Anthropogenic Biomes

The Anthropogenic Biomes layer is a part of the Anthropogenic Biomes of the World, v1 (2001-2006) data set which describes globally-significant ecological patterns within the terrestrial biosphere caused by sustained direct human interaction with ecosystems, including agriculture, urbanization, forestry and other land uses. Conventional biomes, such as tropical rainforests or grasslands, are based on global vegetation patterns related to climate. Now that humans have fundamentally altered global patterns of ecosystem form, process, and biodiversity, anthropogenic biomes provide a contemporary view of the terrestrial biosphere in its human-altered form. Anthropogenic biomes may also be termed "anthromes" to distinguish them from conventional biome systems, or "human biomes" (a simpler but less precise term).

The purpose of the data set is to provide information on global land use for research on human-environment interactions.

References: doi:10.7927//H4H12ZXD

Croplands

The Croplands layer is part of the Global Agricultural Lands, v1 (2000) data set which represents the proportion of land areas used as cropland (land used for the cultivation of food) in the year 2000. Satellite data from Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS) and Satellite Pour l'Observation de la Terre (SPOT) Image Vegetation sensors were combined with agricultural inventory data to create a global data set. The visual presentation of these data demonstrates the extent to which human land use for agriculture has changed the Earth and in which areas this change is most intense. The data were compiled by Navin Ramankutty et al. (2008) and distributed by the Socioeconomic Data and Applications Center (SEDAC) hosted by Columbia University Center for International Earth Science Information Network (CIESIN).

The purpose of the data set is to provide data on the extent of croplands for research on human-environment interactions.

References: doi:10.7927/H4C8276G

Pastures

The Global Pastures layer is part of the Global Agricultural Lands, v1 (2000) data set which represents the proportion of land areas used as pasture land (land used to support grazing animals) in the year 2000. Satellite data from Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS) and Satellite Pour l'Observation de la Terre (SPOT) Image Vegetation sensors were combined with agricultural inventory data to create a global data set. The visual presentation of these data demonstrates the extent to which human land use for agriculture has changed the Earth and in which areas this change is most intense. The data were compiled by Navin Ramankutty et al. (2008) and distributed by the Columbia University Center for International Earth Science Information Network (CIESIN).

The purpose of the data set is to provide data on the extent of pasturelands for research on human-environment interactions.

References: doi: 10.7927/H47H1GGR