Natural Resource Inventories in the National Parks

The Inventory and Monitoring Program provides guidance, funding, and technical assistance for parks and networks to complete a set of 12 core natural resource inventories. These baseline inventories are common to all parks with significant natural resources, and are intended to provide park managers with the minimum information needed to effectively manage the natural resources of their park.

12 Baseline Inventories
National Site	Network Site
Natural Resource Bibliography
Base Cartography Data
Air Quality Data
Air Quality Related Values
Climate Inventory	Climate
Geologic Resources Inventory	Network Geology
Soil Resources Inventory	Soils
Water Body Location and Classification
Baseline Water Quality Data	Water Quality
Vegetation Inventory	Vegetation Mapping
Species Lists
Species Occurrence and Distribution

Network Vertebrate and Vascular Plant Inventories

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The initial funding provided in 2000 allowed the NCRN to conduct field studies to determine the occurrence of vertebrates and vascular plants in network parks where occurrence data did not already exist. The initial inventories were limited to vertebrates and vascular plants because the methodology and taxonomy were better developed at the time, and therefore could be surveyed more efficiently; however, only limited work on the distribution and abundance of the park’s highest-priority species could be undertaken. Additional field investigations will be conducted as funding becomes available to provide baseline data on the occurrence, distribution, and abundance of species that parks determine to be of highest priority for management and conservation. Advances in methodology, technology, and taxonomy now make it possible to efficiently survey groups other than vertebrates and vascular plants that were not included in the initial inventory efforts.

The National Capital Region Network began biological inventories of vertebrates and vascular plants in 2000. Two of the goals of inventory program are to document 90% of the vertebrates and vascular plants which occur in each park, and provide relative abundance and distribution maps for species of management concern. The inventories are being conducted by synthesizing data from existing reports and publications. In addition, targeted field investigations are being conducted in areas were data is deficient. The information obtained from these biological inventories will provide park managers current baseline data to make informed management decisions.

In addition to the species distribution invnetories, the additional 11 inventories are have either been completed or are in the process of being completed thanks to the efforts of national programs focused on helping networks with these inventories. These data are being managed centrally and will be incorporated into searchable online databases and geographic information systems that will become essential components to park natural resource management.

The Inventory Tracking Database was developed as a tool to help users determine the status of the various 12 inventories and point them to products.