Indicator species selection

Selection and characterization of indicator species

Indicator species must be selected using a scientific, data-driven approach that considers local ecology, IP and/or LC needs and traditional knowledge of totemic animals, threat factors, and conservation goals.

Species must have documented sensitivity to environmental changes and an ability to represent the integrity of the broader ecosystem although this may be a partial score (see Integrity score).

Projects must characterize a full list of potential indicator species for their ecosystem meeting the criteria below. These lists are in the process of being normalized in public databases by independent experts. However, in the initial iteration of the methodology, projects are encouraged to review the list early, with external experts both IP and/or LC and regional academic or conservation biologists prior to implementing a monitoring plan. BCPs should make an effort to collect observations from all qualifying species but are recommended to have 1-3 main species for consistency in tracking and monitoring (see Monitoring).

Qualifying categories of indicator species

Eight categories are available for consideration: Sentinel, Rare, Endangered, Umbrella, Trafficked, Keystone, Emblematic, and Endemic. BCPs must provide public research from a reputable source to identify the indicator species.

• Sentinel species: Provide published research from a reputable source to identify sentinel species, their reaction to environmental changes, and their ability to serve as a proxy metric for the ecosystem being conserved.

• Rare species: Provide published research from a reputable source to identify rare species and their ability to serve as a proxy metric for the ecosystem being conserved.

• Endangered species: Categorize all indicator species for IUCN level (Appendix E), (www.iucnredlist.org). Note that in order to qualify as an indicator species under threat level alone, the species must be IUCN status Critically endangered or Endangered on the subnational, national, or international level.

• Umbrella species: Provide published research from a reputable source to identify umbrella species and their ability to serve as a proxy metric for the ecosystem being conserved.

• Trafficked species: Include only those trafficked species that appear on the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora (CITES) list.

• Keystone species: Provide published research from a reputable source to identify keystone species and their ability to serve as a proxy metric for the ecosystem being conserved.

• Emblematic species: Provide published research from a reputable source to identify culturally significant species, such as their historical or mythological significance, role in traditional ceremonies or rituals, use in arts and crafts, or their symbolic representation in cultural narratives. IP and LC will often have totemic animals for their ecosystem and this knowledge should not be ignored as it often represents ecological understanding not yet appreciated by Western science. IP and LC also often have early warning signals of species threat which justifies the inclusion of species they put high priority on monitoring.

• Endemic species: Identify species as restricted to a particular geographic region and not naturally found anywhere else. Endemic species are important indicators of the uniqueness and ecological significance of a particular region.

Many projects may end up identifying qualifying indicator species (e.g., harpy eagle for Colombia) which are rare, and may or may not generate observations. BCPs must take care to be inclusive of high-value species in their dataset of Observations, but realistic about the selection of species that can be reliably used for monitoring a large area (e.g., jaguar for Colombia).

Species must be fully characterized including latin name, common name, IP and/or LC names where applicable, indicator type(s), national and international IUCN threat levels, CITES status, and home range (with scientific references). Please refer to Figure 6a below as an example of the indicator species in Putumayo, Colombia (Appendix E).

Figure 12: Indicator species selection example for Colombia

Figure 6a. Indicator species selection for Colombia

Indicator species must also be ranked by their ability to represent the ecosystem with an Ecosystem integrity ratio between 0-1 where 1 indicates the full capability of representing the ecosystem. These scores must be supported by public data and will be reviewed by the IPE assigned to the project. A sample species list with external data for ratings is provided in Appendix E.