Kevin Ruddock, The Nature Conservancy

1. Conservation of Biodiversity in Changing
Climates:
Conserving the Stage, Not the Actors
1
Kevin Ruddock
The Nature Conservancy
Collaborators:
Dr. Peter August, URI NRS
Christopher Damon, URI EDC
Pam Rubinoff, URI CRC

2. Our Challenge: What can we protect now to
ensure
diverse and viable natural systems in the future?
2
Will our portfolio of protected
lands preserve biodiversity?
The future is uncertain and
change is unavoidable.
What can we protect now to
ensure biodiversity in the
future?

3. How do we prioritize land protection for
biodiversity?
3
Protect Rare Species
Protect Unique Ecosystems
Expand or Connect
Existing Reserves

4. Challenge: Changing climate and incomplete
knowledge
4
The landscape has changed Forest Cover and Population Trends in New England
Forest Cover and Population Trends in New England
100
and will continue to do so.
80
Maine
We are not interested in 60
Vermont
creating ‘museums of the
Percent
Massachusetts
past’. 40
New Hampshire
Rhode Island
20 Connecticut
New England
population, % of 1990
pop'n.
0
1650 1700 1750 1800 1850 1900 1950 2000
Year
Climate change will accelerate changes, shift species
ranges and
alter community composition.

5. Arenas for Evolution, not Museums of the Past
5
Species may change but the geologic patterns of
topography and soil will not change significantly in the same
time scale.
Species Based Geology Based
Pitch Pine / Scrub Oak Excessively drained loamy
Barren sand on flat hilltop

6. Ecological Land Units (ELUs)
Areas of unique soil drainage, soil texture, & landform
6

7. Ecological Land Units (ELUs)
7

8. Mapping ELU Variety to Capture
Biodiversity
8
For every location in the state a ‘quality’ score is calculated
based on the number of unique types of ELU within 1,500
feet.

9. ‘Quality’: A measure of biodiversity as ELU variety
9

10. ‘Quality’: A measure of biodiversity as ELU variety
10
‘good’ quality and
not connected
‘poor’ quality and
not connected
‘good’ quality
and connected

11. Conclusions
11
• ELU variety correlated with increased biodiversity at many
scales
• ELUs can be one of many criteria used to evaluate lands for
local conservation. Others include:
 Public access
 Ability to deliver ecosystem services (water protection, aesthetics)
 Cultural/social values
• ELUs provide insight into future biodiversity
 Disturbance regimes and invasive species might overwhelm positive
effects

12. Web Access to Maps and Data
12
www.edc.uri.edu/elu