The Multiple Species Inventory and Monitoring Protocol: A Population, Community, and Biodiversity Monitoring Solution for National Forest System Lands

Abstract

The U.S. Forest Service manages approximately 76 million ha (191 million acres) of National Forest System (NFS) lands. The National Forest Management Act (1976) recognizes the importance of maintaining species and ecosystem diversity on NFS lands as a critical component of our ecological and cultural heritage. Information on the condition of populations and habitats of plants and animals is a primary tool for determining desired conditions, understanding potential conflicts in multiple use objectives in the context of sustainability, and formulating management direction to achieve these objectives. To date, no consistent, nationally standardized monitoring program exists to obtain status and trend data on multiple species on NFS lands. Inconsistencies in the development and implementation of multiple species monitoring programs have resulted in inadequate or unreliable monitoring data on most species. Over the past five years, Forest Service research and management have collaborated to develop a nationally standardized protocol, the Multiple Species Inventory and Monitoring (MSIM) protocol. The MSIM protocol is designed to provide a minimum of presence/absence and habitat data for a broad suite of vertebrate and plant species. Primary survey methods are identified for each taxonomic group, including terrestrial and aquatic birds, mammals, amphibians, reptiles, and plants. The protocol is uses the Forest Inventory and Analysis systematic grid to structure sampling, thus enabling a variety of options for post-stratifying the data to address various management questions. Ancillary information includes habitat relationships of many species, identification of potential causal factors associated with observed trends, and data to evaluate the validity and strength of indicators. The protocol is designed for implementation on both NFS and non-NFS lands to provide data on population and habitat conditions at multiple scales for a variety of applications.

Parent Publication

• Monitoring Science and Technology Symposium: Unifying Knowledge for Sustainability in the Western Hemisphere

Citation

Manley, P. N.; Van Horne, B. 2006. The Multiple Species Inventory and Monitoring Protocol: A Population, Community, and Biodiversity Monitoring Solution for National Forest System Lands. In: Aguirre-Bravo, C.; Pellicane, Patrick J.; Burns, Denver P.; and Draggan, Sidney, Eds. 2006. Monitoring Science and Technology Symposium: Unifying Knowledge for Sustainability in the Western Hemisphere Proceedings RMRS-P-42CD. Fort Collins, CO: U.S. Department of Agriculture, Forest Service, Rocky Mountain Research Station. p. 671-680