Corridors of invasiveness in Biscayne National Park: 2021 data summary report
Shamblin RB, Londoño M, Whelan KR. 2023. Corridors of invasiveness in Biscayne National Park: 2021 data summary report. Natural Resource Data Series. NPS/SFCN/NRDS—2023/1390. National Park Service. Fort Collins, Colorado. https://doi.org/10.36967/2294673
This report summarizes the locations surveyed and the exotic species detected while conducting the invasive exotic plant “corridors of invasiveness” survey in Biscayne National Park (BISC) in 2021. The 2021 survey occurred from June to August. A total of 27.26 kilometers (16.94 miles [mi]) were surveyed via walking, roadside surveys by truck, and roadside surveys by UTV (Figure 1), with 30 exotic species encountered during the survey. One new exotic plant species was found within the survey area. Two hundred forty-seven infestations were observed within the survey area in 2021. One hundred forty-two of these infestations are initial infestations new to the park, i.e., not new species but new infestations not present during the 2016 survey, while 104 of the infestations were still present from the 2016 survey. The exotic species with the highest number of infestations encountered in Biscayne National Park were Colubrina asiatica (latherleaf) with 53 infestations, Schinus terebinthifolia (Brazilian pepper) with 44, Thespesia populnea (portia tree) with 35 infestations, and Scaevola taccada var. sericea (beach naupaka) with 24 infestations (see Appendix A: Species Infestation Table). The species with the highest total infested area was C. asiatica with 11,845 square meters (2.9 acres ac). Others included: Zoysia spp. (templegrass) with 11,196 square meters (2.7 ac), and Stenotaphrum secundatum (St. Augustine grass) with 10,052 square meters (2.5 ac). The total area surveyed taking into account the “field of view” estimate was 266,358 square meters (65.8 ac). The total area infested was 55,350 square meters (13.7 ac); about 21% of the total area surveyed. It is important to remember these survey areas are corridors of invasiveness which means they were selected because of land use (campgrounds and trails) and are not a random sample of Biscayne National Park.
- Type
- Published Report
- Authors
- Shamblin, Robert; Londoño, Mario; Whelan, Kevin
- Date of Issue
- 2023-04
- Publisher
- National Park Service
- DOI
- 10.36967/2294673
- Units
- BISC , NRSS , SFCN
- Keywords
- Corridors, exotics, treatment
- Subjects
- Ecological Framework: Biological Integrity | Invasive Species | Invasive/Exotic plants