Putting Climate Adaptation on the Map: Developing Spatial Management Strategies for Whitebark Pine in the Greater...

Area of Science:

• Ecology
• Conservation Biology
• Climate Change Adaptation

Background:

• Natural resource managers require effective climate adaptation strategies.
• Existing frameworks often lack spatial guidance for management actions.
• Whitebark pine (Pinus albicaulis) faces climate-mediated threats in the Greater Yellowstone Ecosystem.

Purpose of the Study:

• To develop and apply a spatial approach for allocating climate adaptation actions.
• To compare management action placement under current versus climate-informed strategies for whitebark pine.
• To identify areas for prioritized management and experimental testing.

Main Methods:

• Developed a spatial allocation method for climate adaptation actions.
• Applied the method to whitebark pine in the Greater Yellowstone Ecosystem.
• Compared spatial prioritization between current management and climate-informed strategies, excluding policy/access constraints for the latter.

Main Results:

• The spatial distribution of management actions differed significantly between strategies.
• Climate-informed management prioritized 33-60% more wilderness area for actions.
• 1-8% of the GYE represented agreement between strategies, indicating high-priority areas for successful long-term action.

Conclusions:

• Spatial climate adaptation planning is crucial for effective natural resource management.
• Climate-informed strategies highlight the need to consider future conditions in action placement.
• The developed method is broadly applicable to other species vulnerable to climate change.