservation; and increasing the excellence and international coverage of the Network through new memberships with effective organizations.
As iNaturalist grows in popularity, more and more amateur naturalists and citizen scientists are uploading their photos and seeking confirmation of their identification. Yukon Conservation Data Centre (YCDC) staff assist in this effort by providing expert identifications, and also contracting other experts to review and identify photographs and sounds.
Top: Figure 3. White adder’s mouth (Malaxis monophyllos), a terrestrial orchid found during the 2019 Bioblitz. Photo: John Reynolds
The YCDC and partners used photo-based observations in combination with an intense period of biological surveying in an attempt to record all the living species within a designated area, known as a “bioblitz,” to create a benchmark of the biodiversity of an area. The mountainous areas in and around Kluane National Park and Reserve (2017) and within Tombstone Territorial Park (2018) were the focus of YCDC-coordinated bioblitzes. On one summer weekend, the Kluane Bioblitz recorded a total of 891 species (only thirteen of which were exotic!), 346 of which were vascular plants. Sixteen participants provided 1,060 observations to iNaturalist of 353 species. The 2018 Tombstone Bioblitz recorded over 1,008 species. Vascular plants once again topped the list with 328, but mosses and liverworts had 192 species represented – one-third of all species ever recorded in Yukon. The participation in iNaturalist increased to 22 with 357 species captured though 856 observations. The uptake for iNaturalist in the 2019 Watson Lake Bioblitz increased dramatically. Although fewer people attended (sixty-five at Watson Lake versus 108 in Tombstone), more than half submitted observations resulting in 3,404 observations of 725 species.
Bottom: Figure 4. Goblin’s Gold (Schistostega pennata) a bioluminescent moss glows in the cavity under a fallen tree. Photo: Bruce Bennett
The growth and popularity of iNaturalist is not showing any signs of slowing down, increasing the number of local, regional, and national discoveries. Although the Watson Lake Bioblitz did not result in any new species for Canada (so far), there were several new species recorded for Yukon, including the House Wren, Goblin’s Gold (Schistostega pennata), and Sanderson Bumble Bee (Bombus sandersoni). Long after the bioblitz was over, other new records for the territory were discovered through the review of the iNaturalist posts, including an orchid, White Adder’s Mouth (Malaxis monophylos), and a butterfly, Purplish Copper (Lycaena helloides).
In a time of a warming climate, with species’ ranges changing, the NatureServe network will continue to assist with gathering, documenting, and monitoring mountain biodiversity. For more information or to contribute your observations, contact the Yukon CDC yukoncdc@gov.yk.ca , call (867) 667-5331, or visit our website: https://yukon.ca/biodiversity.
Author bios
Bruce Bennett is the Yukon Conservation Data Centre Coordinator in the Yukon Department of Environment. Syd Cannings is a Species at Risk Biologist with Environment and Climate Change Canada - Northern Conservation Division.