The Biodiversity Atlas Of British Columbia

With sixty descriptive maps and accompanying text, The Biodiversity Atlas of British Columbia provides a broad overview of the province?s range of terrestrial and freshwater biological diversity. Bringing together data from numerous sources summarized in map form, the Atlas provides a window to B.C.?s diverse ecosystems, the species that live in them, and the elements of British Columbia?s biodiversity that make it globally significant. The Atlas also presents a visual perspective of a number of human-induced threats, including climate change, affecting biodiversity in B.C. today. The Atlas is designed to serve as a companion document to Taking Nature?s Pulse: The Status of Biodiversity in British Columbia ? a comprehensive scientific assessment of biodiversity in the province. Both the Atlas and Taking Nature?s Pulse are projects of Biodiversity BC, a partnership of conservation groups and government agencies.

This book consists of a collection of individual papers surveying the existing knowledge of biodiversity in British Columbia. The first section contains papers that consider the importance of an ecosystem-centred approach to the conservation of biodiversity, explain the methods of classifying the status of rare species, and review the role of biosystematics and taxonomy in the study of biodiversity. The second section focuses on the diversity of species in British Columbia, with papers on specific species or groups such as lepidoptera, marine invertebrates, lichens, bryophytes, fish, fungi, mammals, birds, reptiles, and vascular plants. Part three summarises information on the diversity of the province's ecosystems, with papers on such topics as forests, grasslands, marine areas, urban areas, and atmospheric change. The final section discusses ways of protecting biodiversity, concluding with a summary of recommendations for biodiversity conservation.

Provides managers, planners and field staff with a recommended process for meeting biodiversity objectives - both landscape and stand level - as required under the Forest Practices Code.

Descriptions, maps, illustrations and tables of British Columbia's biogeoclimatic zones, as well as an overview of how the biogeoclimatic zone system was developed.