The Arizona Game and Fish Department (AGFD) recognizes the need for a strong data foundation to inform science-based decisions for fisheries management at a watershed level. In preparation for a shift towards comprehensive watershed-scale planning, AGFD is developing a fisheries data management system with an initial focus on compiling and formatting several hundred thousand fish survey and stocking records. Fish data will be integrated within a Geographic Information System (GIS) by georeferencing observations to an existing national spatial framework (National Hydrography Dataset), which will allow for broader transferability to watersheds shared with neighboring states, creating a seamless layer not limited by state boundaries. Addressing the management and conservation challenges for native fishes will require the ability to data mine the extensive existing information on distribution and abundance of species available from aquatic survey programs. Results from such syntheses can be used to assess the current conservation status of native fishes, quantify the extent of species invasions, and establish baseline distributions with which to evaluate the effects of climate change and other forms of environmental degradation.
In addition to the ongoing effort and need identified above to synthesize and refine fisheries data and models at the watershed scale, the AGFD has also created landscape-scale species distribution models for 35 fish species as outlined in our Species of Greatest Conservation Need list of our State Wildlife Action Plan. The resultant models, including other taxa that were modeled, served to fulfill Element 1 of our State Wildlife Grant, which sought to identify information on the distribution and abundance of species of wildlife, including low and declining populations as the State fish and wildlife agency deems appropriate, that are indicative of the diversity and health of the States Wildlife (Arizona Game and Fish Department, 2012). Arizonas landscape-scale species distribution models are also being used in other projects, most notably the Western Governors Association (WGA), Critical Habitat Assessment Tool (CHAT).
The goal of this work is to produce a defensible data set and decision tool for the conservation of fish and other aquatic and riparian species in Arizona. The information collected as part of the scope of this proposal will set the foundation on which managers can assess the impacts of water use, biological invasions, and climate change on biological resources in Arizona.
FY2012The Arizona Game and Fish Department (AGFD) recognizes the need for a strong data foundation to inform science-based decisions for fisheries management at a watershed level. In preparation for a shift towards comprehensive watershed-scale planning, AGFD is developing a fisheries data management system with an initial focus on compiling and formatting several hundred thousand fish survey and stocking records. Fish data will be integrated within a Geographic Information System (GIS) by georeferencing observations to an existing national spatial framework (National Hydrography Dataset), which will allow for broader transferability to watersheds shared with neighboring states, creating a seamless layer not limited by state boundaries. Addressing the management and conservation challenges for native fishes will require the ability to data mine the extensive existing information on distribution and abundance of species available from aquatic survey programs. Results from such syntheses can be used to assess the current conservation status of native fishes, quantify the extent of species invasions, and establish baseline distributions with which to evaluate the effects of climate change and other forms of environmental degradation.
In addition to the ongoing effort and need identified above to synthesize and refine fisheries data and models at the watershed scale, the AGFD has also created landscape-sca
