Look for complete geospatial metadata in this layer's associated xml document available from the download link

* Metric Name: Aquatic Species Richness *  

* Tier: 1  

* Data Vintage: 02/2018  

* Unit Of Measure: Counts attributed to each cell based on the associated hexagon  

* Represent element and pillar: Yes  

* Type and distribution of data: Right-skewed distribution representing counts. Raw data values range from 0 to 94 species.  

* Translation: Where is aquatic species richness highest?  

* Translation method and outcome: Raw data values translated to range from +1 to -1 representing more favorable to less favorable conditions, respectively. **** The proposition of more favorable is based on the objective of higher aquatic species richness (positive linear slope). More favorable (translated to +1) and less favorable (translated to -1) vary based on climate regions (Table 7). Alternative approaches could be to establish meaningful subregions within the Southern California to constrain the context for interpreting potential species richness for any given site.

Figure 189. Histogram and scoring criterion of current condition for aquatic
species richness across the Southern California

Figure 190. Histogram of translated current condition for aquatic species
richness across the Southern California

Figure 191. Maps displaying raw metric and translated metric of current
condition for aquatic species richness across Southern California

  

* Metric Definition and Relevance: Aquatic native species richness is a measure of species biodiversity, and is one measurement used to describe the distribution of overall species biodiversity in California for the California Department of Fish and Wildlife (CDFW) Areas of Conservation Emphasis Project (ACE). Native species richness represents a count of the total number of native aquatic species potentially present in each 2.5 sq mile hexagon (systematic grid of hexagons established for the State of California by the Natural Resources Agency) based on species range and distribution information. The data can be used to view patterns of species diversity, and to identify areas of highest native aquatic species richness across the state. The species counts consist of four taxonomic groups – fish, aquatic invertebrates, aquatic amphibians, and aquatic reptiles.  

* Credits: Aquatic Native Species Richness Summary, Areas of Conservation Emphasis (ACE), version 3.0, California Department of Fish and Wildlife (CDFW); ACE data base