The Southern Colorado Plateau Network (SCPN) is composed of 19 parks located throughout the diverse landscapes of northern Arizona, northwestern New Mexico, southwestern Colorado and southern Utah. Most of the park units lie within the southern Colorado Plateau ecoregion, but a few parks are allied with the Arizona-New Mexico Mountains and Southern Rocky Mountains ecoregions. The parks range in size from 14 to more than 500,000 hectares, with more than 750,000 hectares within the network designated or proposed as wilderness.
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- Locations: Arches National Park, Aztec Ruins National Monument, Bandelier National Monument, Bent's Old Fort National Historic Site, Big Bend National Park, more »
- Offices: Chihuahuan Desert Inventory & Monitoring Network, Climate Change, Climate Change Response Program, Inventory and Monitoring Division, Mediterranean Coast Inventory & Monitoring Network, more »
When the climate changes enough, the vegetation communities growing in any given place will also change. Under an expanded bimodal climate zone, some plant communities in western national parks are more likely to change than others. National Park Service ecologists and partners investigated the future conditions that may force some of this change. Having this information can help park managers decide whether to resist, direct, or accept the change.
- Locations: Aztec Ruins National Monument, Bandelier National Monument, Canyon de Chelly National Monument, Chaco Culture National Historical Park, El Malpais National Monument, more »
The combination of high. elevation and a semi-arid climate makes the Colorado Plateau particularly vulnerable to climate change. Climate models predict that over the next 100 years, the Southwest will become warmer and even more arid, with more extreme droughts than the region has experienced in the recent past.
NPS and USGS scientists found that a commonly used method of measuring vegetation greenness from satellites does not work properly in many western US ecosystems, including most western pinyon-juniper woodlands and many conifer forests and woodlands.
- Locations: Sunset Crater Volcano National Monument, Walnut Canyon National Monument, Wupatki National Monument
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.
- Locations: Alibates Flint Quarries National Monument, Amistad National Recreation Area, Arches National Park, Aztec Ruins National Monument, Bandelier National Monument, more »
- Offices: Chihuahuan Desert Inventory & Monitoring Network, Greater Yellowstone Inventory & Monitoring Network, Inventory and Monitoring Division, Natural Resource Stewardship and Science Directorate, Northern Colorado Plateau Inventory & Monitoring Network, more »
Across the Intermountain Region, Inventory & Monitoring Division ecologists are helping to track the effects of climate change, provide baseline information for resource management, evaluate new technologies, and inspire the next generation of park stewards. This article highlights accomplishments achieved during fiscal year 2021.
- Locations: Aztec Ruins National Monument, Bandelier National Monument, Chaco Culture National Historical Park, Glen Canyon National Recreation Area, Grand Canyon National Park, more »
In this project, USGS and NPS scientists used the range of variation in historical climate data to provide context for assessing the relative impact of projected future climate on soil water availability. This report provides the results of modeled SWP generated for 11 ecosystems in nine Southern Colorado Plateau Network parks.
- Locations: Bandelier National Monument, Canyon de Chelly National Monument, Grand Canyon National Park, Mesa Verde National Park
Aquatic macroinvertebrates, such as insect larvae, snails, and worms, play a vital role in stream ecosystems, both as a food source and as consumers of algae and other organic matter. Because macroinvertebrates are sensitive to environmental change, monitoring them can help to detect chemical, physical, and biological impacts to aquatic ecosystems.
- Locations: Bandelier National Monument, Canyon de Chelly National Monument, Grand Canyon National Park, Mesa Verde National Park, Petrified Forest National Park, Wupatki National Monument
Bird communities can tell us a lot about changing environmental conditions. High on the food chain, and sensitive to climate and habitat changes, birds are monitored on the Southern Colorado Plateau as indicators of riparian and upland ecosystem health.
Phenology refers to the timing of annual biological events, such as migration, nesting, and the greening up and flowering of plants. Phenology is affected by environmental factors, especially climate. Changes in the timing of natural events can have profound effects on organisms and ecological processes, making phenology an indicator of ecosystem responses to climate change.
- Locations: Bandelier National Monument, Canyon de Chelly National Monument, Chaco Culture National Historical Park, El Malpais National Monument, El Morro National Monument, more »
Many national parks in the Southern Colorado Plateau region contain large areas of wilderness, where dark night skies and natural soundscapes are important human values. Dark night skies, which depend upon the visibility of stars and other natural components, are diminishing resources in several park units because of anthropogenic activities. Natural soundscapes—that is, the natural sounds of wildlands—are degraded by sounds caused by humans or human technology.
Last updated: February 19, 2019