Access background papers, framework documents, monitoring plans, handbooks and more from the Circumpolar Biodiversity Montioring Program (CBMP), its marine, terrestrial and freshwater groups and other networks and topics.
Access all monitoring related documents from CAFF.
Documents from the Marine Steering Group and Expert Networks of the Circumpolar Biodiversity Monitoring Program (CBMP).
Documents from the Freshwater Steering Group and Expert Networks of the Circumpolar Biodiversity Monitoring Program (CBMP).
Documents from the Terrestrial Steering Group and Expert Networks of the Circumpolar Biodiversity Monitoring Program (CBMP).
Access community based monitoring strategies, handbooks and more.
Access protected areas documents from the Circumpolar Biodiversity Monitoring Program.(CBMP).
Data and data management documents from the Circumpolar Biodiversity Monitoring Program (CBMP) and CAFF.
Marine mammals are highly visible components of Arctic ecosystems that are important to the structure and function of these systems (Estes et al. 2016, Albouy et al. 2020). In addition, they are valuable resources for people living in the Arctic that also play a special role in the cultural identity of people in the North. Arctic marine mammals are all endemic to the Arctic region and hence a unique part of global biodiversity for which the Arctic range states have important stewardship responsibilities. In an ecosystem monitoring context, these large, mobile predators can serve as ecosystem sentinels, because they integrate changes at more cryptic levels of food webs, making them ideal monitoring subjects that have “added value” (Bossart 2006, Moore 2008, Sergio et al. 2008, Hays et al. 2019, Hazen et al. 2019, Stenson et al. 2020a).
State of the Arctic Terrestrial Biodiversity Report Chapter 4: State of Arctic Terrestrial Biodiveristy Monitoring
State of the Arctic Terrestrial Biodiversity Chapter 3.7: Ecosystem-based Monitoring and Reporting
State of the Arctic Terrestrial Biodiversity Report Chapter 3.6 Land Cover Change
Authors Tom Barry and Liza K. Jenkins
State of the Arctic Terrestrial Biodiversity Report Chapter 3.5: Rare species
Lead Author: Mora Aronsson,
Contributing authors: Bruce Bennett, Casey T. Burns, Starri Heiðmarsson and Mikhail Soloviev.
In 2017, the State of the Arctic Marine Biodiversity Report (SAMBR) synthesized data about biodiversity in Arctic marine ecosystems around the circumpolar Arctic. SAMBR highlighted observed changes and relevant monitoring gaps. This document provides an update on the status of marine mammals in the circumpolar Arctic from 2015– 2020 (scientific references for factual information and a more detailed version of the text herein can be found in Kovacs et al. 2021).
State of the Arctic Terrestrial Biodiversity Reprot Chapter 3.4: Mammals
Lead authors: James Lawler, Christine Cuyler, Douglas MacNearney.
Contributing authors: Dominique Berteaux, Dorothee Ehrich, Anne Gunn, Jan Rowell, Don Russel, Niels Martin Schmidt
State of the Arctic Terrestrial Biodiversity Report Chapter 3.3: Birds
Lead authors: Knud Falk, Paul A. Smith, Casey T. Burns
Contributing Authors: Anthony D. Fox, Alastair Franke, Eva Fuglei, Karl O. Jacobsen, Richard B. Lanctot, James O. Leafloor, Laura McKinnon, Hans Meltofte, Adam C. Smith, Mikhail Soloviev, Aleksandr A. Sokolov.
State of the Arctic Terrestrial Biodiversity Report: Chapter 3.2 Arthropods
Authors: Stephen J. Coulson, Mark A.K. Gillespie and Toke T. Høye
STate of the Arctic Terrestrial Biodiversity Report Chapter 3.1: Vegetation
Lead authors: Virve Ravolainen, Anne D. Bjorkman
Contributing authors: Donald Walker, Howard Epstein, Gabriela Schaepman-Strub
The State of the Arctic Terrestrial Biodiversity Report(START) is a product of the Circumpolar BiodiversityMonitoring Program (CBMP) Terrestrial Group of the arctic Council’s Conservation of Arctic Flora and Fauna(CAFF) Working Group. The START assesses the status and trends of terrestrial Focal Ecosystem Components(FECs)—including vegetation, arthropods, birds, and mammals—across the Arctic, identify gaps in monitoring coverage towards implementation of the CBMP’s ArcticTerrestrial Biodiversity Monitoring Plan; and provides key findings and advice for monitoring. The START is based upon primarily published data, from a special issue of Ambio containing 13 articles by more than 180 scientists.
The State of the Arctic Terrestrial Biodiversity Report (START) is a product of the Circumpolar Biodiversity MonitoringThe State of the Arctic Terrestrial Biodiversity Report (START) is a product of the Circumpolar Biodiversity MonitoringProgram (CBMP) Terrestrial Group of the Arctic Council’s Conservation of Arctic Flora and Fauna (CAFF) Working Group.The overall goal of the START is to assess the status and trends of terrestrial Focal Ecosystem Components (FECs)—including species of vegetation, arthropods, birds and mammals—across the Arctic, and identify gaps in monitoringcoverage towards implementation of the CBMP’s Arctic Terrestrial Biodiversity Monitoring Plan (CBMP Terrestrial Plan).This report is a summary of key findings and advice for monitoring based on the START.
A national priority for Greenland is to balance the preservation of wildlife while still allowing human exploitation on some of the same resources. Among the seabirds, several important havested species are shared with other Arctic countries, implying that the responsibility to secure a sustainable harvest is also shared between countries.
Integrating Activities for Advanced CommunitiesD7.2- DATA MANAGEMENT PLAN FOR THE Rif FIELD STATION
Project No.730938 INTERACT
Rif Field Station Ecosystem MonitoringRif Field Station Ecosystem MonitoringFreshwater and Terrestrial Monitoring PlanMay 2018
Developed with the direction of the Circumpolar Biodiversity Monitoring Program (CBMP) as part of INTERACT Work Package 7
Work Package 7: Improving and harmonizing biodiversity monitoring International Network for Terrestrial Research and Monitoring in the Arctic (INTERACT)Aarhus University, Copenhagen, April 25-26, 2018
Work Package 7: Improving and harmonizing biodiversity monitoring International Network for Terrestrial Research and Monitoring in the Arctic (INTERACT)Raufarhöfn, June 11-12, 2019
A 2019 update on the implementation of the Arctic Marine Biodiversity Monitoring Plan in the United States.
A 2019 update on the implementation of the Arctic Marine Biodiversity Monitoring Plan in Norway.
A 2019 update on the implementation of the Arctic Marine Biodiversity Monitoring Plan in Iceland.
A 2019 update on the implementation of the Arctic Marine Biodiversity Monitoring Plan in Canada.
A 2019 update on the implementation of the Arctic Marine Biodiversity Monitoring Plan in Greenland.
State of the Arctic Freshwater Biodiversity Report
State of the Arctic Freshwater Biodiversity Monitoring Report, references
State of Arctic Biodiversity Freshwater Biodiversity Report, state of Arctic freshwater biodiveristy Monitoring chapter
State of Arctic Freshwater Biodiversity Report, freshwater biodiversity synthesis chapter.
State of the Arctic Freshwater Biodiversity Report, fish chapter
State of the Arctic Freshwater Biodiversity Report, benthic macroinvertebrates chapter.
State of the Arctic Freshwater Biodiversity Report, zooplankton chapter
State of the Arctic Freshwater Biodiversity Report, macrophytes chapter
State of the Arctic Freshwater Biodiversity Report, plankton chapter
State of the Arctic Freshwater Biodiversity Report, Algae from benthic samples chapter.
State of Arctic Freshwater Biodiversity Report Status and trends chapter containing algae, plankton, macrophytes, zooplankton, benthic macroinvertebrate, and fish.
State of the Arctic Freshwater Biodiversity Report: drivers of change in Arctic freshwaters chapter
Introduction to the State of the Arctic Freshwater Biodiversity Report.
Executive Summary of the State of the Arctic Freshwater Biodiversity Report
Acknowledgements for the State of the Arctic Freshwater Biodiversity Report.
The Arctic Coastal Biodiversity Monitoring Plan (Coastal Monitoring Plan) is the fourth and final circumpolar biodiversity monitoring plan to be completed under the Circumpolar Biodiversity Monitoring Program (CBMP). The Arctic Coastal Biodiversity Monitoring Plan is a long-term, integrated, multi-disciplinary, circumpolar plan that relies on science and Indigenous Knowledge to monitor changes occurring in Arctic coastal biodiversity and has direct and relevant application for communities, industry, governments, and other users.
This document provides an update on activities pertaining to the Arctic Spatial Data Infrastructure, May 2019.
Progress report on CAFF's activities on the Arctic Biodiversity Data Service (ABDS) 2017-2019.
The State of the Arctic Freshwater Biodiversity Report (SAFBR), is a product of the Circumpolar Biodiversity Monitoring Program (CBMP) Freshwater Group of the Arctic Councils Conservation of Arctic Flora and Fauna (CAFF) Working Group. The SAFBR provides a synthesis of the state of knowledge about biodiversity in Arctic freshwater ecosystems (e.g., lakes, rivers, and associated wetlands), identifying detectable changes and important gaps in our ability to assess biodiversity across a number of Focal Ecosystem Components (FECs; see Box 1): fish, benthic macroinvertebrates, zooplankton, planktonic algae, diatoms (algae), and macrophytes. The overall goal of the SAFBR is to assess the current status and trends of freshwater biodiversity of FECs across the Arctic on a circumpolar scale.
This is the workshop report for the Circumpolar Biodiversity Monitoring Program Coastal Expert Monitoring Group and Nordic Workshop, Tromsø, Norway, January 9-10, 2018.
The Circumpolar Biodiversity Monitoring Program's (CBMP) Strategic Plan is intended to explain the overarching goals of the CBMP for the period 2018-2021, and to outline actions to deliver on those goals. It will guide the management of the program and help ensure the programs continued relevance to the needs of the Arctic States, Permanent Participants, scientific and Arctic communities, and other partners.
Proceedings report of the Coastal Expert Monitoring Group's expert workshop in Anchorage, Alaska, U.S.A., October 11-13, 2017.
This report describes the progress over the past year to implement the CBMP Arctic Freshwater Biodiversity Monitoring Plan and the workplan for the year ahead.
Marine Fishes of the Arctic Region is intended for all who do research in and monitoring of marine ecosystems in the Arctic. It presents accounts for 205 species with maps of global distribution and descriptions of morphology and habitat, as well as a photographic identification guide. Information on 24 other species present only in the fringes of the Arctic Region or taxonomically problematic is given in the introductions to the fish families. As the Arctic continues to warm, more cold-temperate species are expected to enter the region and the distribution of true Arctic species will likely retract as the area of ice-covered cold water shrinks. The maps in this atlas can be used to compare future changes in distributions. The identification guide will be particularly helpful for identifying cold-water species, since fewer identification tools are available for this group of fishes.
A 2017 update on the implementation of the Arctic Marine Biodiversity Monitoring Plan in Greenland.
A 2017 update on the implementation of the Arctic Marine Biodiversity Monitoring Plan in Canada.
A 2017 update on the implementation of the Arctic Marine Biodiversity Monitoring Plan in Norway.
The International Network for Terrestrial Research and Monitoring in the Arctic (INTERACT)is an EU funded initiative working towards building capacity to help identify, understand,predict and respond to environmental changes across the Arctic.INTERACT Work Package (WP) 7 Improving and harmonizing biodiversity monitoring is ledby the Conservation of Arctic Flora and Fauna (CAFF) Arctic Council Working Group. Theoverall goal of WP7 is to test the circumpolar Freshwater and Terrestrial Arctic biodiversitymonitoring plans of CAFFs cornerstone program, the Circumpolar Biodiversity MonitoringProgram (CBMP), at INTERACT stations. The goal of the CBMP monitoring plans is to harmonize and integrate efforts to monitor theArctic's living resources through a network of scientists, governments, Indigenousorganizations, and conservation groups. Through this harmonization and integration, themonitoring plans facilitate more rapid detection, communication, and response to thesignificant pressures affecting the circumpolar world.
This report describes the progress over the past year to implement the CBMP Arctic Freshwater Biodiversity Monitoring Plan.
A 2015-2016 update on the implementation of the Arctic Freshwater Biodiversity Monitoring Plan in Iceland.
A 2015-2016 update on the implementation of the Arctic Freshwater Biodiversity Monitoring Plan in the Kingdom of Denmark.
A 2015-2016 update on the implementation of the Arctic Freshwater Biodiversity Monitoring Plan in Canada.
The full proceedings report of the Coastal Expert Monitoring Group's expert workshop in Ottawa, Canada, Feb. 29- March 3, 2016
This report describes the progress towards implementation of the CBMP-Marine Plan in 2016 and a work plan for the coming year.
A 2016 update on the implementation of the Arctic Freshwater Biodiversity Monitoring Plan in Sweden.
A 2016 update on the implementation of the Arctic Freshwater Biodiversity Monitoring Plan in the USA.
A 2015 update on the implementation of the Arctic Marine Biodiversity Monitoring Plan in Norway.
A 2015 update on the implementation of the Arctic Marine Biodiversity Monitoring Plan in Iceland.
This atlas and guide presents results of the Russian American Long-Term Census of the Arctic (RUSALCA) fish investigations conducted by bottom trawl in the Pacific Arctic region northward from Bering Strait. Species accounts provide documentation of the biodiversity and geographic distribution baselines with maps supported by citation of voucher specimens, catch records, and literature; habitat and morphological descriptions; and remarks on taxonomic issues with implications from DNA barcoding. Pages of fish photographs with labeled features are grouped separately in an identification guide.
The proceedings of the Coastal Expert Monitoring Group's expert workshop in Ottawa, Canada, Feb. 29- March 3, 2016. The following document provides a summary of the workshop activities and outcomes, and will be followed by a more complete Workshop Report.
A 2014 update on the implementation of the Arctic Freshwater Biodiversity Monitoring Plan in Norway.
This background paper outlines how the CBMP's Coastal Plan will be created and develops a framework for integrated and cost-effective monitoring of Arctic coastal biodiversity.
A 2015 update on the implementation of the Arctic Terrestrial Biodiversity Monitoring Plan in Canada.
This document summarizes the work of the Bering Sea Sub-Network (BSSN) II project, which provided a means for remote Indigenous villages around the Bering Sea to communicate their observations about the environment and subsistence harvest.
This report summarizes the initial set of satellite data products included in the CAFF Land Cover Change (LCC) Initiative. The LCC Initiative has been developed to harness the potential of remote sensing for use in Arctic biodiversity monitoring and assessment activities.
A circumpolar plan to monitor seabird populations, created by CAFF's CBird Expert Group as part of the marine component of CAFF's Circumpolar Biodiversity Monitoring Program.
This report describes the progress towards implementation of the CBMP-Terrestrial Plan in 2014 and a work plan for the coming year
This report describes the progress towards implementation of the CBMP-Marine Plan in 2014 and a work plan for the coming year
A 2014 update on the implementation of the Arctic Freshwater Biodiversity Monitoring Plan in the Kingdom of Denmark.
A 2014 update on the implementation of the Arctic Freshwater Biodiversity Monitoring Plan in the USA.
A 2014 update on the implementation of the Arctic Freshwater Biodiversity Monitoring Plan in Sweden.
A 2014 update on the implementation of the Arctic Freshwater Biodiversity Monitoring Plan in Canada.
A 2014 update on the implementation of the Arctic Freshwater Biodiversity Monitoring Plan in Iceland.
A 2014 update on the implementation of the Arctic Marine Biodiversity Monitoring Plan in the USA.
A 2014 update on the implementation of the Arctic Marine Biodiversity Monitoring Plan in Norway.
A 2014 update on the implementation of the Arctic Marine Biodiversity Monitoring Plan in Canada.
Mise en oeuvre du plan de surveillance de la biodiversité marine dans lArctique : mise à jour au Canada en 2013
A 2013 update of the implementation of the Arctic Marine Biodiversity Monitoring Plan in Canada.
Mise en oeuvre du plan de surveillance de la biodiversité marine dans lArctique : mise à jour au Canada en 2012
A 2012 update on the implementation of the Arctic Marine Biodiversity Monitoring Plan in Canada.
A progress report of the Land Cover Change Index, an initiative to create a framework to harness remote sensing potential for use in Arctic biodiversity monitoring and assessment activities. This document reports on progress made in Phase 1 of this initiative 2013-2015.
An update on the activities and actions surrounding the implementation of the Arctic Biodiversity Data Service (ABDS).
A progress report to the Arctic Council Ministerial meeting, Iqaluit, Canada, April 2015 on CAFF's traditional knowledge and community-based monitoring work.
This report describes the progress that has been made in 2014 to implement the CBMP Arctic Marine Biodiversity Monitoring Plan.
This report describes the progress towards implementation of the CBMP-Freshwater plan in 2014
This document details Swedish involvement in implementing the Arctic Freshwater Biodiversity Monitoring Plan for the year 2013.
The Canadian Arctic Marine Biodiversity Plan (Canadian Marine Plan) is the Canadian contribution to the Arctic Council Conservation of Arctic Flora and Fauna’s Circumpolar Biodiversity Monitoring Program, Arctic Marine Biodiversity Monitoring Plan.
The overall objective of the Canadian Arctic Marine Biodiversity Plan (Canadian Marine Plan) is to improve our ability to detect and understand the causes of long-term changes in the structure and function of Canadian arctic marine ecosystems. The Canadian Marine Plan integrates existing scientific and community-based marine biodiversity data and information.
A brochure describing the Arctic Freshwater Biodiversity Monitoring Plan of the Circumpolar Biodiversity Monitoring Program (CBMP).
This document details Canadian involvement in implementing the Arctic Freshwater Biodiversity Monitoring Plan in 2013.
Implementation of the CBMP-Marine Plan began in late 2011, and this report describes the progress that has been made during the second year of implementation (2013).
This document details Canadian involvement in implementing the Arctic Marine Biodiversity Monitoring Plan in 2013.
This document details the background, purpose, development, structure and outcomes of the CBMP Terrestrial Steering Group meeting in Akureyri, Iceland February 2014 to implement the Arctic Terrestrial Biodiversity Monitoring Plan.
This document details American involvement in implementing the Arctic Marine Biodiversity Monitoring Plan in 2013.
This document details Icelandic involvement in implementing the Arctic Marine Biodiversity Monitoring Plan in 2013.
This document details Norwegian involvement in implementing the Arctic Freshwater Biodiversity Monitoring Plan in 2013.
This document details Finnish involvement in implementing the Arctic Freshwater Biodiversity Monitoring Plan in 2013.
This document details Icelandic involvement in implementing the Arctic Freshwater Biodiversity Monitoring Plan in 2013.
