Ecological thresholds as a basis for defining management triggers for National Park Service vital signs—Case studies for dryland ecosystems
Bowker MA, Miller ME, Belote RT, Garman SL. 2013. Ecological thresholds as a basis for defining management triggers for National Park Service vital signs—Case studies for dryland ecosystems. Open-File Report 2013–1244. U.S. Geological Survey. Reston, Virginia
This report describes and demonstrates a generalized approach that the authors implemented to formalize understanding and estimating of threshold dynamics for terrestrial dryland ecosystems in national parks of the Colorado Plateau. A structured approach is provided to identify and describe degradation processes associated with threshold behavior and to estimate indicator levels that characterize the point at which a threshold crossing has occurred or is imminent (tipping points) or points where investigative or preventive management action should be triggered (assessment points). This method is illustrated using several case studies in national parks included in the Northern and Southern Colorado Plateau National Park Service (NPS) Inventory and Monitoring networks, where historical livestock grazing, climatic change, and invasive species are key agents of change. The approaches developed in these case studies are intended to enhance the design, effectiveness, and management-relevance of monitoring efforts in support of conservation management in dryland systems. They specifically enhance NPS capacity for protecting park resources on the Colorado Plateau but have applicability to monitoring and conservation management of dryland ecosystems worldwide.
- Type
- Published Report
- Authors
- Bowker, Matthew; Miller, Mark; Belote, R.; Garman, Steven
- Date of Issue
- 2013
- Publisher
- U.S. Geological Survey
- Units
- ARCH , BAND , CANY , CARE , NCPN , PEFO , SCPN
- Keywords
- Colorado Plateau, conservation management, dryland ecosystems, ecological thresholds, monitoring, NCPN Uplands Article