Connectivity strategy mapping in California

Protecting or restoring habitat connectivity in landscapes undergoing
rapid environmental change requires multiple conservation and restoration
strategies. These strategies have different risk profiles, costs, and
require various types of technical expertise to conduct. This diversity in
landscape context and strategic approach requires more nuance and
flexibility than traditional connectivity conservation plans have
supported. We present a novel, spatially-explicit framework for developing
connectivity conservation priorities and strategies based on Omniscape, an
adaptation of Circuitscape, a common tool for mapping habitat
connectivity. Using California (USA) as a case study, we mapped structural
connectivity and developed a classification of connectivity conservation
and restoration categories across the gradient of land use intensities, as
well as by land ownership. The most constrained areas with highly
concentrated flow (movement potential) make up 3% of the state and occur
primarily on private lands. Conversely, intact areas with diffuse flow
that indicate multiple connectivity options cover 55% of the state,
including the majority of the desert and mountain ecoregions. This
“strategy mapping” approach can be used to identify priority areas for
conservation investment and suites of potential implementation mechanisms
and partners, which in turn may improve the efficiency and effectiveness
of connectivity conservation in this era of global change.