Drs. Megan Jennings & Erin Conlisk wrapped up the analytical phase of their Resilient Connectivity Project at last month’s workshop, delivering updates from their multispecies linkage network. Workshop attendees reviewed the tools that will be used by land managers to design resilient networks and inform decisions about acquisitions, restoration, and management.
On May 25th, Alliance advisor Dr. Megan Jennings (Institute for Ecological Monitoring and Management, San Diego State University) convened land managers from across the region to share key results from the “Climate Resilient Connectivity” project. Dr. Jennings and her colleague, Dr. Erin Conlisk, discussed the landscape maps developed over the 2.5 year project and how the “Connecting Wildlands and Communities” project will build off of this project to continue to support connectivity of natural lands across the South Coast Ecoregion
The Institute for Ecological Management and Monitoring at San Diego State University partnered with the Climate Science Alliance and the California Department of Fish and Wildlife to advance regional-scale climate-smart connectivity planning by applying cutting-edge approaches and best-practices in ecological science. This methodological approach combined ensemble species distribution models with dynamic metapopulation models to advance connectivity modeling and planning approaches accounting for climate change, land-use shifts, and uncertainty.
This novel complement of techniques has never been used before to develop a robust analysis of habitat-specific connectivity for multiple species. Over the summer, Drs. Jennings and Conlisk will continue to refine the final products for this project to ensure the information will support practical, proactive management of biodiversity under likely climate change scenarios. In particular, they will be expanding the range of decision support tools using their connectivity linkage maps for the South Coast Ecoregion to allow for integration into adaptation planning.
Learn more about how the Connecting Wildlands and Communities project will continue to build upon this project, here: