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Some new applications of Circuitscape:

(A) Map of an example landscape, with landscape resistances ranging from 1 (white) to infinity (black).  (B) Results from conventional least-cost modeling between habitat patches in lower-left and upper-right corners of the map.  (C) Circuitscape output for the same two habitat patches.  Circuitscape efficiently identifies “pinch points,” or critical habitat linkages, as well as features important for redundancy.  Unlike least-cost methods, circuit theory doesn't highlight habitat cul-de-sacs or corridors that don't contribute to connectivity (such as the one leading off the top of the map).  Work with Brett Dickson and Tim Keitt to appear soon in Ecology.

Connectivity for mountain lions moving between core habitat areas in southern California.  Blue shows areas of low current density, which are expected to have low densities of dispersing mountain lions; yellow designates movement bottlenecks, where connectivity is most vulnerable to habitat destruction.  This is an example analysis only; better dispersal routes to the South were cut off by map edges.  In general, high current flow indicates high priority areas for conservation or restoration.  Research Collaborators: Brett Dickson and Rick Hopkins, Live Oak Associates, with generous support from Vicki Long.