Distribution models for the Alaska Gap Analysis Project (AKGAP) were developed over 10 years ago and have not been updated since. Although best data was used at the time, the available data was generally poor quality, especially the vegetation data. Numerous changes have occurred since the completion of AKGAP: changes in our understanding of species' ranges, changes in taxonomy, and changes in what we consider to be the best tools and data for creating distribution models using presence-only data. For those reasons, we consider the AKGAP models to be deprecated and we caution against using them, other than for reproduction of past analyses. The AKGAP final report and species atlas are available for download through this site. For acquisition of the raster distribution models, please email us to discuss appropriate uses of the data.

The species distribution modeling component of AKGAP began in September 2007 and was coordinated by the Alaska Natural Heritage Program at the University of Alaska Anchorage. Other project partners included the Environmental Science & Geography Programs & Spatial Ecosystem Analysis Lab (SEALAB) at the University of Alaska Southeast and the EWHALE lab-Biology and Wildlife Department at the University of Alaska Fairbanks. The project produced spatially explicit models to predict the range and distribution of terrestrial vertebrate species in Alaska to support analysis of conservation status.