In Rocky Mountain National Park, Colorado, we have placed 150 20 m x 50 m randomly located sample plots over a 54,000 ha region, including many rare and common habitats.

Twenty-four vegetation types have been characterized in a 54,000-ha portion of the Park ranging from 2,500 m to 3,660 m elevation. These included lodgepole pine (Pinus contorta); aspen (Populus tremuloides); ponderosa pine (Pinus ponderosa); wet meadow (dominated by Poa palustris, Deschampsia caespitosa, and Poa interior); dry meadow (dominated by Carex helianthus and Artemisia tridentata); mixed conifer (may include Abies lasiocarpa, Picea engelmanii, Pinus contorta, Pinus flexilis); and alpine tundra. Most of the area is moderately grazed by elk and deer.



Here again, on a study site approximately twice the size of Cerro Grande, the integration of remotely sensed data and GIS using geospatial statistics is providing a useful way to describe large and small scale variability on the landscape. Our spatial models are helping predict plant species richness of both native and exotic plant species (hotspots of diversity) and patterns of exotic plant invasions.

Also see:

Cerro Grande Wildfire Site

Grand Staircase-Escalante National Monument