QUICK
REFERENCE
ECOREGIONS 1998 - 1999
Gazetteer: Identification Information
Originator: WWF
Conservation Science Program
Date: 1998 - 1999
Title: Ecoregions
Database
Purpose:
World Wildlife Fund Ecoregions provides a global view of mainly terrestrial ecoregions defined by the World Wildlife Fund Conservation Science Program 1998 - 1999, and can be used for geographic display and analysis at national and world levels
Abstract:
World Wildlife Fund Ecoregions represents
global terrestrial and freshwater ecoregions defined as relatively large areas
of land or water in the world that share a large majority of their species,
dynamics, and environmental conditions. It contains the terrestrial habitats
and some freshwater habitats of the Global 200 ecoregions, a collection of the
Earth's most outstanding and diverse terrestrial, freshwater, and marine
habitats--areas where the Earth's biological wealth is most distinctive and
rich, where its loss will be most severely felt, and where we must fight the
hardest for conservation. The data is from the World Wildlife Fund Conservation
Science Program 1998 - 1999.
Access Constraints: see full metadata link
Use Constraints: End users are
permitted to use these data sets for their own internal use, including
derivative work, but are prohibited from using and redistributing these data
individually or in a derivative work to third parties.
Ordering
Instructions: available online, see
online linkage below
Contact
Person: 202-778-9537
Contact
Organization: WWF Conservation Science Program
Address: 1250
Twenty-Fourth Street, N.W., P.O. Box 97180
City: Washington
State
or Province: DC
Postal
Code: 20090-7180
Country: USA
Online Linkage:
http://www.worldwildlife.org/science/
Entity and Attribute
Information (table heading explanations)
Shape: ArcView file type (wwf_eco.shp)
FID Internal feature number
ECOREGION The descriptive
name for the ecoregion. Ecoregions are relatively large areas of land or water
that share a large majority of their species, dynamics, and environmental
conditions.
MHT_NAME Major Habitat Code
1.1 Tropical and subtropical moist broadleaf forests
1.2 Tropical and subtropical dry broadleaf forests
2.1 Temperate broadleaf and mixed forests
2.2 Temperate coniferous forests
2.3 Tropical and subtropical coniferous forests
3.1 Boreal forest/taigas
4.1 Tropical and subtropical grasslands, savannas, and shrublands
4.2 Temperate grasslands, savannas, and shrublands
4.3 Flooded grasslands
4.4 Montane grasslands
4.5 Tundra
5.1 Mediterranean scrub
5.2 Deserts and xeric shrublands
6.1 Mangroves
7.1 Snow, ice, glaciers, and rock
7.2 Water
BDI
The
biological distinctiveness index. It is based on the species richness,
endemism, rareness, etc
THREAT The degree of threat to the
ecoregion. Such threats are from logging, conversion to
agriculture/urbanization, etc
FINAL The final assessment of the ecoregion
as the estimated threat to the ecoregion over the next 20 years.