Inventories

At nine southwestern parks, Sonoran Desert Network staff are performing environmental DNA (eDNA) sampling. By analyzing the genomes present in a water sample, eDNA sampling allows us to learn which species use a given area without the use of capture, hair snares, or cameras. The results of this inventory will help NPS staff to prioritize springs for monitoring and conservation.

Mammal inventories help to close the gap in our knowledge and understanding of some taxonomic groups on the Colorado Plateau.

Vegetation mapping is a tool used by botanists, ecologists, and land managers to better understand the abundance, diversity, and distribution of different vegetation types across a landscape.

The climate inventory documented past and present climate monitoring efforts, focusing largely on identifying weather and climate stations in and near Southern Colorado Plateau Network parks.

From inventory data, to long-term monitoring data sets, to special projects, Southern Colorado Plateau Network data on vegetation communities, wildlife, and hydrology has informed much of the work being done in the network’s 19 parks.

Amistad National Recreation Area is positioned near the boundary of three biotic regions—Chihuahuan Desert, Edwards Plateau, and Tamaulipan Shrublands—and includes the confluences of the Rio Grande, the Pecos River, and the Devils River. Mammals have been studied both before and after the reservoir was constructed from the 1960s-1980s. However, no comprehensive mammalian inventory had been conducted within the park until this project.

In 2003 and 2004, the University of Arizona conducted an inventory of reptiles and amphibians (herpetofauna) in six National Park Service Chihuahuan Desert Network parks. Primary objectives of this inventory were to document reptile and amphibian species, map the distribution of all species found, and determine a rough relative abundance for each species.

Birds are a highly visible component of many ecosystems and because they respond quickly to changes in resource conditions, birds are good indicators of environmental change. Bird inventories allow us to understand the current condition, or status, of bird populations and communities in parks. These data are important for managing birds and other resources and provide baseline information for monitoring changes over time.

In 2004, independent researchers began conducting a three-year inventory of birds in low-elevation riparian (stream-side) habitats in the National Park Service’s Chihuahuan Desert Network. The goals of this study were to (1) document the presence, richness, and abundance of bird species; (2) compare results to existing information about park birds and update park checklists; and (3) provide baseline data and site evaluations that may be used to develop bird monitoring programs in the Network.

Prior to this inventory, little information existed on the presence, distribution, or relative abundance of high-country breeding birds in Carlsbad Caverns National Park.