Natural Heritage Information Centre

Frequently Asked Questions

• What is an Element?
• What is an Element Occurrence (EO)?
• What constitutes an Element Occurrence (EO) for a given species?
• What is an EO Rank?
• How are species ranked by NHIC?
• How frequently are the SRANKS reviewed?
• How do I use the Geographic Query?
• What does the UTM accuracy code mean?
• Why do I see two occurrences with the same EO id on the Geographic Query?
• How can I submit data to the NHIC?
• How accurate is NHIC's data?
• What is the source of NHIC's data?
• Who should I contact regarding detailed species information?
• How often is NHIC data updated on the web page?

What is an Element?
The Nature Conservancy coined this term in the United States. An element is a unit of natural biological diversity. Elements represent species (or infraspecific taxa), natural communities, or other non-taxonomic biological entities (e.g. migratory species aggregation areas, bat hibernacula).

What is an Element Occurrence (EO)?
An Element Occurrence (EO) is an area of land and/or water in which an Element is, or was, present. The NHIC stores information on EO's in a database and this information is available through the NHIC web page.

What constitutes an Element Occurrence (EO) for a given species?
One can consider an occurrence as being analogous to a population (more or less a group of non-regularly-interbreeding individuals of a species in a particular geographic area). With largely immobile plants we typically use a distance of 1 km to separate occurrences. With mobile animals separation distance is much more difficult to determine. For many species (particularly those that are rare range-wide) the definition of an occurrence is defined globally by NatureServe so that all data centres define an occurrence for the same species in the same way. For species that don't have globally defined element occurrence specifications biologists at the NHIC define an Ontario specification. The definition that NHIC uses for an occurrence is often explained in the Element Report that is now publicly available on our web site.

What is an EO Rank?
An EO rank represents the relative value of an EO with respect to others for that Element, defined according to criteria derived from specific EO rank factors. An EO rank provides an assessment of the estimated viability or probability of persistence of the occurrence.

EO ranks are used in prioritizing EO's for conservation planning purposes. The different ranks that can be assigned to an EO are as follows:

A - Excellent predicted viability
B - Good predicted viability
C - Fair predicted viability
D - Probably not viable
E - Verified extant
F - Failed to find
H - Historical
X - Extirpated
(blank) - Unranked

The basic "A" through "D" ranks are based on current known factors that are used to predict the viability of an EO. The more viable an EO is, the higher its EO rank and the higher its conservation value. The cut-off for viability occurs at the "C" rank, with "D" ranked EO's characterized as probably not viable.

How are species ranked by NHIC?
A feature that appears on our web page is the "Element Report" for many species. These reports contain basic information on the species (taxonomic, bibliographic) including information justifying a particular SRANK (this part of the form is termed the "ESR" or Element Subnational Ranking form). These Element Reports will help the user understand why a particular species has been assigned a certain rank. SRANKS are not solely based on the number of occurrences, but also take into account factors such as threat, population size, population trend, EO quality, etc.

Ranking is a qualitative process: it takes into account several factors, which function as guidelines rather than arithmetic rules. The ranker's overall knowledge of the element allows him or her to weigh each factor in relation to the others and to consider all pertinent information for a particular element. The factors considered in ranking species and communities are similar, but the relative weight given to the factors differs.

For species elements, the following factors are considered in assigning a rank:

• total number and condition of element occurrences
• population size
• range extent and area of occupancy
• short- and long-term trends in the foregoing factors
• threats
• environmental specificity
• fragility

For ecological community elements, the association is generally the classification level treated as an element and ranked (see Classification of Ecological Communities for an explanation of the hierarchical classification levels). The primary ranking factors are:

• total number of occurrences
• total acreage occupied by the element.

Secondary factors include the geographic range over which the element occurs, threats to occurrences, and viability of the occurrences. However, it is often necessary to establish preliminary ranks for communities when information on these factors is not complete. This is particularly true for communities that have not been well described. In practice, a preliminary assessment of a community's range-wide global rank is often based on the following:

• geographic range over which the element occurs
• long-term trend of the element across this range
• short-term trend (i.e., threats)
• degree of site/environmental specificity exhibited by the element
• rarity across the range as indicated by subnational ranks assigned by Heritage data centers

How frequently are the SRANKS reviewed?
The NHIC assigns subnational ranks (SRANKS) for species and vegetation communities in Ontario. These SRANKS complement the global ranks (GRANKS), and also range from S1 (extremely rare in Ontario, generally 5 or fewer locations) to S5 (demonstrably secure in Ontario). The SRANKS are not formal designations and do not confer any protection to the species. However, the SRANKS are used by COSSARO and other groups to set conservation priorities. SRANKS are documented and stored in the NHIC's databases. Periodic lists of Ontario species and their SRANKS are produced and distributed by the NHIC. The SRANKS, as well as GRANKS, COSEWIC and COSSARO statuses are available in print, and also through the MNR Intranet and external web page.

The NHIC does not have a regular schedule for reviewing SRANKS. They are revised when we have new evidence supporting a change in rank. Ranks assigned under the COSEWIC and MNR status fields are regularly maintained.

The NHIC wants SRANKS to reflect the best available information and be as current as possible. If there are any questions about a particular SRANK, a phone call or email to the appropriate NHIC biologist is invited. Note that ranks for some groups (e.g. many invertebrates and non-vascular plants) are somewhat tentative due to lack of comprehensive information on distribution and status. We welcome information which will help improve ranks.

How do I use the Geographic Query?
The Geographic Query can be used to view NHIC data (Natural Area reports and Rare Species Occurrences) on a backdrop map of Ontario. The Autodesk MapGuide plug-in is required. This plug-in is free. The download process is straightforward:

1. Follow the link to the Autodesk MapGuide plug-in page. http://www.autodesk.com/prods/mapguide/download/index.htm
2. Enter your language, operating system and internet browser.
3. The program takes 10-15 minutes to download, depending on your internet connection. All of the default settings are acceptable.
4. Close your internet browser and double click on the exe file that you have downloaded to install the plug-in.
5. Re-open your browser and return to the Geographic Query home page. A map of Ontario should appear on which you can zoom-in to view the data.

In order to view the NHIC data you must zoom-in to an area on the map, until you are able to 'turn on' the Rare Species Locations and Natural Areas themes on the left side of the screen. You can select map objects through a left click of your mouse. Use a right click on these selected objects to view the data associated with these records.

What does the UTM accuracy code mean?
The UTM accuracy is an important factor to consider in the geographic query. All Element Occurrences are assigned a level of accuracy for the Easting and Northing data. The descriptions of the accuracy codes are listed in the table below.

UTM Accuracy Code and Description of the Accuracy
0     Accurate to within 1 metre
1     Accurate to within 10 metres
2     Accurate to within 100 metres
3     Accurate to within 1 km
4     Accurate to within 10 km
5     Accuracy is greater than 10 km (unmappable)

Why do I see two occurrences with the same EO id on the Geographic Query?
In addition to Element Occurrences (EO's) being displayed through the Geographic Query, some observations of EO's are also shown. These are observations of the same Occurrence, but having a different UTM co-ordinate. An example of this would be a badger spotted 500 metres away from a previous sighting; the two observations are part of the same EO and both observations are stored in NHIC's database.

How can I submit data to the NHIC?
Rare species reporting forms are available on NHIC's webpage.

• Field names with * are required.
• Other fields should be filled out if known.
• This form is for reporting first-hand on-site field observations.
• Do not use this form to report second or third hand data from a letter, report, or conversation.
• Send us a copy of the letter, report, memo, etc. and we will process it in another manner.
• Complete one form per species per site.

How accurate is NHIC's data?
NHIC's data entry process involves quality checking of each record. The identification of the species is verified and the location (Zone, Easting and Northing) of the observation are checked using maps. For each new record, it must be evaluated whether the record should constitute a new Element Occurrence (EO), or should be incorporated into an observation of an existing EO.

NHIC staff also assign a UTM accuracy code to every EO co-ordinate pair in order to reflect the best approximation of each location. The date the EO was last observed is updated whenever new information becomes available.

If you notice any errors or discrepancies with NHIC's data, please contact the appropriate NHIC staff person to report your concern.

What is the source of NHIC's data?
NHIC's Element Occurrence (EO) data is the product of the review and quality checking of many data sources. Personal accounts of rare species are reported to NHIC and incorporated into the database. The majority of the EO data comes from existing data sets. These include the Atlas of Rare Vascular Plants of Ontario, COSEWIC Rare Vascular Plant Database, the Ontario Fish Distribution Database, the Ontario Herpetofaunal Summary, Ontario Rare Breeding Bird Program, Atlas of the Breeding Birds of Ontario, Ontario Butterfly Atlas, Ontario Aquatic Invertebrate Database, and several other data sets.

The sources for the Natural Areas in NHIC's Natural Areas database are also varied. These include ANSI reports, natural area inventories, consultant reports, International Biological Programme reports, wetland evaluations and others.

The NHIC records the source of the data in the databases for both EO's and Natural Areas.

Who should I contact regarding detailed species information?
Detailed species information is guarded by the Ontario Ministry of Natural Resources (MNR) in order to afford protection to the species. Rare species data is treated as sensitive, and is only disseminated on a 'need-to-know' basis.

MNR district biologists/ecologists have been trained on the data sensitivity issues surrounding rare species and can be contacted for further information. Get in contact with your nearest MNR field office.

How often is NHIC data updated on the web page?
We update our web page every 6 months and the date of last update will be posted on each of our species lists so that users will know that the rank shown is current of the update date.