Range Expansion Map

The Problem

Species around the world are spreading into new locations as a warming climate transforms previously distinct bioregions. Natively ropical animals find homes in cities in temperate regions, and previously temperate weeds are spreading into the poles. Predicting--and preventing--the future spread of invasive plants, animals, and pathogens requires an understanding of numerous environmental and biological factors, as well as detailed, up-to-date ranges of the species concerned. We depend on citizen science and digital apps to report and verify large numbers of sightings, but existing tools have limited data-visualization capacity, and thus limited useful applications. To understand the changing range of a species, we need to represent sightings in space as well as time, and combine them with data on potential causes of range change.

Our Proposal

An application that enables clear and complex analysis through the following features: * Combining invasive species data from multiple sources * Clearly displaying the expansion of ranges over time through an interactive map. * Including other relevant data including climate and land-use patterns. In tandem, we lay the foundations for clear and intuitive analysis and encourage greater invasive species literacy in the public. Following the agile process, new data sources and capabilities will be explored according to what proves useful to users.

We Assume that...

Predicting future spread of invasive species is a significant obstacle to management. An appropriately large amounts of sightings data exists for many important invasive species.

Constraints to Overcome

The simplest and most significant constraint is a small feature of map design. No similar existing software contains a way to filter sightings by time. By addressing this issue, we create the first tool that provides a visualization of species ranges as dynamic.

Current Work

Finish aggregating data sources Perform user interviews Finish designing and building app Deployment

Current Needs

We need to begin a dialogue about use cases for this tool with potential users. In particular, expertise in biogeography and invasive species management would be very helpful.