Vegetation Information for the JECA Vegetation Inventory Project
1998. Vegetation Information for the JECA Vegetation Inventory Project
A vegetation association classification, vegetation map, and thematic accuracy assessment is presented for the area in and around Jewel Cave National Monument. This report is presented in two volumes: The Nature Conservancy report which presents the vegetation classification and this report which presents the methods and results of the mapping portion of this project. The vegetation associations were developed by analysis of 28 vegetation plots and 37 observation points within the park boundaries. The classification system developed uses and augments the National Vegetation Classification System (NVCS). Twelve vegetation associations within 3 major physiognomic groups are defined and described. Included are discussions of range, environmental variables, common species, diagnostic species, local and global descriptions, and various comments. A diagnostic key is provided for field identification of association types based on indicator plant species. The vegetation map was developed by photographic interpretation of 1993, 1:16,000 scale color infrared photography. Two separate classification systems were used to develop the mapping units. Cultural, disturbed, or unsampled vegetation types used the Anderson Level II classification system. All other vegetation within the mapping boundary used map units derived from the NVCS. A total of 7 Anderson Level II classes and 12 NVCS classes were used. The NVCS classes were combined to form 5 vegetation mapping classes. As part of the mapping effort, we have included an accuracy assessment for the overall mapping effort as well as for individual class accuracies. These data include reporting for both errors of omission and commission. Overall map accuracy is 80.8% within a 90% confidence interval. A few map units do not meet the 80% accuracy level but do fall within a 90% confidence interval around the 80% accuracy stipulation.
- Type
- Unpublished Report
- Date of Issue
- 1998
- Units
- JECA , VMI
- Keywords
- Accuracy Assessment, Aerial Photography, alliances, Associations, community association, Digital Orthophoto, Digital Spatial Database, DOQ, DOQQ, Field Data, flight line, GIS, GPS, habitat mapping, Inventory Projects, Landcover, Landscape, National Park, National Park Service Inventory, National Vegetation Classification Standard, National Vegetation Classification System, NVCS, Orthophoto, Plots, U.S. National Vegetation Classification, USNVC, USNVCS, Vegetation Inventory, Vegetation Inventory Report, Vegetation Map Report, Vegetation Mapping, Vegetation Plots