El Malpais National Monument Resource Management Plan

National Park Service

Plan for the management of the resources, cultural and natural, of El Malpais National Monument. Page 8 lists titles of natural resources research projects currently underway in the monument. The section on wildlife notes that the inventory by the University of New Mexico doubled the species list to over 300 wildlife species, including 15 arthropods believed to be endemic to El Malpais. Bighorn sheep were extirpated in the monument as recently as 1950, and plans are to reintroduce these animals in the year 2000. A primary wildlife concern is bats occupying the lava tubes and caves, and other cave fauna may occur. The following short sections cover geology, hydrology, air quality, wilderness, grazing, threatened and endangered species (about 17 species known or expected in the monument), and fire. Issues and threats include lack of comprehensive baseline resources data and of accurate boundary information, nearby mines and other development, and occasional "research" requests with questionable motives (emphasizing the need for a strong research management program). With an 18-page bibliography following the main text and project statements describing needed work.