Ecosystem trends in the Colorado Rockies

Biological conservation is increasingly moving toward an ecosystem and landscape approach, recognizing the prohibitive cost and difficulty of a species-by-species approach (LaRoe 1993). Also, statewide (e.g., Gap Analysis Program) and national surveys (e.g., Environmental Monitoring and Assessment Program or EMAP) are conducted at a scale and level of resolution that do not meet the needs of most small land-management units that require detailed information at the ecosystem and landscape scale (Stohlgren 1994). The Colorado Rockies are an ideal outdoor laboratory for ecosystem science and management. The escalating environmental threats described in this article compelled us to design a landscape-scale assessment of the status and trends of biotic resources.