Sonoran Desert Biological Inventories

Species inventories have both direct and indirect value for park managers and are an important first step in long-term natural resource monitoring. Species lists are useful in resource interpretation and facilitating visitor appreciation of natural resources, and are also critical for making management decisions. Knowledge of which species are present, particularly sensitive species, and where they occur, provides for informed planning and decisionmaking. Thorough biological inventories provide a basis for choosing parameters to monitor and can provide baseline data for monitoring ecological populations and communities. Inventories can also test sampling designs, field methods, and data collection protocols, and provide estimates of variation that are essential in prospective power analysis. In collaboration with the U.S. Geological Survey and the University of Arizona, the Sonoran Desert Network has completed inventories of vascular plants and vertebrates for 11 Sonoran Desert Network parks, including one for each of two units for Saguaro National Park.