Peninsular Bighorn Sheep Habitat Vegetation Map [ds2660]

The Peninsular Bighorn Sheep Habitat (PBSH) Vegetation Map will help inform scientists in their effort to study fluctuations in the distribution of Peninsular bighorn sheep due to changes in vegetation due to fire, drought and climate change. Thus, the primary goals and objectives of the vegetation map are to develop a spatial geodatabase of vegetation communities deemed essential for Peninsular bighorn sheep habitat and to provide a baseline to monitor natural communities and landscape-scale vegetation change within their range. Quantification of biotic habitat variables will help assess factors that influence Peninsular bighorn sheep and other species population fluctuations. These data are key to conservation of biological diversity in the Plan area, especially given the impacts of increasing periods of drought and effects of climate change. In addition, the completed map is necessary in order to address changes in vegetation makeup due to increased fire frequency and extent throughout the mapping area.