introduction - Pennsylvania Natural Heritage Program

Conservation Planning Application: Theinformation on forest block ecologicalcharacteristics listed in the table can beapplied to a variety of different purposes.They can be used to compare the relativeecological significance of areas for forestconservation planning. The wetland andforest metrics may be relevant to speciesfocusedplans or studies, and the stream andwetland metrics can help inform planningefforts for water quality and aquatic habitatconservation.Landscape Conservation Areas (LCAs)Ecological Significance: LCAs aredesignated around landscape features thatfunction as a linking element within anaggregation of BDAs, and around largeblocks of contiguous forest. Large areas ofcontiguous forest have unique and importantecological value because they are capable ofsupporting species that require interior forestconditions and have large territory sizes, andhave the potential to support a forestecosystem with long-term viability.Conservation Planning Application: Theselarge regions in relatively natural conditioncan be viewed as regional assets; theyimprove quality of life by providing alandscape imbued with a sense of beautyand wilderness, they provide a sustainableeconomic base, and their high ecologicalintegrity offers unique capacity to supportbiodiversity and human health. Planningand stewardship efforts can preserve thesefunctions of the landscape by limiting theoverall amount of land converted to otheruses, and by considering the large-scalepattern of the landscape while endeavoringto minimize fragmentation of natural cover.These goals can be facilitated by limitingnew infrastructure development, includingroads and sewer lines, within LCAs, and byutilizing existing cleared areas for newprojects.Important Bird AreasEcological Significance: IBAs aredesignated by the PA Audubon Society tohighlight those portions of the landscapeespecially important in supporting birddiversity.Conservation Planning Application:Planning for these areas should considerhow best to maintain their value as birdhabitat. The value of large-scale IBAs arisesfrom the interior forest habitat containedwithin them, and thus the recommendationsfor LCA stewardship to minimize forestfragmentation are applicable. Smaller-scaleIBAs are typically based around naturalcommunities that have particular habitatvalue, and thus a high degree of protectionshould be accorded to the sites.MethodsPresently, thirty-eight County Inventories havebeen completed throughout Pennsylvania. TheClearfield County Natural Heritage Inventoryfollowed the same methodologies as previousinventories, which proceeded in the followingstages:• site selection• ground survey• data analysisSite SelectionA review of the Pennsylvania Natural DiversityInventory (PNDI) database (see Appendix II)determined where sites for special concernspecies and important natural communities wereknown to exist in Clearfield County.Knowledgeable individuals were consultedconcerning the occurrence of rare plants andunique natural communities in the county.Geological maps, USGS topographical maps,National Wetlands Inventory maps, USDA soilsurveys, recent aerial photos, and publishedmaterials were also used to identify areas ofpotential ecological significance (Reschke1990). Once preliminary site selection wascompleted, reconnaissance flights over chosenareas of the county were conducted. Wetlandswere of primary interest during fly-overs inClearfield County.vii