NPS: Nature & Science » Networks

Inventories

A natural resource inventory is an extensive point-in-time effort to determine location or condition of a resource, including the presence, class, distribution, and status of plants, animals, and abiotic components such as water, soils, landforms, and climate. Inventories contribute to a statement of park resources, which is best described in relation to a standard condition such as the natural or unimpaired state. Inventories may involve both the compilation of existing information and the acquisition of new information. They may be relative to either a particular point in space (synoptic) or time (temporal).

Three major goals

Document through existing, verifiable data and targeted field investigations the occurrence of at least 90% of the species of vertebrates and vascular plants currently estimated to occur in the parks.
Describe the distribution and relative abundance of species of special concern, such as Threatened and Endangered species, exotics, and other species of special management interest occurring within park boundaries.
Provide the baseline information needed to develop a general monitoring strategy and design that can be implemented by parks once inventories have been completed, tailored to specific park threats and resource issues.

The Inventory and Monitoring program is required to perform twelve basic inventories and three biological inventories:

Twelve baseline inventories