Southeast CASC Science Seminar – Climate Support for Species Status Assessments

Climate Support for Species Status Assessments
Dr. Catherine (Kasia) Nikiel (ORISE/SE CASC)
March 16, 2023 | 11AM ET
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Overview:

In order to inform decisions under the Endangered Species Act (ESA), the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service has been generating Species Status Assessments (SSA) since 2016. These reports guide initial listing decisions as well as ongoing management of threatened and endangered species. SSAs are intended to capture all biological information required for listing and management decisions: one important component of risk is the impact of climate change. Through partnership between physical scientists and ecologists, a robust assessment of the best available climate information paired with the most recent understanding of species ecology is key to defining the range of future risk for a given species.

This seminar will describe the types of reports that are being developed and how they address gaps and uncertainties relating climate change and species ecology. Several case studies of past assessments will highlight benefits and challenges of different analysis approaches.