Field data for the Vegetation Mapping Inventory Project of Petroglyph National Monument

This reference is an assemblage of field data collected as part the baseline vegetation inventory for the park unit. Typical files here are vegetation plot data, accuracy assessment data, field photos, PDF showing locations of vegetation plots and accuracy assessment data, and other data for this type. Vegetation sampling was designed to capture as wide a variety of vegetation types as possible within the seasonal time frame available for field work (typically during the rainy season between July 15 to October 15 when botanical expression is at its best). We planned the four- to six-week sampling campaigns to optimize field crew efficiency while still capturing as wide a range of vegetation types as possible on any given day. To do this, we employed a cluster sampling approach in which a series of daily routes for the sampling crews were created in a GIS using the digital orthophotography and preliminary vegetation maps. The choice of location for eight to ten sampling points per route were driven by differences in vegetation, soils, and geologic pattern, plus logistics, i.e., what could be accomplished in one day’s travel time by vehicle and foot by a field crew (sampling days were ten hours long to further increase daily efficiency). Routes were distributed as widely as possible throughout the study area. While using the GIS was an excellent planning tool that took much of the guesswork out of plot placement, final plot locations were field-based decisions predicated on positioning the sampling point in homogenous stands of vegetation and habitat.