Conservation Threat Analysis | February Coffee Chat 2026

"There are novel threats at this point in time... and conservation resources are finite. It is important to be properly prioritizing efforts." - Melissa Cullina, VP of Science and Plants at the Coastal Maine Botanical Garden

In our February Coffee Chat, Melissa Cullina, VP of Science and Plants at the Coastal Maine Botanical Gardens, shared how Coastal Maine Botanical Gardens and the Maine Natural Areas Program partnered to evaluate Maine's at-risk flora using NatureServe's Conservation Status Assessment tools. This ambitious effort responds to growing pressures from climate change, development, and sea level rise, and provides a critical foundation for coordinated, data-driven conservation action.

The map below shows the gardens and arboreta represented by those who registered for the Coffee Chat - home offices not taken into consideration.  

This project is seeking to establish subnational conservation ranks (S-Ranks) developed by NatureServe for every stable native flora in Maine. This will involve species level and intraspecfic level evaluations for thousands of plants.  This body of work and collaborative effort will provide recommendations to Maine's official Endandered and Threatened List as well as uploading the ranks to NatureServe's Biotics database. 

Q & A

Q. Can the NatureServe's Conservation Status Ranks be saved in IrisBG?

A: Yes. You are able to edit the code lists for national and regional redlist categories in IrisBG to match NatureServe's ranking system. 

🌱 Tip create a custom report type for conservation that includes the recommended fields, export the report and then update the conservation ranks and import the updated spreadsheet.

Q:  How did you assemble the botanical advisory group?

A: This has been a longstanding active group. We extended invitations to folks who covered the breadth of Maine and also those who had long tenured experience.

Q: The final data is being shared with NatureServe, is it being shared with IUCN as well?

A: We are looking forward to being a part of NatureServe's body of work that goes into informing the IUCN rankings.