Rocky Mountain Network - Full Study Plan for Biological Inventories: Leading to an Integrated Monitoring Program
Author unknown. 2000. Rocky Mountain Network - Full Study Plan for Biological Inventories: Leading to an Integrated Monitoring Program. National Park Service
Executive Summary: We propose a four-year project to conduct biological inventories of vertebrates and vascular plants in the Rocky Mountain Network including Rocky Mountain NP, Glacier NP, Florissant Fossil Beds NM, Grant-Kohrs Ranch NHS, Great Sand Dunes NM, and Little Bighorn Battlefield NM. Four goals guide the Rocky Mountain Network inventory initiative: (1) Inventory 90% of vascular plant and vertebrate species; (2) Collect distribution and abundance data for species of concern; (3) Establish baseline information and associated database to support future monitoring efforts; and (4) Establish an unbiased and coordinated inventory program. This program integrates the expertise and resources of park personnel and many taxa-specific experts, with existing scientific information and peer-reviewed inventory techniques to support a scientifically sound inventory. The plan will catalogue the present condition of these species while functioning as a baseline for future monitoring efforts to facilitate scientifically sound management decisions. By adhering to basic principals of biological inventory, this program responds directly to a need for a comprehensive, standardized, and systematic inventory and monitoring program throughout the National Park Service (NPS) system. We will: (1) Continue to gather previously collected data and converting existing information to useful formats - Dataset Catalog, GIS Databrowser; (2) Improve documentation of evidence for park species lists – NPSpecies; (3) Conduct coordinated field inventories where necessary; (4) Use modeling and other data synthesis techniques to make inferences about specific species within each park, and to make comparisons across parks that will provide regional Network conclusions; and (5) Provide data synthesis on the status of biological inventories that will facilitate the transition to the monitoring of natural resources in the Rocky Mountain Network.
- Type
- Published Report
- Authors
- Author unknown
- Date of Issue
- 2000
- Publisher
- National Park Service
- Units
- ROMN
- Keywords
- Biological inventories, Inventory Study Plan, Rocky Mountain Network, Vascular Plants, Vertebrates