Vascular Plants
Big
Cypress National Preserve
Project Title:
Inventory of vascular plant species at selected sites within
the Big Cypress National Preserve
Date:
3/2002 - 12/2004
Cooperator:
The Institute for Regional Conservation
Contact Information:
22601 S.W. 152 Ave.
Miami , Florida 33170
305-247-6547
Objectives:
• Document through targeted field investigations the occurrence
of at least 90 percent of the species of vascular plants currently estimated
to occur in Big Cypress National Preserve.
• Create an ArcView shape file with all sample points.
• Create FGDC compliant metadata to describe the GIS data.
• Collect and prepare voucher specimens for all applicable
species.
Methods:
An inventory based on a 1 km 2 grid cell was conducted in Big
Cypress National Preserve (BICY). Each one km 2 cell has an id number
and was classified by dominant vegetation classification from GIS data
layers using both 1995 vegetation interpretation, University of Georgia,
10 meter (78 classes) and a reclassification of the above vegetation
mapping (7 classes). Analysis of GIS vegetation maps, aerial photographs,
historic aerial photographs, soil maps, and topographic maps will determine
location of key habitat and target representative areas within those
habitats. There will be a three tiered approach to the vascular plant
inventory. The first tier will be a random selection of cells that represent
the 7 main classes of vegetation. Each stratum will have replicate samples
to ensure sampling with multiple cells. The second tier will include
cells chosen by the network coordinator and preserve resource managers
based on priority habitat types that may have the likelihood to contain
new species, and weighted based on accessibility. The third tier will
be focused on areas where management questions need to be answered,
such as areas proposed for permitted petroleum exploration leases.
BICY encompasses 2,950 km 2 , of which 60 km 2 cells would be inventoried
the first year, with 140 km 2 inventoried in year two, and 60 km 2 cells
would be inventoried in year three for a total 260 km 2 , or roughly
9% of the park. This rate would be based on 2 km 2 cells inventoried
each day. 
Within each 1 km 2 cell, the various habitat types will be identified
and each cell will be inventoried on foot. The contractor will be provided
a list of inventory locations, to include geographic coordinates for
the cell geographic centroid, cell ID, and proximity to a road with
geographic coordinates for the road access point. Ten cells will be
isolated and require the contractor to obtain helicopter support to
access these areas. The Inventory will consist of two 250 meter transects
run from the geographic centroid of the cell based on a random compass
bearing. Bearings will be required to be at least 30 degrees apart.
Variation + 5 degrees is allowable to provide for movement around hazards.
All vascular plant species encountered in contact with the transect
will be listed, as well as the vascular plant species found at each
2.5 meter point intercept of the transect. Both cell transects data
will be collected on a data sheet, and a third data sheet will be used
for other species observed in the area inventoried, without being found
on the transect. Geographic coordinates will be taken at the ends of
each transect.
Each year, fifteen pairs of transects will be collected at random points
along the roadside, using a 2 meter by 500 meter belt transects. Three
pairs of transects will be located within a 10 km stretch of road or
trail. These transects will be positioned parallel to the roadside,
approximately 1 meter from the vegetation edge. All vascular plants
will be identified to species and recorded on a data sheet. The end
points geographic coordinates will be collected. Transects will be run
on both sides of the roadway. Additional data sheet(s) will be used
to record other vascular plants observed in proximity to the transect.
Inventory point locations will be provided by the network coordinator.
Each year, ten sites will be sampled for vascular plants
in areas of specific management concern. These sites will be provided
upon award of contract, and involve potential petroleum lease locations
or abandoned homesites. These points will be sampled using five 100
meter transects radiating from the central point. All vascular plant
species will be recorded in contact with the transect, with observations
made for each 2m point intercept along the transect. Each transect will
be arranged 72 degrees apart to ensure equal coverage around the point
(e.g. 000 o , 072 o , 144 o , .).
Voucher specimens are to be collected for all species that are identified
through the inventory, except where park vouchers already exist or for
species that are readily identified through photographs or other documentation.
Voucher specimens for threatened, endangered, or candidate species are
not to be collected.
All data sheets will be reviewed by the contractor and delivered to
the I&M Coordinator for data entry. The contractor will be responsible
for review of the digital data set to ensure data entered is exactly
what was collected on the datasheet.
Voucher specimens will be collected, tagged and labeled to include collector,
voucher number, location of collection including geographic coordinates,
date, and any other pertinent information in accordance with Big Cypress
National Preserve Herbarium Guidelines.
Biscayne
National Park
Project:
Bradley, K.A., Gann G.D., Woodmansee, S.W., 2004. Inventory
of Vascular Plants of Biscayne National Park. Report submitted to the
U.S. National Park Service, Inventory and Monitoring Program by The
Institute for Regional Conservation. 
Download final report: (861
KB)
Objectives:
The Biscayne National Park (BISC) vascular plant inventory intended
to and succeeded in recording at least 90% of the park’s flora
between October 2001 and September 2004. Four hundred fifty-four taxa
(plant species) were found to occur in the park: 322 (70.1%) native
species, 108 (23.8%) naturalized exotic species and 24 (5.3%) invasive
exotic species. When compared to a study done in 1999 there was an increase
of 151 taxa in this study (a 150% increase in plant taxa).
Of the 322 native species encountered 35 are endangered, 19 are threatened,
and 1 is commercially exploited according to the state of Florida. Nine
exotic plant species were found that are listed by the Florida Exotic
Pest Plant Council as invasive. The report recommends that efforts be
made by the National Park Service to eradicate invasive exotic plant
species from the park.
Project:
Bradley, K.A., 2004. The Status of Mahogany Mistletoe (Phoradendron
rubrum (L.) Grisebach) on Sands Key, Biscayne National Park. Report
submitted to the U.S. National Park Service, Inventory and Monitoring
Program by The Institute for Regional Conservation.
Download final report: (141 kb)
Objectives:
The Mahogany Mistletoe (Phoradendron rubrum
(L.)Grisebach) is listed endangered by the State of Florida, critically
imperiled in South Florida by The Institute for Regional Conservation
and by the Florida Natural Areas Inventory (Gann et al. 2002).
Two biologists surveyed 71 ca. acres of rockland hammock on Sands Key
(located above Key Largo) to take an inventory of the Mahogany Mistletoe
(Phoradendron rubrum (L.)Grisebach).
The canopy of each mahogany tree was inspected from the ground. Each
tree that was found to have mistletoe was marked, GPS coordinates were
collected, and the (diameter breast height) DBH of the tree was measured.
Mahogany trees were not common on Sands Key. Mahogany was observed to
be occasional in the center of the island where all four host trees
occur. There are only an estimated 50-100 adult mahogany trees on the
island. Four mahogany trees supporting mistletoe were observed. Sixty-one
mistletoe clumps were counted on the four trees, with individual trees
having 7 to 28 clumps. Surveys should also be conducted on other
islands that support populations of mahogany, including Old Rhodes Key,
Swan Key, the Totten Keys, and Elliott Key.
Buck
Island Reef NM
Project:
Ray, G. 2003. Vascular Plant Inventory and Mapping of Buck
Island Reef National Monument. Under agreement between The University
of the Virgin Islands & The National Park Service. Task order number
two (2): J5000 01 0642. DRAFT
Download final report: (2.1MB)
Cooperator:
Dr. Gary Ray, Asst. Professor of Biology Division of Science and Mathematics,
University of the Virgin Islands
Contact Information:
gray@uvi.edu
Status:
A draft report was submitted to NPS. NPS returned comments but a revised report was never submitted.
Objectives:
This report documents a terrestrial vascular flora of Buck
Island , St. Croix , U.S. Virgin Islands , and it describes a digital
mapping of the island's plant communities in order to track ecological
change following the eradication of its large and destructive arboreal
rat (Rattus ratus) population in 2000. The success of that
eradication program has been well established by National Park Service
resource managers with repeated trapping efforts subsequent to its completion.
Numerical abundance data collected during this study, when organized
spatially, can greatly facilitate land management, including exotic
plant control or removal, rare plant conservation and restoration, long-term
community monitoring and associated wildlife protection projects.
As our project began in June 2001, signs of vegetation recovery were
everywhere in evidence. Trees consisting entirely of branches that had
been severely pruned by gnawing of rats in recent years were beginning
to form more natural, umbrella-shaped canopies. Plentiful fruit providing
a diet for native birds and bats was maturing on the branches, and even
falling to the ground to set the stage for seedling recruitment and
regeneration became plentiful. Successful nesting of seabirds, shorebirds,
and birds from wetlands and upland habitats substantiated our impressions.
Future research and management efforts can build on these benchmark
data, expanding upon our botanical focus to encompass the entirety of
the biota and its ecology.
Network
WideProject Title:
Processing of South Florida/Caribbean Network Park Herbarium Sheets Into the Fairchild Virtual Herbarium
Date:
current
Contractor:
Fairchild Tropical Garden
Contact Information:
10901 Old Cutler Road
Coral Gables (Miami), Fl 33156
305-667-1651
Objectives:
The Virtual Herbarium is a huge advancement in herbarium use and design coupling the collection of physical specimens directly through the online text and photographic database, and incorporating complete specimen data integrated with multiple resources for information generation and retrieval. Fairchild Tropical Botanic Garden has the first truly virtual herbarium. Multiple Herbaria can be searched at once. Rather than just a simple text database of specimens, or photos of a few particular specimens, an integral part of their design philosophy is to make a high resolution photograph of every specimen in the herbarium available. The virtual herbarium includes not only specimens from the National Park Service physical herbarium, but also specimens from other herbaria. There is a high resolution photo of each specimen, a 300dpi scan of the label, and an associated searchable text database containing all of the label information. Inquiries about volunteering to help with the enormous task of generating this database should be addressed to Lynka Woodbury, Herbarium Resource Coordinator. Note: All National Park Service specimens are password protected to prevent exploitation of sensitive plants. Interested researchers should contact Brian Witcher.