Greater sage-grouse network-prioritized functional connectivity cumulative current map (raster)

Conserving genetic connectivity is fundamental to species persistence, yet rarely is made actionable into spatial planning for imperiled species. Climate change and habitat degradation have added urgency to embrace connectivity into networks of protected areas. Our two-step process integrates a network model with a functional connectivity model, to identify population centers important to maintaining genetic connectivity then to delineate those pathways most likely to facilitate connectivity thereamong for the greater sage-grouse (Centrocercus urophasianus); a species of conservation concern ranging across eleven western U.S. states and into two Canadian provinces. This replicable process yielded spatial action maps, able to be prioritized by importance to maintaining range-wide genetic connectivity. We used these maps to investigate the efficacy of 3.2 million-ha designated as Priority Areas for Conservation (PACs) to encompass functional connectivity. We discovered that PACs encompassed 41.1% of cumulative functional connectivity-twice the amount of connectivity as random-and disproportionately encompassed the highest-connectivity landscapes. Comparing spatial action maps to impedances to connectivity such as cultivation and woodland expansion allows both planning for future management and tracking outcomes from past efforts. Included here is a raster map of greater sage-grouse network prioritized functional connectivity cumulative current.