Optimal Conservation Prioritization for Waterfowl and Other Birds in Eastern Canada

An optimized geospatial prioritization scheme for the Eastern Habitat Joint Venture identifies regions of primary importance for coverage of 22 focal bird species across eastern Canada.

• Why it matters: Regional conservation planning needs decision tools that can maximize species coverage when habitat restoration resources are limited over large areas.
• What they did: The team used linear programming with an adaptable variable-target approach applied to species abundance data products to maximize population coverage under different budget or coverage goals.
• The result: Base outputs highlight high-value areas for priority waterfowl and non-waterfowl species and can be subdivided by jurisdiction, land ownership, or protected status, supporting scalable planning.

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