Plant Community Composition and Structure Monitoring for Bedlands National Park: 2012 Annual Report

Badlands National Park (BADL) plays a vital role in protecting and managing one of the largest protected mixed-grass prairies in the United States. The Northern Great Plains Inventory & Monitoring Network and Fire Ecology Program surveyed 26 long-term monitoring plots in BADL in 2012 as part of an effort to better understand the condition of plant communities in the park. We measured plant diversity and cover, looked for the presence of exotic species that are of concern to park...
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Badlands National Park (BADL) plays a vital role in protecting and managing one of the largest protected mixed-grass prairies in the United States. The Northern Great Plains Inventory & Monitoring Network and Fire Ecology Program surveyed 26 long-term monitoring plots in BADL in 2012 as part of an effort to better understand the condition of plant communities in the park. We measured plant diversity and cover, looked for the presence of exotic species that are of concern to park management, and evaluated the amount of human and natural disturbance at all plots. This effort was the second year in a multiple-year venture to document the current status and long-term trends in plant communities in BADL. At the end of five years, there will be an indepth report describing the status of the plant community. In this report, we provide a simple summary of our results from sampling in 2012.