Species diversity and risk levels
rankings for the states.
|
1 California 6,717 2 Texas 6,273 3 Arizona 4,759 4 New Mexico 4,583 5 Alabama 4,533 6 Georgia 4,436 7 Florida 4,368 8 Oregon 4,136 9 North Carolina 4,131 10 Utah 3,892 |
11 Nevada 3,872 12 Virginia 3,803 13 Tennessee 3,772 14 South Carolina 3,701 15 Oklahoma 3,616 16 Colorado 3,597 17 Mississippi 3,580 18 Louisiana 3,495 19 Arkansas 3,415 20 Washington 3,375 |
21 Missouri 3,340 22 New York 3,333 23 Kentucky 3,258 23 Illinois 3,258 25 Idaho 3,205 26 Wyoming 3,184 27 Ohio 3,152 28 Maryland 3,148 29 Michigan 3,135 29 Pennsylvania 3,135 |
31 Indiana 3,098 32 New Jersey 3,022 33 Montana 2,921 34 West Virginia 2,873 35 Wisconsin 2,869 36 Minnesota 2,817 37 Kansas 2,778 38 Massachusetts 2,765 39 Nebraska 2,587 40 Iowa 2,533 |
41 Connecticut 2,497 42 South Dakota 2,406 43 Maine 2,352 44 New Hampshire 2,327 45 Vermont 2,274 46 Delaware 2,244 47 Rhode Island 2,078 48 District of Columbia 1,909 49 North Dakota 1,889 50 Alaska 1,835 51 Hawaii 1,418 |
Table B. Risk Levels by State Table B. Risk Levels by State Table B. Risk
Levels by State Table B. Risk Levels by State
RANK STATE %AT RISK
1 Hawaii 62.7% 2 California 28.5% 3 Nevada 15.8% 4 Alabama 14.8% 5 Utah 14.7% 6 Florida 14.3% 7 Arizona 13.6% 8 Georgia 12.9% 9 Oregon 10.9% 10 Tennessee 10.3% |
11 New Mexico 10.1% 11 Texas 10.1% 13 North Carolina 9.9% 14 Colorado 9.1% 15 South Carolina 8.6% 16 Alaska 8.0% 16 Virginia 8.0% 18 Washington 7.3% 19 Kentucky 7.0% 19 Mississippi 7.0% |
21 Wyoming 6.8% 22 Idaho 6.7% 23 Arkansas 6.4% 24 Missouri 5.4% 25 Louisiana 5.2% 26 Montana 5.1% 27 Indiana 4.9% 27 New York 4.9% 27 West Virginia 4.9% 27 Illinois 4.9% |
31 Oklahoma 4.5% 32 Pennsylvania 4.3% 32 Ohio 4.3% 34 Michigan 4.0% 35 Maryland 3.9% 36 Maine 3.8% 37 Massachusetts 3.7% 38 New Jersey 3.6% 39 Iowa 3.3% 40 Wisconsin 3.2% |
41 Vermont 3.0% 42 Connecticut 2.9% 43 New Hampshire 2.8% 43 Rhode Island 2.8% 43 Minnesota 2.8% 43 Delaware 2.8% 47 Kansas 2.7% 48 Nebraska 2.2% 49 District of Columbia 2.0% 51 North Dakota 1.6% 51 South Dakota 1.6% |
Source: NatureServe Central Databases, April 2002
U.S. Biodiversity Countered by Species at Risk
By Cat Lazaroff
ARLINGTON, Virginia, April 23, 2002 (ENS) - Almost one quarter of U.S.
states are facing the possibility of losing at least 10 percent of their
native species, finds a new report from the Nature Conservancy. The report,
released on Earth Day, examines the status of more than 21,000 wild plants
and animals and ranks each state by both its biodiversity, and the risks
to that biological wealth.
The report, "States of the Union: Ranking America's Biodiversity,"
draws on ongoing species inventories conducted by state natural heritage
programs. The data was analyzed for The Nature Conservancy by NatureServe,
a non-profit organization that provides scientific information about rare
and endangered species and threatened ecosystems.
This threatened California gnatcatcher inhabits increasingly rare coastal
scrub lands. California topped the list for species diversity, but also
for species at risk. (Photo courtesy U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service) "This
report holds both hope and peril," said Steve McCormick, president
of The Nature Conservancy. "As an important snapshot of the biological
health of our nation, it shows the extraordinary richness of the flora
and fauna across all 50 states. But it also serves as a stark reminder
that too many of these species are at risk of vanishing forever."
The report ranks all 50 states and the District of Columbia on several
key biological characteristics including diversity of species, distinctiveness
of the animals and plants, levels of rarity and risk, and species already
lost to extinction.
Many of those characteristics are linked. The report finds, for example,
that the state of California ranks in the top five in each category, with
the most diversity and largest number of native species (6,717). However,
California also rates second for its number of rare and at risk species,
and third for the number of species already lost to extinction.
Several states show up in three of the four categories. Hawaii, for example,
ranks second for number of native species, but first for both at risk
species and already extinct species.
Alabama, which came in fifth in species diversity, ranks in the top five
for both at risk species and extinct species. And Texas, which was second
in diversity and third for number of native species (6,273), ranked fourth
for number of extinct species.
"The report highlights the interplay between the nation's natural
history and human history, and provides insights into the scale of the
nation's conservation challenges and opportunities," said Dr. Bruce
Stein, the author of the report and a senior scientist with NatureServe.
Stein notes that most of the areas with the greatest species diversity
are found in the southwest, with its diverse landscapes and climate. This
is due in part, he said, to the enormous size of diversity leaders California
and Texas, their ecological complexity and their location along the country's
southern border.
The `Akiapölä`au, which lives only on the island of Hawaii, is at risk
from ongoing habitat destruction. Hawaii ranked first in number of species
at risk, and number already lost to extinction. (Photo courtesy Earthjustice
Legal Defense Fund) Risk patterns among states - as reflected by the proportion
of a state's species considered imperiled or vulnerable - highlight Hawaii,
where 63 percent of species are at risk, and California, with 29 percent
of species at risk. Other centers of rarity are found in several other
western and southeastern states including Nevada (16 percent), Alabama
(15 percent), Utah (15 percent) and Florida (14 percent). McCormick noted
that 12 states -- or almost a quarter of the country - have more than
10 percent of their species classified as rare or at risk of extinction.
"This demonstrates that we will never be successful at protecting
biodiversity if we concentrate our conservation efforts in small patches
here and there," McCormick said. "We must protect large landscapes
and work collaboratively with a wide array of interests. That means working
with federal, state and local governments as well as private property
owners so that land is managed in a manner that helps, not hurts biodiversity."
Although extinctions have touched every state in the nation, the report
shows that certain regions have
lost disproportionate numbers of species. Stein notes that states with
a large number of extinctions tend to have either high overall species
numbers, an inherently fragile flora and fauna, or intense human alteration
of the landscape.
Hawaii has suffered the gravest losses, with 217 presumed or possibly
extinct species. On the mainland, Alabama tops the list of extinction
prone states with 90 species, many of which existed in freshwater systems.
Many of the state's waterways have been dammed, dredged, or diverted,
leading to the loss of numerous snails, mussels and fishes.
California ranks third in the nation with 53 extinctions. Stein said the
intensive conversion of the state's land and waters for agriculture, urbanization
and other uses has had a severe impact on the many rare and geographically
restricted species that have evolved in this ecologically unique state.
The endangered Alabama beach mouse is one of the many species that pushed
Alabama into the top five for at risk species and extinct species. (Photo
by Nicholas Holler, courtesy U.S. Geological Survey) California, with
1,295 native species that are unique to the state, leads the nation in
this category, according to the report. This is a result of its large
size and the complexity of natural habitats in the state. Stein said Hawaii
also stands out for the distinctiveness of its flora and fauna. Because
of the island chain's extreme isolation, most plants and animals native
to the archipelago are descended from a relatively few colonists.
The report also looked at species diversity broken down by species categories,
which revealed distinctive, and at times strikingly different patterns.
For example, while the large and ecologically varied southwestern states
again lead the nation in plant and mammal diversity, amphibians and freshwater
fishes reach their highest levels of diversity in the southeastern United
States.
With its combination of Appalachian highlands and humid coastal lowlands,
the southeastern region is a global center for freshwater diversity.
Bird and reptile diversity is more geographically mixed, with both eastern
and western states represented in the top tier. Texas, which straddles
both east and west, leads all other states for both groups.
About two thirds of the nation's species are "apparently secure,"
meaning there is no evidence showing them to be at risk. (Photo courtesy
The Nature Conservancy) The study supports the idea that entire ecosystems
need protecting, the Nature Conservancy says. Using data from organizations
like NatureServe, Nature Conservancy scientists undertake a detailed planning
process called ecoregional planning in which they identify threats to
species and determine what conservation activities need to be undertaken
to protect them. The Conservancy then works in partnership with communities,
government, business and property owners to implement conservation strategies
to protect species.
"Ecoregional planning and the protection of whole functional landscapes
provide us with the ability to reduce the number of species at risk,"
McCormick said. "This will not be an easy task, but future generations
will judge us on our ability to succeed."
More information from the report, which updates information in the book
"Precious Heritage: The Status of Biodiversity in the United States,"
published in 2000 by The Nature Conservancy and NatureServe, is available
at: http://nature.org/earthday/files/states_of_the_union_report.pdf
http://www.ens-news.com/ens/apr2002/2002L-04-23-06.html
G. Dodd Galbreath
Director of Policy
Department of Environment and Conservation
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401 Church Street, Nashville, TN 37243
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615-532-0736 for urgent calls or Secretary
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