An evaluation of biological inventory data collected at Kings Mountain National Military Park: Vertebrate and vascular plant inventories

Moore, Bill

An important function of the National Park Service (NPS) is protecting and maintaining the biological diversity found within parks. In an effort to assist parks in documenting vascular plants and vertebrates, the NPS Inventory and Monitoring Program (I&M) provided funding and technical assistance through its 32 I&M Networks. Kings Mountain National Military Park (KIMO) is within the Cumberland Piedmont Network (CUPN). In cooperation with KIMO, CUPN compiled existing information on vertebrates and vascular plants (i.e., species lists with related attribute and spatial data) and initiated additional field investigations in an effort to document 90% of the species of vertebrates (amphibians, birds, fish, mammals and reptiles) and vascular plants believed to occur on KIMO. All data were entered and certified in NPSpecies, the NPS master database for documenting the occurrence and status of species. Based on the number of organisms categorized as Present in Park (i.e., documented) and Probably Present (high confidence of occurrence in park but undocumented), 85% of KIMO’s vertebrates and vascular plants are documented. While this is slightly lower than the I&M goal, it is apparent that substantial gains have been made in documenting vertebrates and vascular plants on KIMO. At the same time, it is anticipated that additional survey efforts will result in an increase in the number of organisms documented on KIMO. Some opportunities are noted within this report. Inventory results are also briefly discussed within the context of long-term monitoring and management. The Dwarf-flower heartleaf (Hexastylis naniflora) is the only organism on KIMO’s local list that is currently federally listed. However, its status on the park is Unconfirmed, meaning there are no known records of it’s occurrence within KIMO. The Georgia Aster (Symphyotrichum georgianum) is currently classified as a candidate for federal listing. KIMO has fewer non-native vascular plants (60) and high ranking invasives (8) than any other CUPN park. Still, aggressive non-natives are arguably the biggest single threat to the overall ecological health of the park.

An evaluation of biological inventory data collected at Kings Mountain National Military Park: Vertebrate and vascular plant inventories

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