Understanding where and when species are found is essential to their conservation, from protecting their habitats proactively to minimizing harm from human activities. But range data for most species protected under the U.S. Endangered Species Act (ESA) are rudimentary and overly coarse–county-level resolution–for effective and efficient conservation. In collaboration with others in the conservation community, we are developing refined range maps for ESA-listed species that currently lack such refined maps. We have already developed those maps for over 100 listed species, including many insects, and will discuss common patterns of success. Further, we have developed a collaborative mapping tool on an emerging platform, conservationist.io, to maximize the transparency of the mapping process and to potentially simplify the review and approval processes with regulatory agencies.
As the previous Director in the Center for Conservation Innovation at Defenders, Jacob led CCI’s work at the intersection of science, technology, and policy to improve conservation outcomes, especially for threatened and endangered species.