Series: Intermountain Park Science: Drought in the Southwest

In this issue of Intermountain Park Science, authors examine the consequences of drought and their impacts to both natural and cultural resources in some interesting and often overlooked ways.

  • Capitol Reef National Park

    Article 1: Shifting Gears: Leveraging Monitoring Data to Move from Weather to Ecological Forecasts

    A person walks through a field of yellow flowers.

    Innovative tools are being developed to nowcast and forecast the severity of drought impacts on wildfire hazard, and other conditions. Automated alerts and forecasts of resource condition provide lead time to implement creative solutions to minimize drought impacts in national parks. The information used to build forecasts is also useful for understanding and planning for potential climate change impacts in the future. Intermountain Park Science, 2024 Read more

  • Article 2: Drought, Fire, and Archeology in the Jemez Mountains, New Mexico

    A fire burns in a pine forest.

    In the Jemez Mountains, drought is one key variable causing forest fires that result in a wide range of effects to archeological sites, historic structures, cultural landscapes, and traditional cultural places. This article presents guidelines developed from the ArcBurn project, an interdisciplinary effort to quantify archeological fire effects and the fuels and fire environments that cause them. Intermountain Park Science, 2024 Read more

  • Grand Canyon National Park

    Article 3: Phenology and Climate Change: Understanding Nature’s Language through Data and Community Science

    People look at oak leaves turning color.

    At Grand Canyon National Park, scientists and resource managers closely monitor observed and projected impacts from climate change that could have significant effects on the park’s vegetation, wildlife, and water supply. One of the ways that the park monitors these impacts is through a phenology observational study for the plant life at the Grand Canyon. Intermountain Park Science, 2024 Read more

  • Article 4: Smallmouth Bass: Not a Small Threat to the Grand Canyon

    A boat on the Colorado River, Grand Canyon.

    Decades of climate-driven drought, and a consistent imbalance between supply and demand for Colorado River water have led to low reservoir levels in the Colorado River Basin. Low water levels have implications to rivers located both upstream and downstream of the reservoirs, including the introduction of invasive fish. We modeled the probability that smallmouth bass would establish and what we could do to mitigate that threat. Intermountain Park Science, 2024 Read more

  • Article 5: Developing Climate Change Strategies and Actions at Your Park

    The sun peaks from around a rock structure.

    To be effective, response to climate change must be applied at the park level. The Climate Change Response Program and partners have developed tools, frameworks, and strategies to help park managers understand, adapt to, mitigate, and communicate about climate change. This article details what these tools are and how parks can access them, using examples from the American Southwest emphasizing drought and its effects. Intermountain Park Science, 2024 Read more

Tags: drought intermountain park science