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44 CLIMATE CHANGE ALBERTAS BIODIVERSITY2015 REPORT Current Biodiversity in Potential Climate Refugia Species distribution modeling suggests that Albertas hill systems will be important refugia for boreal plants and animals as the climate changes. Field research is describing current climate and biodiversity patterns in several hills systems and evaluating the potential of these regions as climatic refugia for boreal biodiversity. Higher elevation areas of Alberta are likely to provide climate refugia for boreal birds and plants in the coming decades pages 41-43. In 2014 Diana Stralberg and colleagues 2014 initiated a project to evaluate the potential for Alberta hill systems to act as refugia by collecting field data on how landforms elevation latitude and exposure influence weather conditions and biotic communities. Current gradients in elevation and latitude canbetreatedasproxiesforchangesinclimate throughtimeallowingmorepreciseprediction of the potential value of the hill systems as climatic refugia. Four study areas across the province from Cypress Hills in the south to the Buffalo Head Hills in the north with similar forest types upland mixedwood forests but differing mean annual temperatures were chosen for study. In each area at least three elevations were sampled in as many as four aspectlandform classes. Sampling consisted of deploying automated audio recording units for detecting birds mammals and amphibians installing temperature sensors and conducting vascular plant and plant structure surveys. PreliminaryanalysisbyErinBayneandDiana Stralberg2015indicatedthattherichnessof songbirdcommunitieswasgreatestatlower elevationsandinthesouthpartoftheprovince. Speciesrichnesswashigheratsouthernlocations becausethesongbirdcommunitiesincluded speciesadaptedtograsslandagriculturaland urbanenvironmentsbutthecausesofthe elevationalgradientinspeciesrichnessarestill unclear.Thesedatahighlightthecomplexitiesof understandingtopographicandclimatecontrols onspeciesdistributionsandtheneedfor enhancedmonitoringofAlbertashillsystems.