NH Living Legacy

Project Mission

To establish and support a well-coordinated, comprehensive system of public and private lands voluntarily dedicated to protecting the full spectrum of biological diversity in New Hampshire.

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System Goals

An ecological reserve system is a collection of lands managed and monitored to protect biodiversity in all its forms.

The goals of the system are to:

  • Perpetuate all elements of native biodiversity at all levels - genetic, species, community, ecosystem - including all stages of succession.
  • Maintain ecological and evolutionary processes at their natural frequency and spatial scale on a portion of the landscape sufficient to perpetuate biodiversity.
  • Provide comprehensive representation of physical elements.
  • Serve to increase our understanding of the benefits of healthy, functioning ecosystems

An individual ecological reserve is an area of land or water that contributes to one or more of the system goals. Ecological reserves within the system vary in size, location, ownership and protection strategy. Human uses of ecological reserves are encouraged, as long as those uses are consistent with the goals of the ecological reserve system and the protection of the features of biodiversity supported by the individual reserve.



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Ecoregions

To ensure that the ecological reserve system captures and conserves biological resources that reflect broad patterns of biodiversity on the landscape, the Project is using ecological regions to establish protection goals. Building on U.S. Forest Service analyses of climate, topography and soils, scientists divided the state into nine ecological regions:

  • Connecticut Lakes
  • Gulf of Maine Coastal Lowland
  • Gulf of Maine Coastal Plain
  • Mahoosuc-Rangely Lakes
  • New Hampshire Upland
  • Northern Connecticut River Valley
  • Sebago-Ossipee Hills and Plain
  • Vermont Piedmont
  • White Mountains

The Project established a goal of conserving at least three populations or occurrences of each element in each of New Hampshire's nine ecological regions in which the element occurs.

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The Need

New Hampshire is home to more than 15,000 species of plants and animals, 100 types of natural communities, and ecosystems as diverse as the Great Bay estuary, the spruce-fir forests of the North Country, the summits of the White Mountains, and the floodplains of the Merrimack and Connecticut Rivers. This rich biological diversity, which includes not only plants and animals but also the habitats and ecological processes that sustain them, is a living legacy that helps keep our air clean, our water pure, our economy strong, and our quality of life high (For a primer on the biodiversity of New Hampshire, refer to New Hampshire's Living Legacy, published in 1996 by the Fish and Game Department's Nongame and Endangered Wildlife Program).

The biodiversity of New Hampshire, however, is vulnerable to ongoing development and degradation. For example:

  • New Hampshire has already lost important aspects of its biodiversity at the species, natural community, and ecosystem level. 11 species of animals and 13 species of plants have been extirpated from the state. Some types of unusual natural communities have declined, notably pine barrens. Of four pine barrens that were found in the state, only one remains. Despite extensive reforestation since the mid-1800s, there is a lack of undisturbed habitats including grasslands, waterbodies, and riparian corridors, and mature forest types such as northern hardwoods, oak-pine, and spruce-fir.

  • New Hampshire is losing more than 13,000 acres of open space to development each year.Based on estimates from the state's Forest Resources Plan, approximately 189,600 acres of forests (3% of the state's total area) were developed between 1982 and 1997.

  • Of the top 10 environmental risks ranked by the New Hampshire Comparative Risk Project, 6 risks are related to loss, degradation, or alteration of land or water habitats. The predominance of habitat-related threats is especially alarming because the Comparative Risk Project examined a broad spectrum of environmental risks, including those with direct impacts on human health, and did not start with a focus on biodiversity or land and water conservation.

  • There are 22 plant species, 30 animal species, and 25 natural community types in New Hampshire that are considered globally rare or imperiled.

  • We know of exemplary occurrences for fewer than 50% of the natural communities in the state, including common and widespread natural communities.

  • There are few, if any, undisturbed aquatic ecosystems in the state. Aquatic ecosystems are under particular pressure due to ongoing hydrologic alteration and shoreline development.
The intensity and nature of threats to biodiversity vary widely across the state and for different features of biodiversity, with some features relatively secure and others severely and immediately imperiled. Reflecting a pattern common throughout the United States, many of the areas in New Hampshire that contain the greatest concentrations of rare species and natural communities are also the most vulnerable to development and habitat alteration.

Though conservation lands compose approximately 20% of the land area in New Hampshire, the current system of conservation lands in New Hampshire does not appear to provide comprehensive, long term protection of biodiversity at the species, natural community, or landscape levels. As a way to evaluate the effectiveness of the current system of conservation lands, we used existing databases housed at the Natural Heritage Inventory and the Fish and Game Department to determine what portion of known occurrences of rare species and natural communities occur on conservation lands. We utilized the conservation lands layer developed by the Society for the Protection of New Hampshire Forests.

There are 2 or fewer known occurrences on conservation lands for:
  • close to 60% percent of classified rare natural communities.
  • nearly three-quarters of known rare plants.
  • over three-quarters of known rare vertebrate species.
  • over 90% of known rare invertebrate species.
Two protected occurrences will not safeguard most plants, animals, or natural communities over the long term. While not all conservation lands or groups of species have been completely surveyed and the databases do not contain all existing information, these results suggest a serious and immediate need to enhance biodiversity conservation practices in the state.

Many species, natural communities, and landscape types are known to be well represented on current conservation lands or are protected through private lands management. In addition, there are significant portions of the state that are extensively forested and are experiencing low population growth levels. Therefore, we still have a remarkable opportunity to safeguard the species and places that form the ecological fabric of the Granite State. But how do we do it? The establishment of a system of ecological reserves, in concert with good management of commercial timberlands, wildlife populations, and watersheds, is a vital step in protecting the biological diversity of New Hampshire over the long term.

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Program Goals

The Living Legacy Project has the following goals to help achieve its mission:

  1. Guide land protection and public and private investment in biodiversity conservation by fostering the development of new conservation tools (e.g., ecological assessments) and by sustaining and enhancing existing programs (e.g., LCHIP).

  2. Measure and acknowledge our success in conserving biodiversity by working with state agencies to develop and sustain a cost-effective, practical tracking mechanism.

  3. Enhance the capacity for NH's natural resource agencies to conduct field inventories and research and to manage the data to make it more useful and available for conservation planning.

  4. Increase public understanding of the values of biodiversity and opportunities for conserving these values.

  5. Continue the LLP as an effort based on and integrated into existing programs, agencies, and conservation lands.

  6. Assess the impacts of particular land uses and activities on biodiversity and assess the impacts of biodiversity conservation on particular land uses.


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Project Activities

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Biodiversity Primer

Biological diversity, or biodiversity, is the variety and variability of all living organisms. This variety includes the diversity of plants, animals, fungi, algae, bacteria, and other microorganisms, their genetic variability, the natural communities in which they live, and the processes and interactions that weave the biological and physical elements of the planet into a complex web. By separating the concept into several layers - genetic, species, community, ecosystem, and taxonomic diversity - we can study this complexity and gain a better understanding of biodiversity.

Species diversity is the most easily understood and commonly used measure of biodiversity, although the terms are not synonymous. A species is a group of individuals capable of breeding with each other, but unable to breed successfully with any other group. In New Hampshire, more than 15,000 different species of organisms have been identified. Species range from the rare (peregrine falcon, cobblestone tiger beetle, lynx, and squirrel corn) to the common (American robin, black flies, white-tailed deer, and sugar maple). Much of New Hampshire's species diversity is composed of beetles, bugs and other insects (pie chart) . There are 11,000 known insect species, and little is known about many of them. Nearly 3,000 species of flowering plants, ferns, fungi, algae, bryophytes, and lichens occur in the state.

The number of species in a particular area, or species richness, is one measure of species diversity. This measure does not take into account the fact that not all species are equally abundant; many are uncommon, some are common. Species richness at the local level contributes to biodiversity at the state or regional level. Loss of a species reduces biodiversity. This is why rare species, which are more susceptible to extinction, often receive special attention.

Although the addition of new species will increase an area's biodiversity in the short term, the spread of non-native species can ultimately cause a decline in native species diversity. A native species is one that occurs naturally in a particular area without human activity to assist its introduction. Since non-native species are often introduced without natural predators or other controls, they may outcompete native species for resources, such as space or food. Purple loosestrife, ring-necked pheasant, mute swan, brown trout, and gypsy moth are just a few of New Hampshire's non-native species. Within the state, species can be native to one area and non-native to another. For example, brook trout are native to some lakes but they are non-native to others into which they were introduced.

Genetic diversity refers to variation in genetic makeup among individuals of the same species. Genes are master codes that govern structure or behavior of each organism. Genetic diversity occurs within populations. For example, individual trees in a stand of pitch pine may be genetically different from each other. Variation within the gene pool increases the chance that a species will adapt to changing environmental conditions. Genetic diversity also occurs between populations. The scrubby pitch pines that grow in areas that burn frequently are genetically different from the straight ones that grow in areas where fire is infrequent. Between-population genetic diversity is sometimes recognized as subspecies, which are populations of the same species whose individuals look distinctly different. A species that is rare in New Hampshire, yet common elsewhere, may be an important element of the region's biodiversity, since populations in New Hampshire may be genetically distinct from other populations.

Beyond the species level in the hierarchical system of classification used by taxonomists are the more inclusive groups of genus, family, order, class, and phylum. The variety at these higher levels (for example, the number of families represented in a geographic area) is termed taxonomic diversity. A plant community with six tree species - red oak, white pine, red maple, paper birch, shagbark hickory, and American beech - has six genera and five families. It has greater taxonomic diversity than another community with six species - pitch pine, red pine, white pine, American beech, red oak and white oak - which represent only three genera and two families.

Biologically, a community is a group of species (plants, animals, fungi, microorganisms) that occur together in a particular area. Alpine bogs, spruce-fir forests, Atlantic white cedar swamps and coastal sand dunes are all examples of the 130 types of biological communities identified in New Hampshire. An ecosystem is a community or group of communities plus their physical environment (soils, geology, climate, etc.). A landscape is a large scale unit of the earth's surface that supports a mosaic of different ecosystems. Community or ecosystem diversity is the variety of communities or ecosystems within a larger landscape. Different communities or ecosystems contain different species and often differ in the processes that occur within them.

Change within these levels of biodiversity is constantly occurring at different scales of time and space. Natural and human-induced change in biodiversity is inevitable. Factors that bring about change in biological diversity range from local disturbances, such as a tree fall, to shifts in global climatic conditions.

To understand the dynamic nature of biodiversity one must focus on ecosystems and larger landscapes, rather than just individual species. This focus considers the full complexity of natural systems - the ecological, evolutionary, physical, and human processes that affect and sustain life.



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Why is Biodiversity Important?

Biological diversity benefits us in many ways. The reasons for maintaining biodiversity are varied and often difficult to quantify, yet all contribute to a greater quality of life.

Direct Benefits to Humans

Biodiversity is an economic resource, a reservoir of materials for use in agriculture, medicine and industry. Worldwide, tens of thousands of plants and animals are used by humans. Plants are sources of vegetables, fruits, grains, spices, herbs, oils, beverages, drugs, fuel, fibers, rubber, timber, and more. New Hampshire's agricultural crops alone bring in nearly $100 million yearly. Despite the obvious economic value of biodiversity, fewer than 1 percent of all plants and animals have been examined for possible human benefit.

The link between biodiversity and our own health is clear. Most medicines used today originate from studies of wild species. Aspirin comes from a willow tree, penicillin from a common fruit mold. A chemical from the saliva of leeches dissolves blood clots during surgery. The Pacific yew, a tree growing in the northeast U.S., contains taxol used to treat ovarian cancer. The rosy periwinkle, found in Madagascar, contains a chemical used in treating Hodgkin's disease. Plant-derived drugs have yielded the U.S. pharmaceutical industry billions of dollars. Hundreds of other plants are used as herbal medicines.

In addition to agricultural and medicinal values, biodiversity influences a region's appeal to tourists. Each year millions of Americans take trips primarily to view, photograph, hunt, or study nature, and spend billions of dollars on trip-related expenses. Americans who watch birds spend $5.2 billion annually on their hobby - and support 200,000 jobs! In New Hampshire, 88 percent of the population participates in wildlife-related activities. Retail sales for birdwatching and birdfeeding in New Hampshire total $57 million. Hunting and fishing bring in millions of dollars more to local communities.

A diversity of living things performs a variety of services for us, including pollination of fruit and vegetable crops, and control of pests, at no cost to human society. The growing field of "integrated pest management" relies on natural biodiversity as a source of new pest control agents that are less damaging to the environment and human health, and cost less than traditional control measures. For example, in an effort to control the invasive non-native plant, purple loosestrife, American biologists examined dozens of insect species that feed on loosestrife in its natural range in Europe. A few had potential to serve as control agents in North America and one insect has been released in the U.S. and Canada. Without a diversity of potential biological control agents to choose from, control of loosestrife might have been possible only with great expense and negative effects on the environment.

Biodiversity Supports Life

As part of the biological community, humanity depends on natural systems for survival. Living organisms enrich the soil that grows our food, and generate the oxygen we breathe. The diversity of life forms and interactions between them are the reason earth's systems function so efficiently and effectively. The integrity of these systems is a function of biodiversity.

A diversity of organisms thrives by processing natural and human wastes. Organic materials like leaf litter on the forest floor, agricultural wastes, and human sewage, are broken down by microbial organisms. Polluted waters are purified through the actions of natural microbial communities. As little is known about how many microbial species are involved in these processes or what their specific roles are, protection of these organisms is important.

Some organisms play key roles in the recovery of natural systems from disturbance. For example, clearcutting of northern hardwood forest liberates nutrients that might be lost from the ecosystem were it not for pin cherry, a short-lived tree with little direct economic importance. Pin cherry seeds germinate when soil is disturbed and the seedlings grow rapidly, sopping up nutrients that would otherwise be leached or eroded.

The structure of natural systems is often strongly influenced by species that are not particularly abundant or conspicuous. Such "keystone species" typically control their prey populations or modify their physical habitat, and thus affect the ecosystem's physical appearance or species composition. Pin cherry is an example. In another case, the species diversity of the intertidal community in the Pacific Northwest is largely maintained by one species of sea star. This sea star preys on mussels that would otherwise outcompete most other species in the community. Some scientists believe that the American lobster is a keystone species in the Gulf of Maine.

Loss of Biodiversity

Humans have lived in New Hampshire for a thousand or more years. The effects of people on the natural environment have increased along with the growing population. In the last two hundred years at least six species of mammals and birds that once occurred in New Hampshire and its adjacent waters have disappeared forever. These are Labrador duck, sea mink, great auk, passenger pigeon, heath hen, and scrag whale. The reasons for their extinctions are complex, but human activity played an important role.

As humans change habitats and reduce biodiversity, we are faced with many questions about how the loss of species will affect the ecological systems they inhabit. Moreover, there may be losses to future generations of people, limiting options for new food sources or cures to deadly diseases.

Aldo Leopold described one of the most compelling reasons for biodiversity conservation in the phrase, "To keep every cog and wheel is the first precaution of intelligent tinkering." In New Hampshire scientists are still discovering and naming the "cogs and wheels" of our biological diversity. Conserving biodiversity is part of our obligation to future generations. We want to be sure that even with our tinkering, the world our children inherit has all the necessary "cogs and wheels."



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Project History

In 1994, the Northern Forest Lands Council submitted their report Finding Common Ground, outlining the Council's recommendations for reinforcing the traditional patterns of land ownership and uses of the northern forest. As part of its findings, the Council highlighted the importance of biodiversity conservation: "the Council believes that maintaining the region's biodiversity is important in and of itself, but also as a component of stable forest-related economies, forest health, land stewardship, and public understanding." The Council recommended that states "develop a process to conserve and enhance biodiversity across the landscape". The Council provided guidelines for this process including:

  • provide landowners with information about how to conserve biodiversity on their land through both forest management practices and establishment of ecological reserves

  • use scientific assessment and analysis to create ecological reserves as one component of state public land acquisition and management programs.
In 1995, in response to the Council recommendations, the Directors of the New Hampshire Division of Forests and Lands and New Hampshire Fish and Game Department established the Ecological Reserve System Project. They asked a "core team" of representatives from the Division, Fish and Game, UNH, The Nature Conservancy, and the Society for the Protection of New Hampshire Forests to help organize this effort. A 27-member Steering Committee, comprised of public and private interests, was established to guide the process of designing a voluntary system of ecological reserves in New Hampshire.

In 1998, the Steering Committee produced two documents:
  • An Assessment of the Biodiversity of New Hampshire with Recommendations for Conservation Action
  • Protecting New Hampshire's Living Legacy: a blueprint for biodiversity conservation in the Granite State.

From 1998-2000, Project partners worked with others to urge the New Hampshire Legislature to establish and fund a new land conservation program, the Land and Community Heritage Investment Program (LCHIP). These efforts resulted in funding for LCHIP and recognition that ecological values, among others, are part of the state's heritage worth protecting through LCHIP.

Since 2000, the Project Coordinator and Core Team have moved the ERSP through a refinement of the scientific criteria for identifying areas of greatest ecological value and a pilot phase to test and evaluate the criteria and project principles. Project partners unveiled a new name in May 2002 - NH Living Legacy Project (LLP). The new name more fully represents the Project mission: to establish and support a well-coordinated, comprehensive system of public and private lands voluntarily dedicated to protecting the full spectrum of biological diversity in the state.



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E-News

The NH Living Legacy Project produces and distributes an on-line newsletter. To add your name to the mailing list please send your email address to Darrel Covell. To read past issues of E-News click below:



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Links

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Contact Us

For more information about the NH Living Legacy Project you can email Darrel Covell, Project Coordinator, by clicking here, or by phone or mail at:

NH Living Legacy Project
UNH Cooperative Extension
216 Nesmith Hall
131 Main Street
Durham, NH 03824
Phone: 603-862-3594
Fax: 603-862-0107



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