As we prepare for the new year ahead, NatureServe is taking a moment to celebrate victories for biodiversity.
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A Year in Review

2021 brought us challenges, but also hope for the future. As we prepare for the new year ahead, NatureServe is taking a moment to celebrate victories for biodiversity. Read on to learn more about NatureServe's major accomplishments and scientific advancements from the past year.

Major Victories
 
Launching the NatureServe Network Van Tour
 

This past spring, we kicked off the NatureServe Network Van Tour, an expedition highlighting how we sustain biodiversity through technology, collaborative science, and local expertise. NatureServe CEO and President Sean O’Brien has been visiting Natural Heritage Program scientists who work to protect rare and threatened species throughout the U.S. and Canada. So far, Sean has visited 19 Natural Heritage Programs and Conservation Data Centres across 16 U.S. states and 2 Canadian provinces!

 
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Photo by Matt Welch, Just Go Photography.
 
NatureServe Branding Gets a Refresh
 

In April, NatureServe revealed our much-anticipated new logo! The blue hexagon represents the spatial nature of our data. The green leaf and the salamander represent the plants, animals, and ecosystems that we and our Network programs work to understand and conserve. In addition to the new logo, NatureServe launched a new website this year! The new site still lives at www.natureserve.org, but we have greatly improved the design and enhanced the user experience. Learn more about who we are and our impact, or dig deeper into our work and our products.
 
GO TO SITE
 
Biodiversity Without Boundaries

This past May, we wrapped up the 2021 Biodiversity Without Boundaries conference. The virtual conference had over 400 registered attendees—a new record! Registration is open for the Biodiversity Without Boundaries 2022 Conference “Coming Together for Conservation,” March 22nd-24th in Pittsburgh, PA.
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NatureServe Releases Strategic Plan for 2022-2026

In our 2022-2026 Strategic Plan, NatureServe commits to playing an even greater role in protecting biodiversity by providing the best available science, data, and technology to support biodiversity conservation. Learn more about the values that are core to NatureServe and how we are investing in our future! 
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Working Together to Save Plants

This spring, we announced a new partnership between the United States Botanic Garden (USBG) and NatureServe that unites experts in plant conservation and education to tackle two critical areas of plant conservation while also educating the public about the growing risk of plant extinction.
READ THE STORY

Pennsylvania Natural Heritage Program botanist Steve Grund and ecologist Christopher Tracey document an occurrence of rock grape (Vitis rupestris) along the Youghiogheny River in Fayette County, Pennsylvania. Photo by Sarah Pears.
 
NatureServe's Growing Biodiversity Indicators Program

NatureServe’s Biodiversity Indicators Program continues to expand its reach with a growing number of national and regional partnerships to develop biodiversity observation and information systems. In addition to the completion of a Biodiversity Dashboard for the Association of Southeast Asian Nations, we made progress on projects including:

  • Biodiversity Dashboards for the Tropical Andes and Arctic Council.
  • National biodiversity indicators for Ghana and Uganda.
  • A Spatial Biodiversity Information System for Marine Protected Areas in the Bahamas.
  • A global target tracker (in partnership with UN Environment-World Conservation Monitoring Centre) for the soon to be adopted post-2020 Global Biodiversity Framework.

2022 promises to be a busy year as we work on ongoing and new projects.
 
500+ Ranks Updated for Plants

This fall, NatureServe completed a five-year master agreement with the U.S. Forest Service that resulted in over 500 updated global ranks. In the final year (2021) NatureServe Botany reviewed the global ranks of 110 plant species, and Utah Natural Heritage Program botanists reviewed 15 Utah endemics. Nearly half of the species assessed in 2021 had a change in global rank. These ranking updates provide the rigorous scientific foundation that is crucial for prioritizing and guiding conservation policy and on-the-ground management direction and decision-making.

Gentry's indigobush (Dalea tentaculoides) was rediscovered in 2019 in the United States after 20 years of being considered historical. NatureServe Global Status: Critically Imperiled (G1). Photo by Alan Cressler.
 
NatureServe in the News
 

NatureServe gained national recognition for our work in biodiversity conservation. Check out a few of our top stories below:

See the full list on our website by clicking the button below.
 
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Conservation Conversations with Sean O'Brien

This summer, NatureServe launched Season 2 of our Conservation Conversations with Sean O’Brien podcast series. We’ve had the pleasure of chatting with renowned authors, professors, global decision-makers, and leaders in the conservation industry. Listen to our latest episode here, and stay tuned for our new episode at the end of the month!
LISTEN NOW
Key Talks
 

At NatureServe, our staff are thought leaders in important discussions around science, technology, and conservation. This year, NatureServe staff attended the IUCN World Conservation Congress in Marseille, France, participated in a webinar series for the Convention on Biological Diversity, and gave numerous talks at universities and workshops. See a few of the highlights below.
Panel: Sparking Change in the Face of Climate Skepticism

Watermark Changemakers' Conference
WATCH NOW
Keynote Address: 6th Annual Esri Science Symposium

Esri User Conference
WATCH NOW
We Can't Solve the Climate Crisis Without Citizen Scientists

EARTHDAYORG Livestream at COP26
WATCH NOW
Biodiversity and Global Change: The Nature of Conservation

ESF Global Conservation Lectures
WATCH NOW
Network Highlights
 

Our network had so many wonderful accomplishments this year! Below, we provide a short list of conservation success stories. To see more Network highlights, check out past newsletters here.

After NatureServe scientists updated the conservation status to Critically Imperiled (S1) for the rare banded mudbug, the Mississippi Natural Heritage Program agreed to add this species to their tracking list in order to monitor changes in its population size and distribution.

The Nevada Division of Natural Heritage conducted a two-year survey effort in the White Mountains for seven Critically Imperiled (S1) butterflies that hadn’t been surveyed since the 1980s. All seven were located, some for the first time in +30 years!

Left: Banded mudbug (Lacunicambarus freudensteini). NatureServe Global Status: Critically Imperiled (G1). Photo by Guenter Schuster, Eastern Kentucky University. Right: Greenish blue (Plebejus saepiolus albomontanus). Photo by Cynthia Scholl.
 

In 2019 and 2020, South Carolina Heritage Trust Program shorebird biologist Felicia Sanders and a team of researchers confirmed that approximately 20,000 whimbrel were roosting at night on Deveaux Bank Seabird Sanctuary during their spring migration, indicating that this single flock includes nearly 50% of the species' eastern population!

On Earth Day, a prominent conservation philanthropist donated over 7,300 acres of land to Virginia’s Department of Conservation and Recreation (DCR), connecting over 40,000 contiguous acres of permanently conserved lands. The property harbors globally significant natural communities and many rare plant and animal species.

Left: Whimbrel (Numenius phaeopus). NatureServe Global Status: Secure (G5). Photo by Andy Johnson. Right: Virginia Governor Ralph Northam. Photo by Kaicey Baylor, WSET.
 

Colorado Natural Heritage Program (CNHP) has just become the 11th state to launch the NatureServe ERT! It is called Colorado’s Conservation Data Explorer, or CODEX. CODEX brings together, for the first time, data from CNHP, Colorado Parks and Wildlife, and other partners.
START EXPLORING

To date, NatureServe Canada's Ecosystem-Based Automated Range Mapping (EBAR) project has secured data from over 170 sources, engaged 111 expert reviewers, produced 1,350 auto-generated range maps, and published 239 expert-reviewed ranges!
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Publications
 

This year, NatureServe's scientists contributed to several publications. Here are some highlights:

See the full list on our website by clicking the button below.
 
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Welcome to New Staff
 

In 2021, NatureServe was fortunate enough to welcome a number of new faces to join our passionate and talented staff. Meet our new staff below, and view a full list of our staff on our website.
Thank You for Your Support
 

We must all make a commitment to a world rich in biodiversity—the source of our food, medicines, air, recreation, and well-being. We all belong in this movement because we all have something at stake, and something to give. Please give what you can to support NatureServe as we work to take ambitious steps forward. Together, we can solve our greatest environmental challenge: the unprecedented loss of species from our planet.

DONATE NOW

Black-capped chickadee (Poecile atricapillus). NatureServe Global Status: Secure (G5). Photo by the Chesapeake Bay Program.
 
Here's to Another Great Year in 2022!

 

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