About E-Flora BC

BIOGEOGRAPHY OF BRITISH COLUMBIA

Common dandelion (Taraxacum officinale), photo by Diane Williamson

The links presented below lead to a series of papers, research projects and other information relevent to the biogeography of BC. This includes animated mapping of climate change, plant fidelity to BEC zones, and ecosystem classification.

20TH Century Climate Change in British Columbia by Sierra Curtis-McLane

Abstract

Temperature and precipitation regimes can be looked at as an array of climate variables that impact the survival and distribution of floral and faunal species.  In British Columbia, average temperatures increased by 0.6°C on the coast, 1.1°C in the southern interior and 1.7°C in the northern part of the province during the 20th century; however, these trends have not been uniform.  Ecologists need to know the spatial and temporal signatures of climate variables over the course of the century in order to seek past, and predict future, ecosystem responses to climate.  The purpose of this project is to track the changes of three biologically relevant climate variables over the last hundred years by depicting them in a series of BC map coverages.  Animation of the maps allows the viewer to quickly interpret huge quantities of information regarding how the climate variables (mean annual temperature, number of frost-free days and summer heat:moisture index) have fluctuated during the 20th century.

High Elevation Ecosystem Classification in British Columbia by Scott T. Black

Abstract

I evaluated the utility of landscape variables as predictors of elevations associated with the forest-alpine ecotone in the southeast corner of British Columbia. Multiple regression showed that average summer temperature, latitude / longitude and snow depth, all factored by aspect, were related to the elevation of woodland and parkland ecosystems. While these variables correlated with elevation (p=,0.05), the correlations were stronger on north and southwest aspects. This may have important implications for interpretation of high elevation ecosystem mappingin BC.

Purple Loosestrife in the Township of Langley by Madelaine Weiss and Kimberly Hancock

Abstract

Our project focuses on establishing where purple loosestrife has been found in the Township of Langley, and projecting where it could potentially spread.  The Township of Langley is home to many ecosystems that are vulnerable to this species, particularly wetland habitats, and we wished to determine which of these areas are going to be most vulnerable to purple loosestrife invasion in the next two to five years. Using data on current locations of purple loosestrife in the Township of Langley, a model was created to 'weight' various aspects relating to the likelihood of purple loosestrife spread to predict the spread of these purple loosestrife populations in the following one, two, and five years.  A proximity analysis was performed to determine which high-value ecological areas in the township, including wetlands and parks, were most at risk from purple loosestrife invasion; from this a management plan was proposed to minimize the risk to these areas.

GIS Analysis of British Columbia Plant Collections by Ashley Horne and Janneke Lade

Abstract

This project examines the spatial correlation of plant collections in British Columbia through the use of Geographic Information Systems (GIS).  The aim was to establish whether plant species fidelity could be compared with biogeoclimatic zones,  and to determine the relationship of plants collections with the proximity of major roads.  A layout was produced which demonstrates the fidelity trends of the two most dominant species in the data set.  Plant collections that were found within a 12 km distance on either side of major roads were analyzed, and a second layout was produced to display these results.  Species diversity across all biogeoclimatic zones was also examined. Only two species were found to have fidelity to BEC zones, based on analyses of UBC collections. Additionally 41% of commonly collected plant species are collected near roads, and a disproportionate number of collections occurred below latitude 50 degrees. Recommendations for further studies have been addressed in this project, and a discussion of data quality is also included.