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Cause for Concern in the United States, Canada, Bermuda, Alaska
Nearctic
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Boreal Forests/Taiga
Midwestern Canadian Shield forests
Nearly 80 percent of this ecoregion remains intact. Habitat pressures are most severe in Manitoba, where the ecoregion is considered 65 percent intact. Rapidly expanding forestry projects; mining for uranium, nickel, gold, and copper; and flooding from hydroelectric development are the main habitat threats.
Approximately 75 percent of this ecoregion is intact. But at intervals of every four miles (10 kilometers) in parts of the region, seismic lines (for mining surveys) have been cut through the landscape. Logging is on the rise and poses the largest current and future threat. Pipeline transportation corridors are contributing to habitat fragmentation.
Between 80 percent and 90 percent of the ecoregion remains intact. Very high elevations have been affected by transmission corridors (lines for hydroelectricity) and by mineral exploration and extraction. At lower elevations, wood harvesting for domestic use and for commercial pulp and paper production threatens the island's forests. Use of all-terrain vehicles is also a threat.
An estimated 90 to 95 percent of the habitat in this ecoregion remains intact. Mining and mineral exploration, particularly for uranium, diamonds, nickel, and copper, are the most widespread forms of habitat disturbance and are growing rapidly in the western half of the ecoregion. Caribou hunting is poorly monitored and has the potential to impact the population if excessive. Hydroelectric development poses an additional threat, as does urban development along the north shore of the Great Slave Lake.
Although about 85 percent of this ecoregion is intact, exploitation of the natural resources is increasing. Threats to habitat include open-pit mining, hydroelectric projects, logging, and construction of roadways. Mineral and oil exploration roads disrupt the movement of large carnivores and herbivores and are the main causes of habitat fragmentation. Hunting is also a threat to larger species.
Approximately 90 percent of the habitat remains intact. Most of the habitat loss is from disturbance around small communities, seismic lines throughout the region, and small-scale logging. Mining, oil and gas development, and the associated exploration phases of these industries are serious threats, including the road building that accompanies these projects.
An estimated 95 percent of the ecoregion remains intact. Habitat loss has occurred from roads. The greatest current threat is from all terrain vehicles, particularly around seabird colonies. Moss, peat, and lichen communities are easily damaged by vehicles. Caribou poaching is also a problem in this ecoregion.
An amazing 99 percent of the ecoregion remains intact. But threats do exist, including hydroelectric developments, particularly in the James Bay area. Fly-in hunt camps need to be carefully monitored to ensure that game animals are taken at sustainable levels. The growing tourism trade may also affect wildlife and habitat. Persistent pollutants, carried in by air currents and deposited by precipitation, are increasingly found in wildlife such as polar bears.
Approximately 75 percent of the ecoregion remains intact, but threats to biodiversity are increasing rapidly. Most of the people who live in the Yukon Territory dwell within this ecoregion. Urban growth around Whitehorse, along with timber harvesting and mining activities represent dangers to the ecoregion. The major highways of the area are concentrated here, too, posing a threat to the wildlife. Animals that migrate, including woodland caribou and Dall's sheep, are especially disturbed by roads, which pose a barrier to their movement.
Nearctic
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Temperate Grasslands, Savannas, and Shrublands
Western Gulf coastal grasslands
Less than one percent of this community type remains intact. Conversion to row crop and rice production, overgrazing, introduction of tame pasture grasses, urbanization, exotic plant invasion and expansion, and a lack of fire management have all contributed to the loss and degradation of this habitat. Several species have become extirpated, and many more are critically endangered. Fragmentation and woody encroachment are also important causes for concern.
