Rapid Assessment of Invasive Plant Species for Establishing Management Priorities:

Progressive, Strategic Invasive Plant Management for Resource Managers

Lori Weingartner,, M.GIS CandidateLori Weingartner,, M.GIS CandidateAdvisor Dr. David A. MortensenAdvisor Dr. David A. Mortensen

Department of Geography, Pennsylvania State UniversityDepartment of Geography, Pennsylvania State UniversitySpring 2014Spring 2014

Outline

• IntroductionIntroduction– Project ObjectivesProject Objectives– Background including scenarioBackground including scenario

• MethodologyMethodology• Case Study:Case Study:

– Allegheny Railroad Portage National Historic Site (ALPO) Allegheny Railroad Portage National Historic Site (ALPO)

• SummarySummary• Future stepsFuture steps• Literature CitedLiterature Cited• QuestionsQuestions

Introduction: Project Objectives

•Decision Support for Invasive Plant Management Strategies:Decision Support for Invasive Plant Management Strategies:

The goal is to develop a tool that easy to use for an individual with The goal is to develop a tool that easy to use for an individual with limited GIS experience and inexpensive. Allows available data to be limited GIS experience and inexpensive. Allows available data to be used when more complete data is unavailable.used when more complete data is unavailable.

Source: http://richertart.com/SpringDesertVista.jpg &http://igetready.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/05/question-markconfusion.jpg. All rights reserved. Used for educational purposes only.

Introduction: Background

• What are invasive plants?What are invasive plants?• Why do they need to be managed?Why do they need to be managed?• Why not wait for more complete data?Why not wait for more complete data?

What are invasive plants? Why do we manage them?

• A species is considered invasive only if it causes harm. There are many nonnative species that are either not expected to disrupt ecosystem process or have become naturalized.

• Invasive plants have the potential to:

• Decrease biodiversity

• Alter ecosystem processes

• Impede efforts to restore threatened and endangered species

BeforeBefore

After!After!

1992: Phragmites, purple loosestrife and spatterdock

2005: wild rice, an essential resource for migratory birds

An Ideal Scenario

Ideally, a natural resource manager would have recent survey data demonstrating the distribution of NIS within the agencies’ boundaries.

This data would enable her to develop a coherent well organized Invasive Management Plan

Source: https://www.cnps.org/cnps/images/vegetation/map-carrizo_veg-2013.jpg All rights reserved. Reproduced here for educational purposes only

Phragmites australis

U.S. FISH & WILDLIFE SERVICE Dollars Spent on Invasive Species Management on NWR 2004-2010 (U.S. FISH & WILDLIFE SERVICE 2010).

From the Ideal to the Real: A less ideal scenario

A newly appointed refuge biologist at a small desert USFWS refuge receives a phone call from a volunteer agency offering to bring 50 high school students to the refuge for NIS control.

The refuge does not have an existing stand alone Invasive Management Plan and although one was approved several years ago, the funding has been cut.

Source: http://richertart.com/SpringDesertVista.jpg & http://igetready.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/05/question-markconfusion.jpg

All rights reserved. Reproduced here for educational purposes only

The refuge does have an excellent, though seasonal bio-technician with some GIS experience.

The biotech can rely on personal experience and pick a location for the students to work or use available remote sensing technology in conjunction with personal experience.

Reminder of Project Objectives:

Need:• Resource managers are often called

upon to make rapid decisions for management with limited information.

• Readily available remote sensing technology and geographic information systems can improve the decision making process even when complete and accurate survey data is unavailable.

Decision making strategy tool:

• The goal is to develop a tool that easy The goal is to develop a tool that easy to use for an individual with limited to use for an individual with limited GIS experience and inexpensive. GIS experience and inexpensive.

• Allows available data to be used when Allows available data to be used when more complete data is unavailablemore complete data is unavailable

Overview of Methodology

a) Add site boundaryb) Add buffer surrounding boundary c) Download National Land Cover Data

and Tiger Street Datad) Clip to extended boundarye) Reclassify NLCD data as disturbed

and undisturbedf) Classify street data as disturbedg) Buffer disturbed areash) Classify undisturbed areas as core

habitati) Region group core habitat patchesj) Rank core patches

Habitat Classification N Mean % NIS Cover St. Dev.Edge 85 9 10

Disturbed 30 16.2 12.3

Core 17 9.2 14.3

Percent Cover for Invasive Plants

0

10

20

30

0 .0-10 10-20 20-30 30-40 30-50 50-60

Percent Cover

Number of Plots per Habitat

Classification

Edge

Disturbed

Core

Eastern Hemlock- Tuliptree -Birch Forest; core site with 26.7 % invasive plant cover

Sugar maple floodplain; 2 core sites with 43% invasive plant cover

Habitat Classification N Mean %NIS Cover St. Dev.Edge 85 9 10

Disturbed 30 16.2 12.3

Core 17 9.2 14.3

Core (remove outliers) 17 3.4 4.9

Percent Cover for Invasive Plants(after removing core outliers)

0

10

20

30

0 .0-10 10-20 20-30 30-40 30-50 50-60

Percent Cover

Number of Plots per Habitat

Classification

Edge

Disturbed

Core

Rew and Maxwell 2006

Remaining Steps

I am currently applying the tool to other sites and trying the analysis with different buffer sizes. I hope to integrate those results into the final presentation.

I hope to present a poster for RAMIP at the Mid-Atlantic Invasive Plant Council Conference in August.

Spotted knapweed invading a forest area in Oregon from a road.

Literature citedAnderson, D. 2011. House funding plan would close 140 federal refuges, wildlife supporters warn. StarTribune. http://www.startribune.com/sports/blogs/125912953.html .

California Invasive Plant Council (Cal-IPC). 2010. Economic impacts of invasive plants in California. Available from http://www.cal-ipc.org/ip/research/cost.php (Accessed November 2011).

Joshi, C., de Leeuw, J., and van Duren I.C. (2004). Remote sensing and GIS applicationsfor mapping and spatial modeling of invasive species. In: ISPRS 2004: Proceedings of the XXth ISPRS Congress: Geo-imagery bridging continents, 12-23 July 2004, Istanbul, Turkey. Comm. VII, pp 669-677.

National Invasive Species Council. 2001. Meeting the Invasive Species Challenge: National Invasive Species Management Plan. Available from http://www.invasivespeciesinfo.gov/docs/council/mpfinal.pdf (Accessed November 2011).

McNamara, D., M. Mlynarek. 2007. Invasive Free Zone: Invasive Plants Management Plan. U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service. Available from http://www.fws.gov/invasives/staffTrainingModule/pdfs/planning/InvasiveFreeZoneMgmtPlan.pdf (Accessed November 2011).

Rew, L.J. and B.D. Maxwell. 2006. Stratified Random Sampling Method. Pages 49-55 in Rew, L. and Pokorny, editors. 2006. Inventory and Survey Methods for Nonindigenous Plant Species. Montana State University Extension, Center for Invasive Plant Management.

U.S. FISH & WILDLIFE SERVICE. 2011. FWS Dollars Spent on Invasive Species Management on NWR 2004-2010. Available from http://www.fws.gov/invasives/pdfs/Invasive%20Species%20Program%20Fact%20Sheet%202010.pdf (Accessed November 2011).

Zimmerman, E. March 2007. Distribution and abundance of nonnative plant species at Johnstown Flood National Memorial and Allegheny Portage Railroad National Historic Site. Technical Report NPS/NER/NRTR—2007/083. National Park Service. Philadelphia, PA.

Questions and Comments