cover:Layout 1 9/11/06 11:01 AM Page 1 National Park Service U.S. Department of the Interior Natural Resource Program Center Fort Collins, Colorado Vital Signs Monitoring Plan for the Southern Colorado Plateau Network Natural Resource Report NPS/SCPN/NRR-2006/002 cover:Layout 1 9/11/06 11:01 AM Page 2 ON THE COVER Pinyon-juniper woodlands, slickrock, and sandstone cliffs characterize the landscape overlooking Betatakin Canyon at Navajo National Monument. Photo by Chris Lauver, NPS NPS layout 6.0 9/19/06 2:17 PM Page i Vital Signs Monitoring Plan for the Southern Colorado Plateau Network Natural Resource Report NPS/SCPN/NRR-2006/002 Lisa P. Thomas, Marguerite N. Hendrie (editor), Chris L. Lauver, Stephen A. Monroe, Nicole J. Tancreto, Steven L. Garman1, Mark E. Miller2 National Park Service, Southern Colorado Plateau Network, Northern Arizona University, P.O. Box 5765, Flagstaff, AZ 86011 1National Park Service, Northern Colorado Plateau Network, P.O. Box 848, Moab, UT 84532 2United States Geological Survey, Southwest Biological Science Center, c/o Grand Staircase–Escalante National Monument 190 E. Center St., Kanab, UT 84741 October 2006 U.S. Department of Interior National Park Service Natural Resource Program Center Fort Collins, Colorado NPS layout 6.0 9/19/06 2:17 PM Page ii The Natural Resource Publication series addresses natu- Views and conclusions in this report are those of the ral resource topics that are of interest and applicability authors and do not necessarily reflect policies of the to a broad readership in the National Park Service and National Park Service. Mention of trade names or com- to others in the management of natural resources, mercial products does not constitute endorsement or including the scientific community, the public, and the recommendation for use by the National Park Service. NPS conservation and environmental constituencies. Manuscripts are peer-reviewed to ensure that the infor- Printed copies of reports in these series may be pro- mation is scientifically credible, technically accurate, duced in a limited quantity and they are only available appropriately written for the intended audience, and is as long as the supply lasts. This report is also available designed and published in a professional manner. from the Southern Colorado Plateau website (http://www.nature.nps.gov/im/units/SCPN) on the The Natural Resources Technical Reports series is used to internet, or by sending a request to: disseminate the peer-reviewed results of scientific studies Southern Colorado Plateau Network in the physical, biological, and social sciences for both Northern Arizona University the advancement of science and the achievement of the P.O. Box 5765 National Park Service’s mission. The reports provide con- Flagstaff, AZ 86011 tributors with a forum for displaying comprehensive data that are often deleted from journals because of page Please cite this publication as: limitations. Current examples of such reports include Thomas, L.P., M.N. Hendrie (editor), C.L. Lauver, the results of research that addresses natural resource S.A. Monroe, N.J. Tancreto, S.L. Garman, and M.E. Miller. management issues; natural resource inventory and 2006. Vital Signs Monitoring Plan for the Southern monitoring activities; resource assessment reports; scien- Colorado Plateau Network. Natural Resource Report tific literature reviews; and peer reviewed proceedings of NPS/SCPN/NRR-2006/002. National Park Service, Fort technical workshops, conferences, or symposia. Collins, Colorado. NPS D-46, October 2006 ii NPS layout 6.0 9/19/06 2:17 PM Page iii EXECUTIVE SUMMARY KNOWING THE CONDITION of natural resources in national detailed park scoping to identify the most important parks is fundamental to the Service’s ability to manage resources and issues for each park. A second step was park resources “unimpaired for the enjoyment of future to collaborate with regional scientists to develop con- generations”. The National Park Service has implement- ceptual ecological models of the predominant Colorado ed a strategy to improve its science information base so Plateau ecosystems. The network then held a series of that parks with significant natural resources possess the workshops in 2004 to identify and evaluate vital signs resource information needed for effective decision-making for long-term monitoring. During seven topical work- and resource protection. Vital signs monitoring is a key shops park managers and scientists, collaborators from element of that strategy. The approximately 270 park the scientific community, and SCPN staff identified and units with significant natural resources have been evaluated resources and potential indicators as candi- grouped into 32 monitoring networks linked by geogra- dates for monitoring. Following those workshops, the phy and natural resource characteristics. The network SCPN Technical and Science Advisory Committees met organization will facilitate collaboration, information to make the final selection of network vital signs. sharing, and economies of scale in natural resource monitoring. Parks within each of the 32 networks col- Over the next five years, network staff and collaborators laborate with shared funding and professional staff to will develop 13 monitoring protocols to address the core design and implement long-term monitoring. The vital signs for the SCPN. These monitoring protocols will Southern Colorado Plateau Network (SCPN) is com- provide detailed study plans that explain how data are to posed of 19 National Park Service units located in be collected, managed, analyzed, and reported and will northern Arizona, northwestern New Mexico, south- serve as a key component of quality assurance for vital western Colorado, and southern Utah. signs monitoring. Developing an ecological monitoring strategy requires A key partner in these planning activities is the Northern a front-end investment in planning and design to Colorado Plateau Network (NCPN), our neighboring ensure that monitoring will meet the most critical network composed of 16 parks in Utah, Colorado, and information needs and produce ecologically relevant Wyoming. NPS units across the Colorado Plateau share and scientifically credible data that are readily accessi- ecosystems and a long-history of working together on ble to managers. The SCPN monitoring program is natural resource science and stewardship. The two being developed over a five-year timeframe with spe- networks have been tasked by Colorado Plateau park cific objectives and reporting requirements at each of managers to identify common monitoring needs and three planning milestones. This is the final report that work together as much as possible to design and documents that process. implement ecological monitoring. The two networks collaborated on developing conceptual ecological mod- The first planning steps involved compiling and organiz- els for Colorado Plateau ecosystems and are currently ing relevant science information and conducting collaborating to develop monitoring protocols. iii NPS layout 6.0 9/19/06 2:17 PM Page iv VITAL SIGNS MONITORING PLAN FOR THE SOUTHERN COLORADO PLATEAU NETWORK SCPN core vital signs organized within the NPS Ecological Monitoring Framework Developing sampling designs for long-term monitoring is of five SCPN superintendents, oversees network administra- essential to ensure that the data collected are representa- tion and provides program guidance and advocacy. The tive of the target populations and sufficient to draw Technical Advisory Committee, made up of park natural defensible conclusions about the resources of interest. resource managers, advises the network regarding scientific The sampling design chapter describes how sampling and technical planning aspects, park-based logistic support, locations are chosen for each vital sign and how the sam- and resource management applications of monitoring results. pling effort will be rotated through time among locations. The scientific panel comprises six academic scientists with regional and/or discipline expertise. They advise us on improv- In order to be useful to park managers over the long term, ing the scientific relevance and credibility of the program. monitoring data must be well-maintained and regularly reported. The data management chapter describes our The network was initially funded for vital signs monitoring standards and procedures to ensure the quality, security, in FY 2002 and currently receives $1,209,000 from the longevity, and availability of monitoring data and associ- NPS I&M Program on an annual basis. The NPS-Water ated information products. SCPN staff will use appropriate Resources Division annually contributes an additional computer information technology tools and will provide $124,000 for water quality monitoring. high quality data stewardship at every step of the monitor- ing process, from protocol development and data The SCPN staff is based in Flagstaff, Arizona on the cam- collection through analysis, reporting, and archiving. pus of Northern Arizona University. The program manager is supervised by the Colorado Plateau Cooperative In the data analysis and reporting chapter, we present Ecosystem Studies Unit (CP-CESU) Research Coordinator. an overview of how data collected by the network will In addition to the program manager, the network’s perma- be analyzed and how we will effectively share the moni- nent staff will include four scientists, a three-person data toring results with park managers, scientists, and the management team, and a half-time