Skip to main content
U.S. flag

An official website of the United States government

Topographic controls on the regional-scale biodiversity of the south-western USA

Informally Refereed

Abstract

Aim Topography is a fundamental geophysical observable that contains valuable information about the geodynamic, tectonic and climatic history of a region. Here, we extend the traditional uses of topographic analysis to evaluate the role played by topography in the distribution of regional-scale biodiversity in the south-western USA. An important aspect of our study is its ability to provide a way to quantify characteristics of the topographic fabric and to construct predictive models that can be used to test hypotheses that relate topography and biodiversity.

Keywords

Geoecology, landscape ecology, topograpchic analysis, land-cover diversity, biodiversity, spatial patterns, tectonics

Citation

Coblentz, David D.; Riitters, Kurt H. 2004. Topographic controls on the regional-scale biodiversity of the south-western USA. Journal of Biogeography 31: 1125-1138
https://www.fs.usda.gov/research/treesearch/20364