Current and near-future conditions of aquatic spatial data for use in ecological models in the United States

Knowledge and Management of Aquatic Ecosystems
By: , and 

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Abstract

To address increasing demand for ecological models of aquatic species that can inform the management of national freshwater resources, we leveraged manager input to develop suites of environmental data layers characterizing freshwater habitats for the contiguous United States. Using the National Hydrography Dataset, these new data cover lentic and lotic systems under current and near-future environmental conditions. The data include a variety of covariate categories including climate, soil chemistry, land use and land cover, and human modification of the surrounding landscape. The predictor resolution for atmospheric climate predictors was the lake (wetland) or stream reach, and, for the terrestrial proxies, the subwatershed (HUC12) surrounding the lake or stream reach was chosen to capture the relevant land features surrounding the habitat. Future land use, land cover and streamflow predictions were included from present to mid-century. These data are available for the development of freshwater ecological models in the contiguous United States for a variety of applications, including species distribution modeling and exploring change in spatially diverse aquatic systems in time.

Suggested Citation

Henderson, G.C., Engelstad, P., Reimer, C.J., LeClare, S.K., Fraser, L.S., Williams, D.A., Shadwell, K.S., Daniel, W.M., Pfingsten, I.A., and Jarnevich, C.S., 2026, Current and near-future conditions of aquatic spatial data for use in ecological models in the United States: Knowledge and Management of Aquatic Ecosystems, no. 427, 11, 9 p., https://doi.org/10.1051/kmae/2026003.

Study Area

Publication type Article
Publication Subtype Journal Article
Title Current and near-future conditions of aquatic spatial data for use in ecological models in the United States
Series title Knowledge and Management of Aquatic Ecosystems
DOI 10.1051/kmae/2026003
Issue 427
Publication Date March 17, 2026
Year Published 2026
Language English
Publisher Ecosciences
Contributing office(s) Fort Collins Science Center
Description 11, 9 p.
Country United States
Other Geospatial contiguous United States
Additional publication details