Expert Vetted Distribution Models and Biodiversity Hotspot Maps of Terrestrial and Freshwater Taxa of Conservation Concern in Northern Australia

Abstract: This collection is comprised of raster layers of present-day distributions of terrestrial and freshwater taxa that are of conservation concern in Northern Australia. The spatial extent of the region includes the 'North Australian Tropical Savanna' and 'North Eastern Australia Tropical Rainforests' Australian Conservation Management Zones as well as drainage basins intersecting these regions boundaries. Taxon distributions were derived either from species distribution models (also referred to as 'ecological niche models', 'habitat suitability models', 'habitat models' or 'bioclimatic envelope models' created with the program Maxent or from buffered occurrence records cut to suitable areas (for data deficient taxa) and were vetted by experts and modified accordingly. The additional biodiversity hotspot maps (i.e. areas with relatively high concentrations of taxa of conservation concern) included in this collection show the number of taxa within each relevant taxonomic, functional or threatened species status group (e.g. all endangered species or all vulnerable species) present across the study region. The collection also includes a supplementary spreadsheet ('NESP vetting and taxa Information') with further information on each taxon, such as relevant ecological traits, conservation listings and model details (e.g. thresholds used for Maxent raw outputs, model quality as assessed by experts, AUC/ model  fit statistics, cautionary notes on any remaining issues or uncertainties). The collection was created to inform conservation decision-making in Northern Australia and was funded by the Australian Government’s National Environmental Science Program (NESP) as part of the Northern Australia Environmental Resources Hub.

 

    Data Record Details
    Data record related to this publication Expert Vetted Distribution Models and Biodiversity Hotspot Maps of Terrestrial and Freshwater Taxa of Conservation Concern in Northern Australia
    Data Publication title Expert Vetted Distribution Models and Biodiversity Hotspot Maps of Terrestrial and Freshwater Taxa of Conservation Concern in Northern Australia
  • Description

    Abstract: This collection is comprised of raster layers of present-day distributions of terrestrial and freshwater taxa that are of conservation concern in Northern Australia. The spatial extent of the region includes the 'North Australian Tropical Savanna' and 'North Eastern Australia Tropical Rainforests' Australian Conservation Management Zones as well as drainage basins intersecting these regions boundaries. Taxon distributions were derived either from species distribution models (also referred to as 'ecological niche models', 'habitat suitability models', 'habitat models' or 'bioclimatic envelope models' created with the program Maxent or from buffered occurrence records cut to suitable areas (for data deficient taxa) and were vetted by experts and modified accordingly. The additional biodiversity hotspot maps (i.e. areas with relatively high concentrations of taxa of conservation concern) included in this collection show the number of taxa within each relevant taxonomic, functional or threatened species status group (e.g. all endangered species or all vulnerable species) present across the study region. The collection also includes a supplementary spreadsheet ('NESP vetting and taxa Information') with further information on each taxon, such as relevant ecological traits, conservation listings and model details (e.g. thresholds used for Maxent raw outputs, model quality as assessed by experts, AUC/ model  fit statistics, cautionary notes on any remaining issues or uncertainties). The collection was created to inform conservation decision-making in Northern Australia and was funded by the Australian Government’s National Environmental Science Program (NESP) as part of the Northern Australia Environmental Resources Hub.

     

  • Other Descriptors
    • Descriptor

      The full description includes abstract, purpose and a very detailed lineage statement (2956 words) and is attached as a supporting document in PDF format.

    • Descriptor type Note
  • Data type dataset
  • Keywords
    • distribution models
    • threatened species
    • conservation
    • tropical biodiversity
    • northern Australia
  • Funding source
  • Research grant(s)/Scheme name(s)
    • 23006 - (James Cook University Research Activities) Prioritising threatened species and threatening processes across northern Australia
  • Research themes
    Tropical Ecosystems, Conservation and Climate Change
    FoR Codes (*)
    SEO Codes
    Specify spatial or temporal setting of the data
    Temporal (time) coverage
  • Start Date
  • End Date
  • Time Period Project time period 2017-2019; distribution currency 2018
    Spatial (location) coverage
  • Locations
    Data Locations

    Type Location Notes
    Physical Location Research Data Services (RDS) allocation at /rdsi/vol08/Q0634 - eResearch Centre, James Cook University, Townsville, Queensland, Australia
    Attachment 2016-03-12-Expert Vetted Distribution Models Description Final.pdf Description including lineage statement (PDF format)
    The Data Manager is: Ian Atkinson
    College or Centre College of Science & Engineering
    Access conditions Conditional: Contact researchdata@jcu.edu.au to request access to this data.
  • Alternative access conditions
  • Data record size
    Select or add a licence for the data
    The data will be licensed under CC BY-SA: Attribution-Share Alike 3.0 AU
  • Other Licence
  • Statement of rights in data Permission required to re-distribute derivative works. Some information in this data is sensitive and should non be re-distributed to the general public. This work is licensed under a Creative Commons – Attribution-ShareAlike 3.0 Australia. Attribution requires that the TDH data record is cited
  • Data owners
      James Cook University
    Citation Pintor, Anna; Graham, Erin (2018): Expert Vetted Distribution Models and Biodiversity Hotspot Maps of Terrestrial and Freshwater Taxa of Conservation Concern in Northern Australia. James Cook University, Griffith University, and Australian Government National Environmental Science Program (NESP), Northern Australia Environmental Resources Hub. https://doi.org/10.4225/28/5a9f31e23e80b