New York Natural Heritage Program: Classification of Natural Areas Conservancy’s Ecological Assessment Plots
By Gregory J. Edinger, Timothy G. Howard, Matthew D. Schlesinger
By Gregory J. Edinger, Timothy G. Howard, Matthew D. Schlesinger
The New York Natural Heritage Program (NYNHP), with the support of NAC, initiated a study to classify 1,183 vegetation plots sampled in 2013 and 2014 as part of the NAC’s citywide assessment of natural area parkland in New York City. The project produced a digital collection of the plots used for this classification effort, in database format, annotated with the vegetation. USNVC assigned and created a list and described each vegetation association documented to be in natural areas based on the plot data, developed a dichotomous field key to the vegetation, describing the process used to assess, analyze, and categorize each plot. These forest and wetland plot data are a tremendous resource for strategic planning and management of New York City’s natural resources. Having them classified to a consistent, robust, internationally recognized vegetation classification system greatly increases their utility.
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This report summarizes the main threats to one type of urban natural area–forests–and the strategies cities use to minimize or negate these threats. Overall, this report shows that cities use various tactics such as ordinances, zoning, land acquisitions, and federal protections to preserve natural areas. The most successful approaches feature o...
During summer 2022, the Natural Areas Conservancy partnered with 12 cities from the Forests in Cities network to conduct a study focused on quantifying differences in air and surface temperature between types of urban greenspace, with a focus on urban natural areas. As a result of this study, we found that urban natural areas are the coolest class ...