Designing Sustainable Landscapes: Potential dominant life form settings variable

Potential dominant life form is one of several ecological settings variables that collectively characterize the biophysical setting of each 30 m cell at a given point in time (McGarigal et al 2017). Potential dominant life form (unvegetated, herbaceous, shrubland, woodland, forest) represents the structure of vegetative community at a site and is used, for example, to distinguish early successional forest from permanent grassland or shrubland. Potential dominant life form is assigned by landcover class, derived from expert opinion. This settings variable is dynamic, changing with urban growth.