US GAP Species Ranges and Distributions

The USGS Gap Analysis Program (GAP) is delineating species range and predicted distribution maps for more than 2,000 species that occur within the continental US as well as Alaska, Hawaii, Puerto Rico, and the U.S. Virgin Islands (we will make these maps and datasets available as they are completed). Our goal is to build species range maps and distribution models with the best available data for assessing conservation status, conservation planning, and research (e.g., climate change impacts). Knowledge of a species geographic and ecological location is fundamental to many aspects of biodiversity conservation and for understanding spatial patterns of species occurrences. Furthermore, they will provide the basis of a national biodiversity assessment (e.g., species richness, historical vs. current).

The data are available to download;  http://www.gap.uidaho.edu/species_data.html

or to view on the web:  http://gapanalysis.usgs.gov/species/viewer/