The natural resource community has been tasked with developing climate change adaptation strategies in response to the serious threats posed by altered global climates. Across the northeastern United States, negative changes are predicted for the habitats of amphibian species, many of which are already restricted to small patches (e.g., the Shenandoah salamander), or reliant on habitats within a narrow range of tolerable characteristics (e.g., wetland-breeding amphibians). The Northeastern Amphibian Research and Monitoring Initiative (NE ARMI) has partnered with federal and state resource managers and university scientists to develop proactive management strategies for these species given the uncertainty in future conditions. The teams have used a structured decision making framework as a guide to explore the potential management decisions which will not only have to incorporate future climate change and amphibian ecology, but consider variables such as the utility thresholds connecting the value of resource management and ecosystem performance. Despite the considerable uncertainty at the outset, the goal is to increase learning with each recurring management decision under an adaptive management framework.
