Cover

EXECUTIVE SUMMARY 3

affecting natural communities such as: soil type, water availability, vegetation, water chemistry, region
and stream size. General range maps and relative condition of each habitat subtype were developed from
the NHP data, the survey instrument and literature.

Due to general acceptance among ecology professionals, Bailey/US Forest Service Ecological Units as
modified in 1998 by The Nature Conservancy were adopted as ecoregions for this strategy. TNC's four
Ecoregional Plans that cover Mississippi are major
planning documents from which much of the information
and recommendations in this strategy were drawn.

Using TNC's ecoregions will also allow Mississippi's
strategy to be "rolled-up" with surrounding states into a
national synopsis that will allow Congress and the public to
see a coordinated, scientifically rigid account of the nation's
"at risk" wildlife and their habitat.

The ecoregions that encompass the state are the East Gulf
Coastal Plain (EGCP), the Mississippi River Alluvial Plain (MSRAP), the Northern Gulf of Mexico
(NGM) and the Upper East Gulf Coastal Plain (UEGCP). All habitat types and subtypes as well as
SGCN have been associated with the appropriate ecoregions.

Each subtype received a score called a Value to SGCN. These Values were derived from the number and
Tier level of SGCN associated with each subtype. These values indicate the relative importance of
various habitat subtypes to SGCN and provided guidance in predicting where actions would benefit
more and/or higher tier SGCN. Values are most useful when comparing related habitat subtypes. Three
major complexes of related habitat subtypes have been identified for comparing their value to SGCN.
These complexes are: 1) Terrestrial (Terrestrial, Wetland, Subterranean and Anthropogenic
subtypes); 2) Lotic and Lentic (Streams and Lacustrine subtypes); and 3) Marine, Estuarine and
Estuarine Fringe. The following is a summary of the highest ranking habitat subtypes by complex in
Mississippi based on their Value to SGCN.

A. Inland Terrestrial (Terrestrial, Wetland, Subterranean and Anthropogenic)

1. Small Stream Swamp Forests


2. Dry Longleaf Pine Forests


3. Bottomland Hardwood Forests


4. Hardwood Seeps


5. Lower Slope/High Terrace Hardwood Forests

TNC Ecoregions Found in MississippiEast Gulf Coastal PlainMississippi River Alluvial Plain

Northern Gulf of MexicoUpper East Gulf Coastal Plain

Mississippi's CWCS EcoregionsEast Gulf Coastal PlainMississippi River Alluvial Plain

(^) Northern Gulf of MexicoUpper East Gulf Coastal Plain