Pacific Northwest Cooperative Ecosystem Studies Unit (CESU)

Natural Resources Condition Assessment for Guadalupe Mountains National Park

Project ID: J8W07110011

Federal Agency: National Park Service

Partner Institution: Saint Mary’s University of Minnesota

Fiscal Year: 2011

Initial Funding: $58,750

Total Funding: $74,750

Project Type: Research

Project Disciplines: Biological

National Park: Guadalupe Mountains National Park

Principal Investigator: Drazkowski, Barry

Agreement Technical Representative: Reiser, Hildy

Abstract: This is a collaborative project to conduct an ecological assessment of natural resource conditions for Guadalupe Mountains National Park (GUMO). This assessment will rely on existing scientific data from multiple sources, combined with best professional judgment from an interdisciplinary team of specialists, to evaluate overall functional status and integrity for NPS-managed ecological park resources. Project scope is comprehensive in that a wide range of biotic, abiotic, landscape, and ecological resources and interactions will be considered, and that conditions will be evaluated for selected critical ecological indicators for GUMO. The assessment will utilize a standardized NPS framework modeled around six essential ecological attributes at appropriate scales of analysis. The purpose of the assessment is to understand and report on the condition of resources for park-managed ecological components. However, some analyses (e.g., threats/stressors, current conditions) will likely be conducted at broader watershed or landscape scales that encompass areas extending beyond the park’s boundaries in order to establish context for park resources. The approach includes three stages: Stage 1, a detailed definition of project goals and objectives, ranking of management issues and resources, and a determination of key data required for assessment. Stage 2 includes data compilation and review, and expert discussion/synthesis to support the assessment; and Stage 3, collaborative assessment of resource condition, trends, recommendations, and reporting consistent with the NPS technical report series. A key element in this process is that NPS will provide a significant level of support for the scoping process, framework development, and most importantly, the project’s data mining efforts specific to the identified indicators for GUMO. The public benefits include better understanding, insight, management awareness, and sustainability of the natural resources in GUMO. This project will provide the public with useful information that will assist in their understanding of current resource conditions in the park, as well as providing them with information they can use when partnering with the park in planning projects and developing resource and general management plans for the park

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