Natural Heritage Information Centre
The Natural Heritage Information Centre (NHIC) compiles, maintains and distributes information on natural species, plant communities and spaces of conservation concern in Ontario. This information is stored in a spatial database used for tracking this information. The Centre also has a library with conservation-related literature, reports, books, and maps, which are accessible for conservation applications, land use planning, and natural resource management. The NHIC website makes much of this information available through the internet. To learn more about the NHIC please visit the About Us section of the web page.
Latest News...new biodiversity data management software for the NHIC
The Natural Heritage Information Centre continues to evolve to make use of expanding scientific knowledge and new mapping and other technologies that make information analysis and sharing faster and more effective. A recent ‘evolution’ of business has been a migration to NatureServe’s latest generation of biodiversity data management software, Biotics 4. Biotics 4 has become our central database for tracking information on rare species and vegetation communities, and important natural areas. The software couples a powerful Oracle database system for managing tabular data with a geographic information system (GIS) supporting digital mapping and data visualization for spatial analysis. One of the benefits of this software is the ability to spatially represent the species observations and occurrences and estimates of uncertainty and accuracy in the form of polygons. This allows for more precise location information on species and spaces which in turn allows for more accurate data interpretation.
Latest News...upcoming changes to the NHIC website
As part of our objective to make information on rare species and spaces more accessible for ecologically-sound land use planning, and in support of biodiversity conservation programs, the NHIC website will be undergoing some changes in the near future. Reflecting our recent migration to new biodiversity data management software, the website will be altered, allowing users to search and retrieve species and natural spaces data from our database in a more effective and efficient manner. Visit our website regularly to see upcoming changes.