Field data for the Vegetation Mapping Inventory Project of Zion National Park

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. To complete the daunting task of mapping the diverse vegetation at ZION, a multi-year program was initiated. This consisted of two linked phases: (1) vegetation classification using the National Vegetation Classification System (NVCS) and (2) digital vegetation map production directed by NatureServe and the U.S. Bureau of Reclamation’s (BOR) Remote Sensing and GIS group, respectively. To classify the vegetation, we sampled 346 representative plots located throughout the 246,452-acre (99,738 ha) project area (park + environs) during the summers of 1999 and 2000. Analysis of the plot data using ordination and clustering techniques produced 95 distinct plant associations, 44 of which were newly described at ZION. Draft maps created from the vegetation classification were field-tested and revised before independent ecologists conducted an assessment of the map’s accuracy during 2001-2003.