Bandelier National Monument mesa-top pinyon-juniper 2019 data summary: Southern Colorado Plateau Network integrated upland monitoring
Swan M, McCoy L, Veety C. 2020. Bandelier National Monument mesa-top pinyon-juniper 2019 data summary: Southern Colorado Plateau Network integrated upland monitoring. Natural Resource Data Series. NPS/SCPN/NRDS—2020/1287. National Park Service. Fort Collins, Colorado
This report presents a single-year snapshot of the data collected by the Southern Colorado Plateau Inventory and Monitoring Network (SCPN) in 2019 as part of integrated upland monitoring (IUM). Field crews collect data on soil stability and hydrologic function, biological soil crusts, and plant community characteristics, including abundance of functional groups, cover by species, richness and diversity, and frequency of nonnative species. In woodland and forested systems, density of seedlings, saplings and overstory tree species and canopy shading are measured. These data are summarized in a series of simple visualizations to provide a status overview for the year. Through this monitoring, SCPN seeks to increase understanding of upland systems and provide resource managers with valuable information they can use to help guide management decisions. In 2019, IUM field crews sampled 21 plots in the mesa-top pinyon-juniper ecosystem at Bandelier National Monument. Nine additional plots were scheduled for sampling but were not able to be sampled, primarily due to logistical hurdles including the need to move camp several times to avoid construction at the campground (which took a lot of time out from sampling) and how difficult it has become to plan overnight backcountry trips with the loss of the Capulin base-camp cabin and mesa-top water cache. We may need to reconsider how many plots we can reasonably sample at Bandelier in the future. Cheatgrass (Bromus tectorum) continues to increase on the mesa top. This season, it was the species with the highest average plot cover (7.89%) for the first time (surpassing snakeweed!), and it occurred in almost every plot we sampled. Cheatgrass dominance is also reflected in the overall cover of annual grass across all plots, which was high on average but variable between plots. Although there are no live overstory pinyon trees in any of the plots sampled, we are encountering seedling and sapling pinyons in various size classes. No new species were noted during sampling.
- Type
- Published Report
- Authors
- Swan, Megan; McCoy, Lee; Veety, Carrie
- Date of Issue
- 2020-09
- Publisher
- National Park Service
- Units
- BAND , NRSS , SCPN