Terrestrial Species List - ACE [ds2700]

Terrestrial Species List, Areas of Conservation Emphasis (ACE), version 3.0.

The Terrestrial Species List map layer is symbolized on the ecoregional biodiversity rank of each hexagon. Ecoregional biodiversity ranks can also be found, along with other metrics for each hexagon, in the Terrestrial Biodiversity Summary layer. The Terrestrial Biodiversity Summary is a compilation of the best available information on terrestrial species biodiversity in California, including amphibians, birds, mammals, plants, and reptiles, for the California Department of Fish and Wildlifes (CDFW) Areas of Conservation Emphasis Project (ACAE). It is one component, together with Aquatic Biodiversity, of overall species biodiversity in California. The Terrestrial Biodiversity Summary combines the three measures of biodiversity developed for ACE into a single metric: 1) terrestrial native species richness, which represents overall native diversity of all species in the state, both common and rare; 2) terrestrial rare species richness, which represents diversity of rare species; and, 3) terrestrial irreplaceability, which is a weighted measure of endemism. The data can be used to view landscape patterns of species diversity across the state and within each ecoregion.

While the Terrestrial Species List map layer visually represents the relative biodiversity levels of each hexagon in relation to other hexagons within an ecoregion (as does the Terrestrial Biodiversity Summary layer), the principal value of the Terrestrial Species List is the extensive tabular species information. A user may click on any hexagon to view a complete set of records of each species modeled or observed there. Additional fields provide information as to whether the species is rare, endemic, climate vulnerable, a Species of Greatest Conservation Need (SGCN), or considered a game species (see field metadata for further information).