Invasive exotic plant monitoring along Highway 24 in Capitol Reef National Park: field season 2013
Perkins DW and Lenhart G. 2014. Invasive exotic plant monitoring along Highway 24 in Capitol Reef National Park: field season 2013. Natural Resource Technical Report. NPS/NCPN/NRTR—2014/889. National Park Service. Fort Collins, Colorado
Invasive exotic plant (IEP) species are a significant threat to natural ecosystem integrity and biodiversity, and controlling IEPs is a high priority for the National Park Service. The Northern Colorado Plateau Network (NCPN) selected the early detection of IEPs as one of 10 monitoring protocols to be implemented as part of its long-term monitoring program. In conjunction with park staff, NCPN created a target list of priority IEPs for early detection. During surveys conducted on August 12–28, 2013, Capitol Reef National Park staff detected four priority IEP species on monitoring routes and three priority IEP species in transects along 50 kilometers of Highway 24. An additional five non-priority IEP species were recorded consistently in transects. Tamarisk (Tamarix spp.) and Russian olive (Elaeagnus angustifolia) were the most common (245 and 24 infestations, respectively) IEPs detected along monitoring routes, and these two species represented 97% of all infestations detected. Russian thistle (Salsola tragus) is not a priority IEP species but was consistently recorded in transects and was widespread—present in 35% of the 102 transects sampled. Tamarisk had the highest percent cover, based on transects, at 2.4%. The number of tamarisk infestations mapped along monitoring routes and percent cover of tamarisk in monitoring transects in 2013 declined from 2009–2010. However, that decline in number may not represent a decrease in area, as the number of infestations larger than 400 m2 increased substantially. This increase could indicate that smaller infestations joined together into large infestations. Tree-of-heaven (Ailanthus altissima), field bindweed (Convolvulus arvensis), and asparagus (Asparagus officinalis) infestations decreased considerably between both the 2003–2005 surveys and the more recent time periods of 2009–2010 and 2013. After 71 tree-of-heaven infestations were found in 2003–2005 and 2 in 2009–2010, no infestations were found in 2013.
- Type
- Published Report
- Authors
- Perkins, Dustin; Lenhart, Gary
- Date of Issue
- 2014-07
- Publisher
- National Park Service
- Units
- CARE , NCPN , NRSS
- Keywords
- Exotic Species, Exotic/Invasive Species - Plants, Invasive Species, Monitoring, NCPN Invasive Plants Monitoring, Plant Studies