Zoologist Atlantic Canada Conservation Data Centre Sackville, New Brunswick, Canada
Conservation data centres exists in every in every province and territory in Canada. Launched in the 1980s and 1990s, these institutions serve as the major source of information for the animals, plants, and ecological communities within their respective jurisdiction. This talk profiles the Atlantic Canada Conservation Centre (AC CDC), which represents the provinces of New Brunswick, Nova Scotia, PEI, Prince Edward Island and Newfoundland and Labrador. The AC CDC works with various knowledge holders, including provincial and federal biologists, in determining provincial conservation statuses of a diversity of species, from sedges to birds to mayflies. The AC CDC database of plant and animal occurrences has over two million records, approximately 20% of which represent species of conservation concern. AC CDC data and expertise are widely consulted by federal and provincial government departments, NGOs, industry, researchers, students, and many other organizations throughout Atlantic Canada and beyond.