Strategies for Monitoring Terrestrial Animals and Habitats
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United States Department of Agriculture Strategies for Monitoring Forest Service Terrestrial Animals and Rocky Mountain Research Station Habitats General Technical Report RMRS-GTR-161 September 2005 Richard Holthausen, Raymond L. Czaplewski, Don DeLorenzo, Greg Hayward, Winifred B. Kessler, Pat Manley, Kevin S. McKelvey, Douglas S. Powell, Leonard F. Ruggiero, Michael K. Schwartz, Bea Van Horne, Christina D. Vojta Holthausen, Richard; Czaplewski, Raymond L.; DeLorenzo, Don; Hayward, Greg; Kessler, Winifred B.; Manley, Pat; McKelvey, Kevin S.; Powell, Douglas S.; Ruggiero, Leonard F.; Schwartz, Michael K.; Van Horne, Bea; Vojta, Christina D. 2005. Strategies for monitoring terrestrial animals and habitats. Gen. Tech. Rep. RMRS-GTR-161. Fort Collins, CO: U.S. Department of Agriculture, Forest Service, Rocky Mountain Research Station. 34 p. Abstract ________________________________________ This General Technical Report (GTR) addresses monitoring strategies for terrestrial animals and habitats. It focuses on monitoring associated with National Forest Management Act planning and is intended to apply primarily to monitoring efforts that are broader than individual National Forests. Primary topics covered in the GTR are monitoring requirements; ongoing monitoring programs; key monitoring questions and measures; balancing three necessary and complemen- tary forms of monitoring (targeted, cause-and-effect, and context); sampling design and statistical considerations; use of the data that result from monitoring; and organizational and operational considerations in the development and implementation of monitoring programs. The GTR concludes with a series of recommendations for the ongoing improvement of monitoring of terrestrial animals and their habitat. The Authors _____________________________________ Richard Holthausen: Washington Office, Watershed, Fish and Wildlife, Flagstaff, AZ Raymond L. Czaplewski: Rocky Mountain Research Station, Fort Collins, CO Don DeLorenzo: Southwestern Region, Albuquerque, NM Greg Hayward: Rocky Mountain Region, Denver, CO Winifred B. Kessler: Alaska Region, Juneau, AK Pat Manley: Pacific Southwest Research Station, Sierra Nevada Research Center, Davis, CA Kevin S. McKelvey: Rocky Mountain Research Station, Missoula, MT Douglas S. Powell: Washington Office, Ecosystem Management Coordination, Washington, DC Leonard F. Ruggiero: Rocky Mountain Research Station, Missoula, MT Michael K. Schwartz: Rocky Mountain Research Station, Missoula, MT Bea Van Horne: Washington Office, Wildlife, Fish, Water, and Air Research, Washington, DC Christina D. Vojta: Washington Office, Watershed, Fish and Wildlife, Flagstaff, AZ You may order additional copies of this publication by sending your mailing information in label form through one of the following media. Please specify the publication title and number. Telephone (970) 498-1392 FAX (970) 498-1396 E-mail [email protected] Web site http://www.fs.fed.us/rm Mailing Address Publications Distribution Rocky Mountain Research Station 240 West Prospect Road Fort Collins, CO 80526 Strategies for Monitoring Terrestrial Animals and Habitats Richard Holthausen, Raymond L. Czaplewski, Don DeLorenzo, Greg Hayward, Winifred B. Kessler, Pat Manley, Kevin S. McKelvey, Douglas S. Powell, Leonard F. Ruggiero, Michael K. Schwartz, Bea Van Horne, Christina D. Vojta Contents Page Preface ..................................................................................................................iii Executive Summary .............................................................................................. iv Chapter 1 Background........................................................................................... 1 Monitoring Under the National Forest Management Act...................................... 1 Current Wildlife and Habitat Monitoring ............................................................... 1 Overview of existing monitoring activities and programs for terrestrial species ................................................................................. 1 Habitat monitoring—the FIA program ............................................................. 2 The utility of existing programs....................................................................... 3 The need for improvement to existing monitoring programs .......................... 4 Chapter 2 Questions and Measures ..................................................................... 5 Monitoring Questions ........................................................................................... 5 Selection of Ecosystem Elements to Monitor ...................................................... 6 Selection of Measures for the Ecosystem Elements ........................................... 8 Population and community measures ............................................................ 8 Habitat measures ........................................................................................... 8 Chapter 3 Creating an Integrated Monitoring Program .................................... 11 Categories of Monitoring.................................................................................... 11 Targeted monitoring ..................................................................................... 11 Cause-and-effect monitoring ........................................................................ 11 Context monitoring ....................................................................................... 12 Strengths of Different Monitoring Types ............................................................ 12 Targeted monitoring ..................................................................................... 12 Cause-and-effect monitoring ........................................................................ 12 Context monitoring ...................................................................................... 13 Balancing Components in a Comprehensive Monitoring Program .................... 13 A Case Example to Illustrate Targeted, Cause-and-Effect, and Context Monitoring and Their Relationships ................................................ 15 Chapter 4 Sampling Design and Statistical Considerations and Guidelines ............................................................................................ 17 Ecological and Management Context ................................................................ 17 Scale Issues ...................................................................................................... 17 i Resonable Expectations of Monitoring Programs.............................................. 18 Variability over time ...................................................................................... 18 Timeframe of inference ................................................................................ 18 Geographic area of inference ....................................................................... 19 Sample Design .................................................................................................. 19 Sampling Adequacy ........................................................................................... 20 Review Process ................................................................................................. 20 Chapter 5 Applying Monitoring to Managment ................................................. 23 Adaptive Management ....................................................................................... 23 Evaluation of Targeted, Context, and Cause-and-Effect Data........................... 23 Linkage of Habitat and Population Monitoring ................................................... 24 Chapter 6 Organizational Considerations ......................................................... 27 Effective Organizational Structure and Roles .................................................... 27 Current situation ........................................................................................... 27 Desired condition and organization .............................................................. 27 Operational Strategies ....................................................................................... 30 Partnerships....................................................................................................... 31 International Association of Fish and Wildlife Agencies (IAFWA) ................ 31 State agencies .............................................................................................. 31 BLM, NPS, DOD, and Tribes ........................................................................ 31 USGS ........................................................................................................... 32 NatureServe ................................................................................................. 32 Other NGOs ................................................................................................. 32 Volunteers .................................................................................................... 32 Chapter 7 Critical Elements for Successful Monitoring ................................... 33 Literature Cited .................................................................................................. 33 ii Preface _______________________________ The original version of this report was prepared at the request of Forest Service Regional Directors of wildlife who wanted a team to provide recommendations for monitoring terrestrial animals