NGPN Plant Community Monitoring for Wind Cave National Park (WICA)

Description

These data were generated by the work of many different field crews (2011-2024) who visited each unit each year collecting information on the condition of selected resources (Vital Signs). The data collection was guided by established methods and detailed protocols including: paired (2) 50-m line-point intercept transects for abundance; 10, 1-m2 quadrats for species diversity; 314-m2 circular plots for small diameter woody species (shrubs, seedlings and saplings); and 314-m2 or 1000-m2 for trees greater than 2.5-cm at 1-meter above the ground (1-inch at breast-height). The purpose of these data is to inform park staff, planners, administrators, partners and the public with quantitative records of the composition and abundance of vegetation in National Park Units. These data were carefully collected using precise methods, careful documentation, and multiple quality control steps. Species names and codes were cross-referenced to the USDA “Plants” database authority. Rare and unknown species were collected and verified by staff of the Wyoming Natural Diversity Database, University of Wyoming. These data are working files used to guide and inform park managers who make decisions about conservation and management of habitats and resources of the park based on desired conditions of resources. These data are provided as one key piece of evidence to support management of vegetation, fuels and habitats. No claims are made, legal or otherwise, regarding the accuracy, precision and utility of these data. Many people deserve credit for these data who cannot be named here, but also recognized are: Kara Paintner, Isabel Ashton, and Joan Jackson. The Northern Great Plains Network (NGPN) is part of the NPS Inventory and Monitoring Division (IMD). We provide scientific support, data and interpretation related to resource conditions in park units within the Network in support of the National Park Service Organic Act and the National Parks Omnibus Management Act (Title II, Section 204 – Inventory and Monitoring Program). The NGPN network includes 13 NPS units: Fort Union NHS, Theodore Roosevelt NP, Knife River Indian Villages NHS, Devils Tower NM, Jewel Cave NM, Mount Rushmore NM, Badlands NP, Wind Cave NP, Fort Laramie NHS, Agate Fossil Beds NM, Scotts Bluff NM, Missouri NRR, and Niobrara NSR.

Resources

Name Format Description Link
8 https://irma.nps.gov/DataStore/DownloadFile/725988?Reference=2312654
8 https://irma.nps.gov/DataStore/DownloadFile/725990?Reference=2312654
55 https://irma.nps.gov/DataStore/DownloadFile/726059?Reference=2312654
8 https://irma.nps.gov/DataStore/DownloadFile/725989?Reference=2312654
8 https://irma.nps.gov/DataStore/DownloadFile/725991?Reference=2312654

Tags

  • ngpn
  • fuels
  • forage
  • habitat-condition
  • exotic-plants
  • vegetation
  • native-species

Topics

Categories