CalWeedMapper is a New Website
for Mapping Invasive Plant Spread
calweedmapper.calflora.org
CalWeedMapper is a new website for mapping invasive plant spread and planning regional management strategies (calweedmapper.calflora.org). Users generate a report for their region that
synthesizes information into three types of strategic opportunities:
surveillance, eradication and containment. Land managers can use these reports
to prioritize their invasive plant management, to coordinate at the landscape
level (county or larger) and to justify funding requests. For some species,
CalWeedMapper also provides maps of suitable range that show where a plant
might be able to grow in the future. The system was developed by the California
Invasive Plant Council (Cal-IPC, www.cal-ipc.org) and is designed to stay
current by allowing users to edit data.
The Calweedmapper website displays data on all 200 invasive
plant species from Cal-IPC’s statewide Inventory. These data combine two sources: interviews
with invasive plant experts and occurrence information from Calflora and the
Consortia of California Herbaria (CCH). The maps show abundance, spread and
management status for each species, displayed by USGS quadrangle.
Users can generate reports in pdf format based on a selected
region or species. The Regional Management Opportunity Report provides a
summary table of information for all plants that present opportunities for
management in the selected region. The Regional Species Report provides a map
that illustrates the plant’s spatial distribution in the region. These reports
are designed to help land managers prioritize and fund their work. Cal-IPC is
working with several regions to develop strategic management plans using the
information from CalWeedMapper. Contact them at mapping@cal-ipc.org for more information.
This dynamic tool allows users to comment on and update
abundance, spread and management information.
Also, any new occurrence data submitted to either Calflora or CCH will
update the data in CalWeedMapper. As a
result, the maps will show current information.
To show where a given plant is most likely to spread,
CalWeedMapper also displays suitable range based on climate. Computer models
were used to generate suitable range for some plant species based on where they
currently grow. The maps show the areas that contain suitable range based on
climate conditions in 2010 and 2050. These maps can help land managers with
climate adaptation planning and preparing for the movement of new invasive
plants into their region.
The California Invasive Plant Council is an equal-opportunity
provider. American Recovery and Reinvestment Act funding provided by the USDA
Forest Service, State and Private Forestry Program through the California
Department of Food & Agriculture. Additional funding from the USDA Forest
Service Special Technology Development Program, National Fish and Wildlife
Foundation, Resources Legacy Fund, and Richard and Rhoda Goldman Fund.