PARENT SESSION
Poster Session #8: Conservation Planning and Monitoring.
Monday, August 5. Presentation from 5:00 PM to 6:30 PM. Exhibit Hall B & C, TCC

Using ecological land units in a biodiversity gap analysis for conservation planning in a southwestern Ohio watershed.

Zimmerman, Christopher^*,1, Runkle, James¹, ¹ Wright State University, Dayton, Ohio

ABSTRACT- Gap analysis is a method to identify insufficiency in biodiversity protection. It requires comprehensive knowledge of current vegetation conditions in an ecological framework to identify and prioritize conservation targets. Using Geographic Information Systems (GIS) our study determined the representation of ecological land units (ELUs) both within and external to the current reserve network in the Lower Twin Creek Watershed (LTCW) to make conservation planning recommendations to the local park district. ELUs are based on relatively stable associations of soils, physiography, and potential natural vegetation. In heavily deforested landscapes, such as the LTCW in southwestern Ohio, ELUs provide a model of an intact functioning landscape from which to conduct a biodiversity gap analysis. ELUs were identified using multivariate and cluster analyses on forest canopy trees species and seven physiographic and edaphic factors (derived from digital elevation models and a soil series map). We sampled 267 plots throughout the watershed. A cluster analysis of the five most significant factors (landform, drainage, hillshade, slope shape, and percent slope) influencing vegetation distribution resulted in twelve discrete ELUs. They included uplands dominated by Fagus grandifolia - Acer saccharum, dry slopes dominated by Quercus spp. - Carya ovata, mesic slopes dominated by Liriodendron tulipifera - Fagus grandifolia, and wet floodplains dominated by Platanus occidentalis - Populus deltoides. An ELU map was constructed using ArcView GIS Spatial Analyst with the five environmental factors identified in the multivariate analysis. To determine ELU representation within the current reserve network the ELU map was overlaid with a current vegetation cover map and the current nature reserve boundaries. Identifying the distribution of forest ecosystems in a planning landscape and determining their representation within the reserve network is a first step in conservation planning to protect biodiversity.

KEY WORDS: Biodiversity Gap Analysis , Ecological Land Unit , Ohio, Forest