A NATURAL RESOURCE ASSESSMENT
FOR SHENANDOAH NATIONAL PARK

Technical Report NPS/NER/NRTR—2006/071

Carolyn G. Mahan
The Pennsylvania State University
Altoona College
209 Hawthorn Building
Altoona, PA 16601

December 2006

U.S. Department of the Interior
National Park Service
Northeast Region
Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
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Executive Summary

This report provides an assessment of the currently available natural resource knowledge relating to Shenandoah National Park (SHEN). This report provides usable, understandable, and transferable information about the current status and significance of, threats to, and gaps in knowledge about the natural resources at SHEN. In addition, this report presents suggested management recommendations to help ensure proper stewardship of natural resources at SHEN. The knowledge contained in this report was translated into a natural resources report card so that current resource conditions and trends can be immediately understood by legislators, park managers, and the general public.

In order to conduct this assessment, all relevant reports, publications, and data files pertinent to natural resources in the park were synthesized and summarized. In addition, two workshops related to specific natural resources (geology and animal resources) were conducted and attended by park resource managers, academic, non-governmental (e.g., The Nature Conservancy) and governmental researchers, and research technicians. Workshop attendees helped summarize past and ongoing natural resource studies, identified gaps in knowledge about the resources, and suggested desired conditions and management prescriptions for natural resources at SHEN. In addition, participants provided their collective opinions regarding the significance of these natural resources. Key researchers and managers who could not attend the workshops were met with on an individual basis to obtain their input. Workshops were not held for other natural resource groups (e.g., air, water, plants) because technical summary reports or assessments had been prepared for these groups within the last three years.

A combination of high elevation, ancient geology, topographic variation, and natural- and human-caused disturbance regimes shaped the natural resource condition at SHEN today. Within this recovering, largely forested landscape, a variety of natural resources are intrinsically significant on a global, national, regional, or state (local) level, and are summarized below.

Please open pdf file 1 and go to Executive Summary to see the table that summarizes this information.

An 80-year history of natural resource management at SHEN has permitted this forest landscape to recover from intensive resource use and change. Continued stewardship of the park’s natural resources will require resource managers to cooperate with local, regional, and national officials and communities.

Furthermore, proper planning will ensure that human impacts to natural resources at SHEN are limited and the park will remain an outstanding example of the Blue Ridge Mountain ecosystem.

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