Hierarchical Classification of the Hydrologic Landscapes of the North American Continent (v0)

This resource contains a continent-wide polygon dataset and cartographic styles for visualizing the Hydrologic Provinces of North America together with figures that summarize the hierarchy. This is an initial public release of the layer and styles aligned between QGIS and ArcGIS Pro.

Contents

• readme.md: You're reading it: overview of the dataset, files, and how to use them.
• landscapes_v0_full.pdf: A figure showing the hierarchical classification of the North American continent into hydrologically meaningful regions.
• landscapes_v0_full.png: An image of the same hierarchy for quick viewing or presentation use.

Shapefile (vector data)

All five files must stay together in the same folder. You can find them inside the folder named hydrologic_provinces_north_america_v0. HydroShare automatically detects certain known file types and assigns them an aggregation type. In this case, because the content is a feature (vector) dataset, HydroShare recognizes it as a shapefile. When you click on the file folder in HydroShare, the metadata for the shapefile will appear on the right-hand side. This provides a convenient preview of the dataset's attributes and spatial information without needing to download or open the files manually or programmatically.

• hydrologic_provinces_north_america_v0.cpg: Character encoding for the attribute table (ensures text renders correctly).
• hydrologic_provinces_north_america_v0.dbf: Attribute table with per-province fields (see “Key fields” below).
• hydrologic_provinces_north_america_v0.prj: Coordinate reference system (CRS) for the layer (read by GIS to set the projection).
• hydrologic_provinces_north_america_v0.shp: Main geometry file containing polygon boundaries of hydrologic provinces.
• hydrologic_provinces_north_america_v0.shx: Spatial index linking geometry records for fast access.

Symbology

• hydrologic_provinces_north_america_v0.qml: QGIS Layer Style (QML). Loads a categorized renderer using the prov_code (province code) field and assigns the province colors to match the ArcGIS style. Use this to get the intended cartography in QGIS.
• hydrologic_provinces_north_america_v0.lyrx: ArcGIS Pro Layer File (JSON-based). When added to a map, it restores the Unique Value renderer on prov_code (province code) with the curated province colors and outlines.
• hydrologic_provinces_north_america_v0.lpkx: ArcGIS Pro Layer Package. A self-contained bundle that includes the layer, symbology, and metadata; drag-and-drop into ArcGIS Pro or share with colleagues to reproduce the cartography out of the box.

Overview

How to use?

First, download the entire resource from HydroShare by clicking the "Download" button on the right-hand side of the page. This will give you a ZIP file containing all the files mentioned above. Extract the contents of the ZIP file to a folder on your computer.

In QGIS:

1. Open QGIS (version 3.16 or later recommended).
2. Go to Layer > Add Layer > Add Vector Layer.
3. Browse to and select the hydrologic_provinces_north_america_v0.shp file to load the shapefile. The layer will switch to Categorized on prov_code (province code) with the intended colors.
4. If not, to apply the symbology, right-click the layer in the Layers panel, select Properties, go to the Symbology tab, and click the Load Style... button. Choose the hydrologic_provinces_north_america_v0.qml file.
5. Click OK to apply the style.

In ArcGIS Pro:

Option A: Layer package (easiest)

1. Double-click hydrologic_provinces_north_america_v0.lpkx (or drag it into a map).
2. The symbology and metadata are restored automatically.

Option B: Layer file

1. Open ArcGIS Pro (version 2.5 or later recommended).
2. Go to the Map tab and click Add Data.
3. Browse to and select the hydrologic_provinces_north_america_v0.shp file to load the shapefile. The layer will switch to Unique Values on prov_code (province code) with the intended colors.
4. If not, to apply the symbology, right-click the layer in the Contents pane, select Symbology, and in the Symbology pane, choose Unique Values from the dropdown. Set the Field 1 to prov_code.
5. Click the More button (three dots) in the Symbology pane and select Import Symbology.... Choose the hydrologic_provinces_north_america_v0.lyrx file.
6. Click OK to apply the style.

How to cite

Knoben, W. J. M., H. McMillan, Y. Fan, S. Carney, I. Garousi-Nejad, J. Masterman, J. S. Read, K. van Werkhoven, M. P. Clark (2025). Hierarchical Classification of the Hydrologic landscapes of the North American Continent (shapefile - v0), HydroShare, http://www.hydroshare.org/resource/c2bebfeeda8240a2b3711a3432f38a45

NOTE: The shapefile in this resource represents a work in progress. Updates and improvements are ongoing—stay tuned for future enhancements!