Minute Man National Historical Park, Massachusetts
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National Park Service U.S. Department of the Interior Natural Resource Stewardship and Science Vegetation Mapping Inventory Project Minute Man National Historical Park, Massachusetts Natural Resource Report NPS/MIMA/NRR—2017/1450 ON THE COVER Managed Wooded Pasture in Minute Man National Historical Park Photograph by: Sue Gawler, NatureServe Vegetation Mapping Inventory Project Minute Man National Historical Park, Massachusetts Natural Resource Report NPS/MIMA/NRR—2017/1450 Susan C. Gawler1 and Robert E. Zaremba2 1NatureServe University of Massachusetts at Boston 100 Morrissey Blvd. Boston, MA 02125 2PO Box 607 1409 Main Street Chatham, MA 02633 edited and updated by: Cogan Technology, Inc. 21 Valley Road Galena, IL 61036 May 2017 U.S. Department of the Interior National Park Service Natural Resource Stewardship and Science Fort Collins, Colorado The National Park Service, Natural Resource Stewardship and Science office in Fort Collins, Colorado, publishes a range of reports that address natural resource topics. These reports are of interest and applicability to a broad audience in the National Park Service and others in natural resource management, including scientists, conservation and environmental constituencies, and the public. The Natural Resource Report Series is used to disseminate comprehensive information and analysis about natural resources and related topics concerning lands managed by the National Park Service. The series supports the advancement of science, informed decision-making, and the achievement of the National Park Service mission. The series also provides a forum for presenting more lengthy results that may not be accepted by publications with page limitations. All manuscripts in the series receive the appropriate level of peer review to ensure that the information is scientifically credible, technically accurate, appropriately written for the intended audience, and designed and published in a professional manner. This report received informal peer review by subject-matter experts who were not directly involved in the collection, analysis, or reporting of the data. Views, statements, findings, conclusions, recommendations, and data in this report do not necessarily reflect views and policies of the National Park Service, U.S. Department of the Interior. Mention of trade names or commercial products does not constitute endorsement or recommendation for use by the U.S. Government. This report is available from the Northeast Temperate Inventory and Monitoring Network website and the Natural Resource Publications Management website. To receive this report in a format that is optimized to be accessible using screen readers for the visually or cognitively impaired, please email [email protected]. Please cite this publication as: Gawler, S. C., R. E. Zaremba, and Cogan Technology, Inc. 2017. Vegetation mapping inventory project: Minute Man National Historical Park, Massachusetts. Natural Resource Report NPS/MIMA/NRR—2017/1450. National Park Service, Fort Collins, Colorado. NPS 406/138442, May 2017 ii Contents Page Figures.................................................................................................................................................... v Tables ................................................................................................................................................... vii Appendices ............................................................................................................................................ ix Executive Summary .............................................................................................................................. xi Acknowledgments ...............................................................................................................................xiii Acronyms and Abbreviations............................................................................................................... xv Introduction ............................................................................................................................................ 1 NPS National Vegetation Mapping Inventory ............................................................................... 1 U.S. National Vegetation Classification ......................................................................................... 2 Massachusetts Natural Heritage and Endangered Species Program (MNH&ESP) Relation to the USNVC .................................................................................................................. 3 NPS Northeast Temperate Network ............................................................................................... 5 Project Area and Minute Man National Historical Park................................................................. 6 Park Environmental Attributes .................................................................................................. 9 Geology ................................................................................................................................... 12 Soils ......................................................................................................................................... 13 Hydrology ................................................................................................................................ 16 Land Use .................................................................................................................................. 17 Methods ................................................................................................................................................ 19 Project Timeline ........................................................................................................................... 19 Planning and Scoping ................................................................................................................... 19 Review of Existing Information and Preliminary Vegetation Classification ............................... 19 Aerial Photography Acquisition and Processing .......................................................................... 20 Photointerpretation and Preliminary Vegetation Map Production ............................................... 22 Field Survey............................................................................................................................. 23 Vegetation Classification and Characterization ...................................................................... 26 2006 Draft Vegetation Map Preparation ...................................................................................... 27 Positional Accuracy Assessment .................................................................................................. 27 Thematic Accuracy Assessment ................................................................................................... 28 iii Contents (continued) Page Field Methods .......................................................................................................................... 32 Data Analysis........................................................................................................................... 33 Final Products Preparation ........................................................................................................... 34 Results .................................................................................................................................................. 35 Vegetation Classification and Characterization ........................................................................... 35 Vegetation Map ............................................................................................................................ 41 Positional Accuracy Assessment .................................................................................................. 43 Thematic Accuracy Assessment ................................................................................................... 47 Vegetation Classification and Characterization ........................................................................... 47 Project Products ............................................................................................................................ 52 Discussion ............................................................................................................................................ 55 Vegetation Classification and Characterization ........................................................................... 55 Upland Map Classes ................................................................................................................ 55 Wetland Map Classes .............................................................................................................. 57 Plant Species Records.............................................................................................................. 58 Non-native Plant Species ......................................................................................................... 58 Final Vegetation Map Production ................................................................................................ 59 Conclusions .................................................................................................................................. 59 Literature Cited ...................................................................................................................................