National Park Service U.S. Department of the Interior Natural Resource Stewardship and Science Natural Resource Condition Assessment Timpanogos Cave National Monument Natural Resource Report NPS/TICA/NRR—2020/2188 The production of this document cost $59,933, including costs associated with data collection, processing, analysis, and subsequent authoring, editing, and publication. ON THIS PAGE American Fork Canyon in fall. (NPS). ON THE COVER The formation on the right side of this photo, called flowstone, was made over thousands of years by flowing water carrying dissolved mineral. The flow of the water caused this formation to look very much like a frozen waterfall. (NPS). Natural Resource Condition Assessment Timpanogos Cave National Monument Natural Resource Report NPS/TICA/NRR—2020/2188 Catherin A Schwemm1, Donna Shorrock2 1Institute for Wildlife Studies PO Box 1104 Arcata, CA 95518 2National Park Service Intermountain Region Office 12795 West Alameda Parkway Denver, CO 80228 November 2020 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, which was provided by subject-matter experts who were not directly involved in the collection, analysis, or reporting of the data. The level and extent of peer review was based on the importance of report content or its potentially controversial or precedent-setting nature. 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 in digital format from the Natural Resource Condition Assessment Program website and the Natural Resource Publications Management website. If you have difficulty accessing information in this publication, particularly if using assistive technology, please email [email protected]. Please cite this publication as: Schwemm, C. A., and D. Shorrock. 2020. Natural resource condition assessment: Timpanogos Cave National Monument. Natural Resource Report NPS/TICA/NRR—2020/2188. National Park Service, Fort Collins, Colorado. https://doi.org/10.36967/nrr-2279634. NPS 153/173822, November 2020 ii Contents Page Figures................................................................................................................................................... xi Tables ..................................................................................................................................................xiii Executive Summary ............................................................................................................................. xv Prologue ............................................................................................................................................. xvii Chapter 2. Park Resource Setting/Resource Stewardship Context ........................................................ 3 2.1. Introduction ............................................................................................................................. 3 2.1.1. Enabling Legislation/Administrative History .................................................................. 4 2.1.2. Geographic Location and Physical Setting ...................................................................... 5 2.1.3. Cultural History and Significance ................................................................................... 5 2.1.4. Visitation ......................................................................................................................... 6 2.2. Physical Resources and Processes ........................................................................................... 6 2.2.1. Climate ............................................................................................................................ 6 2.2.2. Geology ........................................................................................................................... 6 2.2.3. Soils ................................................................................................................................. 7 2.2.4. Hydrology and Water Quality ......................................................................................... 7 2.2.5. Fire ................................................................................................................................... 7 2.3. Natural Resources .................................................................................................................... 8 2.3.1. Vegetation Communities ................................................................................................. 8 2.3.2. Threatened/Endangered Species .................................................................................... 10 2.3.3. Species and Communities of Concern ........................................................................... 10 2.3.4. Non-biologic Resources of Concern ............................................................................. 11 2.4. Relevant Regional and Landscape-scale Information ........................................................... 13 2.5. Primary Threats to Natural Resources ................................................................................... 13 2.5.1. Climate Change ............................................................................................................. 13 2.5.2. Adjacent Land Use ........................................................................................................ 13 2.5.3. Visitor Use ..................................................................................................................... 13 iii Contents (continued) Page 2.5.4. Cave Lights .................................................................................................................... 13 2.5.5. Non-native/Invasive Species ......................................................................................... 13 2.6. Resource Stewardship ........................................................................................................... 14 2.6.1. Management Directives, Planning Guidance and Research .......................................... 14 2.6.2. Supporting Science ........................................................................................................ 15 2.7. Literature Cited ...................................................................................................................... 15 Chapter 3. Study Approach .................................................................................................................. 21 3.1. Preliminary Scoping .............................................................................................................. 21 3.1.1. Targeted Investigation Topic – Cave Watershed .......................................................... 21 3.2. Study Design ......................................................................................................................... 23 3.2.1. Indicator Framework, Study Resources and Indicators ................................................. 23 3.2.2. General Approach and Methods .................................................................................... 23 3.2.3. Components Included in Each Analysis ........................................................................ 23 3.2.4. Project Challenges ......................................................................................................... 24 3.2.4 Condition Reporting Symbols ........................................................................................ 24 3.2.5. Project Challenges ......................................................................................................... 25 3.3. References ............................................................................................................................. 26 Chapter 4. Natural Resource Conditions.............................................................................................. 27 4.1. Air Quality ............................................................................................................................. 27 4.1.1. Background...................................................................................................................