PARK SCIENCE 

A RESOURCE MANAGEMENT BULLETIN 

NATIONAL PARK SERVICE 

U.S. DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR 

NATIONAL PARK SERVICE 

U.S. OEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR 

VOLUME 3 - NUMBER 3 SPRING 1983 
’ PARK SCIENCE SPRING 1983 

IN THIS ISSUE: PAGE 

Protecting Mountain Meadows ....... 3 

Science, Policy, and Politics: Working 

Together At Crater Lake ............ 5 

Superintendent’s Corner ............. 6 

Research Focuses on Acid Rain ...... 6 

Partnership Seen As Key To Applied 

Park Science ....................... 7 

Research Facility At Jackson Hole 

Fuses Joint Effort .................. 8 

Oak Savanna Habitat Restoration 

Underway ......................... 9 

Oral History Adds Cultural Texture 

At John Day NM .................. 10 

Letter To The Editor ............... 11 

Information Crossfiie .............. 12 

Study Oocuments Plant Poaching 

In Great Smokies .................. 13 

Earthwatch Volunteers ............. 14 

Bear Research Scientists Hold 6th 

World Meeting .................... 15 

Colorado Tick Fever ............... 16 

New Tick Disease Hits Fire Island ... 17 

Regional Highlights ................ 18 

MAR Notes ....................... 19 

Fire Management Review Held ...... 20 

Technical Writing As A Tool - 

An Art ........................... 20 

Computerized Data Base Built for Vascular Flora Of NP System .......... 21 

Haleakala Silversword: An 

Optimistic Note ................... 23 

Cover Photo: 

Stock grazing in Cyclone Meadows, SequoiaKings Canyon National Parks. 

A report to park managers of recent and on-going research in 

parks with emphasis on its implications for planning and 

management. 

From the Editor 

Seldom does an editor feel inclined to 

“move over” and allow someone else to 

preempt the privileged editorial space. 

Because Park Science is dedicated to the 

presentation of research in terms of management and interpretation, this editor is 

delighted to share her space with astudent 

-Peggy Herring -who recently turned in 

thefollowing wordsasanassignmentfor a 

course in Natural Resource Communications taught by the editor at Oregon State 

University. Herring is an artist/biologist 

who also is a fulltime employee of the 

Oregon Dept. of F & W. Her succinct challenge to scientist/writers should be read 

along with Jim Wood’s article on page20. 

Together, these two pieces inspire and 

instruct the research person who aspires 

to be effective beyond the laboratory and 

the field. 

By Peggy Herring 

I am a biologist and I want to learn to 

write. 

I believe that the privilege of doing 

research carries with itaresponsibilityfor 

interpreting technical ideas for the interested public who may be footing the bill. 

Scientific research too often is a factsand-figures account of research and management. This is useful for people who 

already are specialists in the field, but it 

does not inspire those who have no confidence in themselves to understand scientific concepts. Scientific policy affects all 

citizens, and we should have access to 

these ideas. We need this information to 

help us make decisions and understand 

their consequences. 

Topics of science can be presented 

clearly and simply without losing their 

accuracy. Precision is relative to theneeds 

of the audience. With modified precision 

(NOT compromised accuracy), the most 

obscure technical idea can become readable understandable, to a non-scientific 

audience. 

Also, there is an added value in viewing 

research in less detail. Focus is broadened 

so that trends in thought and relationships 

to other work become clearer. 

I have one more personal reason to want 

to learn to write well. The commitment to 

interpret a certain topic of science is a 

demanding and effective way of learning 

about the subject. To collectthesmall puzzle pieces of research and organize ideas 

into a larger design is to experiencethejoy 

of discovery. This organizational process 

would be the same if the product were to be 

a written article, a videotape, or an illustrated display. I am sometimes more fluent 

in drawing a picture than I am in composing the thousand words it represents. But 

to write clearly is to think clearly, and so 

interpretation becomes discovery. 

RUSSELL E. DICKENSON, Director 

National Park Service 

U.S. Department of the Interior 

Editorial Board: 

Daniel J. fJ!mt Tobin, Reqronal Director, and 

Donald R. Field, Regional Chief .Scie&st, Pacific Northwest Region; 

Roland C. Wauer. Chief, Natural Resources Management, and 

John Dennis, brologist, Washington Oeice; 

Supt. William M. Lukens, Padre Island National Seashore, and 

Supt. Dale 6. Engqurst. Indiana Dunes National Lakeshore. 

Jean Matthews, Editor: Oregon State University NPSICPSU. Room 126 Forestly Sciences Lab, 

3200 Jefferson Way, Corvallis. OR 97331 (503) 757.4579; e-420-4579 

ISSN-07359462 

n 

L 
PROTECTING MOUNTAIN MEADOWS: A GRAZING 

MANAGEMENT PLAN 

By Stephen H. LteBenedetti and David J. Parsons 

For more than a century, pack and 

saddle stock have been used in the 

western United States for recreation and 

as a management tool. Today, most large 

western parks continue to permit the use 

of such animals for both purposes. The 

character of such use, as well as the 

management restrictions governing It, 

vary with the history of the area. In Glacier 

and Rocky Mountain NPs stock are 

required either to use corrals or hitchrails 

or to be tethered in designated areas. In 

addition, all stock feed must be carried 

into these Parks. In Yellowstone. stock is 

allowed to graze from picket lines in 

designated meadows that are rotationally 

rested depending on conditions. In 

California’s Sierran parksgrazing byfreeroaming animals generally is permitted. In 

Yosemite, stock parties are requested, but 

not required, to carry feed. In Sequoia and 

Kings Canyon, grazing by free-roaming 

stock is the norm. 

Impacts caused by stock use are 

primarily a function of the timing, 

frequency, and intensity of use. Impacts 

result both from herbage removal 

(grazing) and trampling. Grazing occurs 

primarily in meadow or other forage areas; 

trampling impacts can be found 

associated with meadows, trails, or 

camps. The susceptibility of individual 

plant species as well as moisture 

conditions and phenological stage must be 

considered in evaluating the potential for 

such impacts. Behavior of the stock and 

control exerted by the packers also 

influence stock-use impacts. 

Given the decision (whether for 

historical, political. or other reasons) that 

pack and saddle stock use is to be 

permitted, it becomes the responsibility of 

Park management to determine what 

levels of use and impact are acceptable. 

For example, grazing management 

policies should aim to minimize adverse 

impacts to meadow ecosystems. This 

generally means that the timing, 

frequency, intensity, and nature of stock 

use may need to be controlled. However, 

informed decisions on what specific 

restrictions should be enforced depend on 

knowledge about the effcats of different 

use patterns and practices. 

Private and commercial stock use has 

been common for nearly a century on 

much of the land now within Sequoia and 

Kings Canyon NPs. Recreational stock use 

peaked in the mid-1930’s when 72 

commercial outfitters operated in the 

southern Sierra Nevada. Dependence on 

stock now is associated with only about 6 

percent oftotal backcountryvisitornights. 

Nevertheless, at least 16commercial pack 

stations currently operate in the Parks. 

Commercial, private, and Park Service 

administrative use now account for 

approximately 11,500 nights spent in the 

Parks by stock each year. 

Starting with the work of Lowell Sumner 

in 1941, the NPS has conducted a series of 

qualitative surveys of meadow conditions 

in the southern Sierra Nevada. Reduction 

of vegetative cover, gullying and erosion, 

and the Invasion lodgepole pine and 

“weedy” species were identified as serious 

impacts probably dating back to the late 

1800’s. Together with later surveys by 

Sharsmith (1959) and Sumner (1968). this 

information provided the basis for a 

grazing management program that has 

continued to the present and includes 

closing certain areas to grazing, 

restricting opening dates, and limiting the 

number of animals and length of stay. 

Management actions generally have been 

implemented on a case-by-case basis, 

most often only after the impacts have 

occurred. Together with evidence that 

subtle changes in species composition, 

abundance, and plant vigor have occurred 

with grazing, this has led Park managers 

to identify the need for more quantitative 

data on the impacts of grazing activities. 

Such data would permit the development 

of a grazing management plan that is both 

predictive and responsive to on-site 

conditions. 

Development of the Plan 

The first step is to establish management objectives. The objective for grazing 

management in Sequoia and Kings Canyon 

is to allow free-roaming grazing by 

commercial. private, and administrative 

stock, provided that: 

1) continuous undirectional change in 

plant composition and/or vigor 

(productivity) does not result, 

2) the sod or soil does not become 

increasingly erodable, discontinous. 

irregular, and 

3) a network of meadows representative 

of each major type is protected from 

all stock use so that they remain as 

near to naturally functioning 

ecosvstems as oossible. 

Clipping rn simulated grarmg plots 

3 

Other steps required in developing such 

a plan include a decision on the type of 

management system to be utilized and the 

development of a scientific data base on 

the effects of various grazing practices. In 

Sequoia and Kings Canyon, it was decided 

that the primary management tool would 

be a system of opening dates that would 

vary, depending on the type of hydrologic 

year and the vegetation and soils of the 

meadow in question. Additional 

restrictions, including closures or limits on 

number of head or duration of stay, would 

be utilized only on a meadow by meadow 

basis. Such restrictions might be based on 

total forage removed or the stage of 

development at which key species are 

grazed. 

To meet the established objective, the 

Grazing Management Plan must provide a 

flexible system that (1) is sensitive to 

annual variation in climate, (2) considers 

the nature of specific meadows, and (3) is 

sensitive to the inherent ability of 

individual species to withstand grazing 

and trampling. Also essential is a 

monitoring program. The Plan must be 

sufficiently predictive to prescribe 

opening dates for specific forage areas in 

time for commercial operators to book 

their trips. The involvement of user 

representatives in the planning process 

adds greatly to the potential for 

compliance and acceptance. 

Background Research 

To develop a grazing management plan 

for Sequoia and Kings Canyon NPs. a 5 

year research project was undertaken in 

1973 aimed at understanding the 

composition, distribution, and 

susceptibility to Impact of the Parks’major 

forage areas. The vegetation of each of 

these areas was described in sufficient 

detail to estimate the contribution of 

different plant communities to the total 

meadow acreage. A forage area was 

defined as a meadow or series of meadows 

and the dispersed forage in between that 

free-roaming stock would utilize when 

turned loose overnight from adjacent 

camp areas. 

High-elevation meadows in the Sierra 

generally consist of a series of species 

groups, or plant associations, each with 

distinct characteristics (i.e. phenology. 

soil moisture, retention productivity, etc.) 

and tolerances to grazing and trampling. 

Such associations may be spatially 

distinct from one another (as along an 

elevation gradient), or they may be 

interspersed in a mosaic pattern, 

responding to such local environmental 

differences as surface irregularity. In the 

former case, animal behavior is often such 

that more sensitive areas may be avoided 

if preferred forage is available, for 
Protecting Mountain Meadows [continued] 

tnstance. in drter areas. In the latter case, 

animals often cannot avoid trampling the 

more sensitive areas. The potential for 

avoiding sensitive vegetation must be 

estimated for each forage area as the 

vegetation is classified. 

In our study we looked at total 

productivity and phenology in conjunction 

with the effects of simulated grazing 

(clipping) on selected plant associations. 

The intensity (degree to which a plant is 

grazed), timing (stage of phenological 

development at time of grazing), 

frequency (number of iimes grazed during 

a season), and periodicity (pattern of 

grazing from year to year) of herbage 

removal have different effects on different 

species and, thus, on different 

associations. 

Since it was not possible to test 

experimentally all of the potential 

combinations of these factors, we chose to 

look only at intense herbage removal 

(within 2.5cm of the root crown or surface, 

whichever was higher). The timing of 

herbage removal was varied with calendar 

date, while frequency of grazing was 

simulated by clipping one, two, or three 

times during the growing season and 

agatn at senescence. 

In all, we tested four clipping patterns. 

plus a control, for each of six plant 

associations. Treatments were repeated 

for four successive years to simulate 

severe repeated pressure. In the fifth year, 

recovery of the clipped plots was 

measured. The most important plant 

associations were replicated at several 

points along a 1,200 meter elevational 

gradient to evaluate the effect of elevation. 

Results have provided us with basic 

knowledge of the annual fluctuations in 

producttvity of the major plant 

associations present in the Parks’ 

subalpine and alpine meadows. Response 

of the most important associations to 

sustained multiple clippings also has been 

determined. Thus, the effect of different 

levels of herbage removal can be predicted 

and capacities (in animal niqhts) can be 

predicted. 

Tramolina also mav have sianificant 

impacts on meadow ‘vegetation: in the 

form of direct injury or mortality or as 

indirect changes in composition of the kind 

that occur when surface moisture patterns 

or soil stability is altered. The Parks’ 

objective has been to minimize the 

potential for changes in composition due 

to trampling by minimizing potential 

disturbances of the surface soil and sod. 

To accomplish this, moisture conditions 

were monitored in key plant associations 

on a regular basis (every 7to 10days)from 

mid-dune through August, 1978-1981. In 

addition, the degree, extent, and type of 

mechanical impact, if present, was 

described and correlated to the moisture 

conditions. This provided a predictive 

index of susceptibility to trampling by 

specific plant associations under differmg 

moisture conditions. Such information 

provides the basis for estimating opening 

dates that minimize mechanical 

disturbance of the surface so11 and 

vegetatton. 

Three important types of eastly 

recognizable mechanical impacts 

observed were: (1) broken sod, which 

includes the imprinting, gouging, tearing, 

or shearing of the soil-vegetation complex, 

occurring most often when thesurface soil 

is wet or moist; (2) scuffing, including the 

slicing or abrasive removal of aertal 

vegetation, occurring in mesic or drter 

sites; and (3) pulverization, the 

fragmentation or disintegration of the soil 

pedestal or soil-vegetation complex that 

occurs with severe trampling, most 

commonly under xeric conditions where 

vegetation is discontinuous. 

While we feel the occurrence of broken 

sod can be minimized by means of 

adjusting opening dates according to 

moisture conditions, closer monitoring 

and additional restrictions may be 

necessary if pulverization or scuffing 

levels are considered unacceptable. 

Exclosures used in cllppmg studies 

/mp/ementafion 

of the Plan 

Once the manager has information 

concerning the activity patterns of grazing 

animals, the composition of individual 

forage areas, the productivity of different 

plant associations, their responses to 

different herbage removal patterns, and 

thetr moisture regimes and susceptibility 

to mechanical impact, the tools are 

available to develop use prescriptions for 

individual forage areas that will have 

predictable results. The next step is to 

choose the degree, type, and extent of 

impact acceptable and adjust the 

intensity, timing, frequency, and 

periodicity of use accordingly. For 

example, a given forage area would have a 

specific opening date and may have limits 

on total stock nights, either for the year or 

4 

at any one time. These restrictions may 

vary depending on whether it IS a wet, dry, 

or normal hydrologic year. 

The grazing management system will 

succeed only if it can be understood by 

those who must use and enforce it. In 

Sequoia and Kings Canyon, opening dates 

are now prescribed for three types of 

hydrological years (wet, normal, and dry): 

thus d is possible for the user to know well 

in advance the opening dates for specific 

forage areas. 

Once acceptable use prescriptions have 

been generated, the manager may find it 

necessary to ration or allocate use in 

strategically located or popular forage 

areas. Available options include head 

limits, length of stay hmits, and scheduled 

closure permds. 

Where levels or patterns of use are 

potentially unacceptable, it is necessary to 

develop an effective use-monitoring 

scheme. If biomass removal or the percent 

of preferred plants grazed is used to define 

acceptable use levels, either direct 

measurement of these factors, or 

estimates based on the number of stock 

days occurring must be utilized. Because 

of manpower shortages. in Sequoia and 

Kings Canyon we have developed an 

extenstve use-monitoring system as an 

alternative to direct measurement. 

Administrative, commercial, and private 

stock parties are required to file an 

itmerary on completion of each trip. More 

than 90 percent of all stock use now is 

accurately reported. 

As a final, important phase in our 

Grazing Management Plan, it has been 

determined that a network of meadows 

representative of the major types found in 

the Parks will be protected from all stock 

use. These natural functioning ecosystems 

have been selected so as to mimmtze 

inconveniences to users and to include as 

many remote areas as possible. 

In summary, a grazing management 

system for free-roaming stock in western 

national parks must be based on clearly 

defined objectives and standards of 

acceptable impact. The vegetation and 

surface characteristics of each important 

forage area must be inventoried and 

response of specific plant associations to 

grazing and trampling known. Animal 

preferences and behavior may be 

important and should be evaluated. User 

characteristics and patterns in specific 

forage areas should be analyzed in order 

to develop the most appropriate 

management strategy where overuse 

might occur. A use-monitoring System 

also must be developed. The involvement 

of user groups in the plannmg process 

improves communications and assures 

that the manager has a clear 

understanding of the user perspective. 

Parsons is a research scientist and 

DeBenedetti is a biological technician at 

Sequoia-Kings Canyon NP. 
SCIENCE, POLICY, AND POLITICS: 

WORKING TOGETHER AT CRATER LAKE 

Crater Lake, the central feature of Crater 

Lake NP, has been admired by visitors and 

scientists both as a spectacular and unique resource. It has been called the clearest lake in the world, a natural analog of 

distilled water, a scientific benchmark in 

limnological research, and has been attributed to have the greatest transmittance of 

light of all natural waters. It has, unfortunately, been the object of only limited 

research between 1886 and 1978. 

Morphometry studies have shown 

Crater Lake, at 589m deep, is the deepest 

lake in the U.S. and the seventh deepest in 

the world. Formed in a caldera less than 

7000 years old, it is geologically young and 

considered oligotrophic. Physically protected by surrounding IOOm to 600m cliffs, 

and managerially protected by 1902 

National Park designation, Crater Lake 

has been thought of as well preserved and 

protected from cultural impacts. However, 

research from 197881 (by Doug Larson) 

raised questions about the limnological 

dynamics of Crater lake. An indication of a 

reduction in the lake clarity quickly 

aroused attention from the public, political, and scientific communities. The following is an explanation of how these 

forces interacted to formulate the current 

management direction for Crater Lake and 

the related caldera ecosystem. 

The Research Community 

Past research on Crater Lake has 

focused on the optical propertles. morphometry, geology, fisheries (stocked). 

temperature gradients, and plankton distribution. It has been noted that the unique 

features of Crater Lake such as its geothermal input and lack of surface discharge 

present problems in applying classical 

limnological knowledge. 

Data gathered to this date has been 

inadequate to determine if observed 

changes are natural trends or indicators of 

human impact. The most significant 

change has been a decrease in Secchi disk 

transparency from an average of 36.6m in 

196869 to an average of 29.3m in 197879 

(Larson and Mark Forbes). Speculation 

relates the cause of this decrease to 

human influence or atmospheric deposition but it may be a natural trend. 

The Public 

From its time of discovery by European 

man in 1853, Crater Lake has held in awe 

all who view its deep blue vastness contrasted with the stony caldera walls. Over 

By Jonathan 8. Jarvis 

500.000 visitors a year see the lake from 

the rim drive while 3percenttaketheardu 

ous 2 km descent to the lake level on the 

only access trait Concession operated 

boats offer that visitor an opportunity 10 

experience the lake from surface angles 

that enhance the almost bottomless blueness of the water. These experiences 

kindled media interest and public outcry 

when word spread that research indicated 

Crater Lake clarity was diminishing. 

The Political Arena 

Riding on the momentum of the 1980 

State of the Parks Report, an amendment 

to Senate Bill S-1119 was sponsored by 

Rep. Denny Smith (R-Ore) in Dec. 1981, 

requiring a biennial report on thequality of 

Crater Lake over the next 10 years. The bill 

passed as Public Law 97.250 in Sept. 1982 

and directed the Secretary of Interior to 

“instigate studies and investigations as to 

the status and trends of change of water 

quality of Crater Lake and to immediately 

implement such actions as may be necessary to assure the retention of the lake’s 

natural pristine water quality.” 

Current Management Action 

Crater Lake NP recognized in early 1981 

that a research program was needed for 

the lake and consequently identified the 

caldera (lake) ecosystem as its primary 

resource project in the park Resource Management Plan. Consultation with all concerned parties and the added impetus of 

the supporting legislation in 1982 has 

helped Crater Lake NP Resource Management refine its program into a comprehensive,,systematic approach to research and 

momtorrng of Crater Lake. 

A. Recognizing that inadequate information exists to interpret trends, primary 

emphasis has been placed on collecting 

baseline limnological data. Direct cause 

and effect research based on speculation 

has been thus far avoided to prevent costly 

outlays. However, a basic monitoring program has been designed to determine 

impacts of park use and management of 

the lake system. If degradation trends are 

indicated from baseline research, then 

future cause/effect studies will bedirected 

toward identification of the source. 

B. A professional limnologist, Dr. Douglas Larson, has been brought onto park 

staff on a part time basis to ensure accurate scientific data analysis and provide 

overall program direction. 

C. An NPS seasonal employee, working 

towards a Master’s degree at University of 

Oregon, began in 1982basicchemical sampling (DO, pH, TA. SC), biological sampling 

(chlorophyll and phytoplankton identification and counts) and physical sampling 

(thermal profiles and Secchi disk depths). 

The Secchi disk wrnks backafthecameralrom20 feet cd Craler Lake water 

5 
Crater Lake [continued] 

D. An on-site laboratory has been 

equipped with the capability of basic data 

analysis and sample storage. 

E. A platform boat has been placed on 

the lake and equipped for use by Park 

Resource Management staff and 

researchers in data collection. 

F. With the assistance of Oregon DEQ, 

Crater Lake NP has begun monitoring 

some parameters of air quality. Park management is seeking ways to expand theair 

quality program so that any correlation 

between lake quality degradation and 

atmospheric deposition can be 

determined. 

G. Annual Crater Lake research meetings were begun in 1982 at Oregon State 

University to provide scientific peer 

review of the program, to critique research 

results and to advise redirection of 

emphasis. 

H. Research results and management 

plans are being shared with the public by 

park interpretive staff. 

The Crater Lake research program is 

still in its early stages. However, its direction is one that will identify the problem, 

provide new limnological insights, assist 

park management, and satisfy public and 

political interests and concerns. The program’s initial success shows how a multidisciplined constituency can work 

together to solve some of the problems 

facing our National Parks today. Ensuing 

articles will report the progress and 

results of this continuing research effort. 

Jarvis is Resource Management Specialist 

at Crater Lake NP. 

Superin tenden t’s 

Corner 

Sequoia National Park was the site, last 

fall, of a remarkable experience in team 

science - one that already has been 

beneficial to us, and that promises to be 

even more valuable when the next phase is 

completed. At its center were Dr. Jerry 

Franklin of the U.S. Forest Service, 

Corvallis, and a remarkable team of 

scientists, students and technicians from 

Oregon State University. 

Working with shoestring funding 

received through the National Park Service 

Interdisciplinary Science Team program to 

conduct interdisciplinary investigations 

on the structure and functions of Sierran 

stream-forest ecosystems, Dr. Franklin and 

a team of 30 arrived in the Park in 

September, 1982. The team worked from 

dawn to dark for IO days, carrying out 

intensive field studies of stream, riparian 

and forest systems in a mixed-conifer 

forest, a giant sequoia forest, and a 

meadow. The program was modeled after 

previous highly successful “pulse”studies 

in the Cascades and in the Olympic 

Peninsula. 

Nightly campfire sessions provided 

opportunity for structured, but very lively, 

discussions of project objectives, 

progress, and application to Park needs. 

These sessions were open to Park staff, 

who frequently were able to provide 

valuable insights. 

As a participant myself, lcan personally 

attest to thefactthatwegained knowledge 

and insights, and were caught up in the 

excitement of a highly professional, highly 

interactive group’s procedures and 

findings. Sequoia resource management 

and science staff also participated in some 

of the field work, gaining valuabletraining 

in field techniques. Thegroup wenttogreat 

lengths to assure maximum applicability 

of their findings to such on-going Park 

programs as basic resources inventory, 

acid rain research, and long-term 

monitoring of vegetation changes, the 

effects of fire, and water quality. In 

developing a data base on the structure 

and function of selected Park ecosvstems. 

the “pulse” study is providing 

interdisciolinarv information of a kind that 

most Parjts un?ortunately seem to have 

little hope of obtaining. 

Dr. Franklin is to return in June with an 

even larger group. We plan to take full 

advantage of the opportunity to establish 

what I hope will be a firm foundation for 

other long-term interdisciplinary research 

projects in Sequoia and Kings Canyon 

National Parks/International Biosphere 

Reserve. The results are sure to be very 

valuable to us, as we work toward the kind 

of ecosystems knowledge that is essential 

to sound management of the Park’s 

resources. 

Boyd Evison, Superintendent 

Sequoia & Kings Canyon NPs 

Research Focuses On Acid Rain 

Recent investigation into the status of 

acid rain research showed that NPS personnel at all levels are active in surveying 

and assessing problems. A number of NPS 

areas are looking into the processes by 

which change may be expected to occur; 

Rocky Mountain, Shenandoah, Great 

Smoky Mountains, Sequoia, Isle Royale, 

and Voyageurs are among the parks which 

have intensive studies asking thequestion 

of how acid rain damage might occur. 

Research emphasizes soil and bedrock 

weathering, and effects on aquatic biotic 

and abiotic systems. Work investigating 

effects to terrestrial vegetation is limited, 

however, as basic research now underway 

by other agencies progresses, new methods 

will allow evaluation of vegetation - a 

prime Park resource. The importance of 

future terrestrial studies is stressed by 

new evidence from Germany which postuBy Kathy S. Smith and Jill Baron 

lates forest to be in a state of advanced 

decay as the result of decades of nutrient 

leaching by acidic rainfall and heavy metal 

deposition. Is this a future park issue? 

NPS cultural resources staff alSO are 

aware of the risk to diverse materials 

under their care. Unfortunately, knowledge of actual effects on historical resources lags far behind our presently 

incomplete and often contradictory knowledge of biological effects. Progress IS 

being made, however. 

The National Park Service is involved, 

through the Office of Historic Architecture, 

in materials effects and in restorative 

research, finding protective coatings, or 

“sacrificial layers” which will save the 

important structures underneath. 

A national debate is underway! Acid precipitation is a reality! At risk are ecosystems, monuments, forests, buildings, and 

6 

a number of aquatic and fish species. Sensitive National Park areas represent protected natural systems where the potential 

changes due to acid rain must be 

understood. 

Additional information regarding acid 

rain, what it is, what it does, and where it 

comes from is available in the report 

entitled “Status Report: Acid Rain 

Research in the National Park Service 

1982” is a Water Resourse Field Support 

Laboratory publication, WRFSL Report No. 

82-l and is available from the Lab, 107C 

Natural Resources, Colorado State University, Fort Collins, CO 80523. 

Baron is a research biologist with the NPS 

Water Resoorces Field Support Laboratory. Smith is a journalism student at Colorado State University. See a/so 

Information Crossfile forassociateditems. 
PARTNERSHIP SEEN AS KEY 

The formation of a partnership between management and the 

scientist is the key to the application of science in the National 

Parks, according to Donald R. Field, Chief Scientist for the 

Pacific Northwest Region, in a talk before the First Biennial 

Conference of Research in California National Parks, held in 

September 1982 on the Davis campus, University of California. 

“My experience suggests,” he said, “that it is not so much the 

content or subject area of research that ensures integration into 

the decision making process as it is the manner in which the 

research is undertaken and communicated to park management.” 

The responsibility for defining a research agenda, Field said, 

lies with the management of the National Park Service. That 

research agenda emerges from the Resource Management Plan. 

He described the limitations of science to solve all management 

problems and the constraints of management to incorporate 

science into the decision making process. 

Research plan formation has been structured to include scientists and managers as partners, and this interaction extends 

into establishment of the specific research question. The need at 

this second stage is to pose the research question in such a way 

that it can be answered by research, and to establish the need 

TO ~APPLIED PARK SCIENCE 

for that research (instead of, say, a literature search, which 

might be sufficient.) 

A third important step is agreement between scientist and 

manager as to what the research can be expected to produce. At 

this stage, three issues still need to be mutually resolved: the 

timeing and pacing of the research activity, the selection of 

variables, and the actual research design (which often must 

reflect a compromise with the ideal research model.) 

Even negotiation of all these potential pitfalls does not insure 

success. “A critical period of uncertainty,” Field pointed out, “is 

the end of a field season, before the first interim report. Communication at thisstage,“heemphasized. “enhancescredibility. 

confidence, and support for the project.” 

The final report for management should be prepared with 

management’s needs firmly in mind. Does the research provide a 

practical solution? Is it to be used in the public involvement 

process? Will it go into the preparation of an environmental or a 

social impact assessment? Will the scientist be expected to 

testify in a court of law or represent the agency at a public 

hearing? Executive summaries and action documents detailing 

implications and alternatives, Field noted, are essential for 

management action plans. 

STEPS IN THE COMMUNICATION OF SCIENCE 

TO RESOURCE MANAGERS 

1 

Research Aoenda. I 

Executive Briefings, 
Research Facility at 

Jackson Hole Fuses 

Joint Effort 

Editor’s Note’ The followrng is excerpted from a 

series of news releases by Karl Harper of the 

University of Wyoming News Service. The 

renew was Sent to Park Science by Neil J, (J/m) 

Reid, chief scientist in the Rocky Mountain 

Region of NPS, as indicative of the best in 

Cooperahve research taking place in the 

National Park System today. As Reid puts It, 

“The NPS-Unwersify of Wyoming Research 

Center near Moran IS doing yeoman service in 

finding solutions to management problems, 

whde af the same time prowding opportunfbes 

for the on-qoinq ‘~ure”research fhat is so ntal 

to our long-rangeunderstanding of how parks 

function: 

Kenneth L.Oiem,professorofzoologyandphysiologyat the Universftyof Wyominganddireclorofthe 

UW-NPS Research Center, surveys his quiet domarn from the boardwalk connectmg the Berol Lodge 

wrth the Johnson house. Residence and serwe buildings are spotted in the meadowed bowlshIelded 

from view of the thousands of tourists who daily pass on the highway to Moran and the town of 

Jackson to the south. 

umque. 

That’s the University of WyomingNational Park Service Research Center on 

the shore of Jackson Lake in Grand Teton 

NP: the most complete research facility 

operating in any U.S. National Park, the 

only one supported jointly by State and 

Federal monies, and the only one 

administering activities in a four-state 

area. 

From May to October each year, the 

Center is the hub of biological. social, and 

physical sciences research by 

investigators selected from 70institutions 

and agencies nationwide. Their studiesare 

directed mainly toward problems or 

subject areas that have direct bearing on 

National Park operations and 

management in Wyoming, Montana, North 

and South Dakota. 

General research priorities are 

established by a Center steering 

committee of eight members -four NPS 

officials and four UW faculty members - 

with the Center director, Kenneth L. Diem, 

UW professor of zoology and physiology, 

serving in an ex officio capacity. The 

commrttee evaluates proposals 

addressing areas of priority concern and 

sets project support budgets for most of 

the studies, although a significant number 

are funded by outside sources. 

The NPS and UW share equally in the 

Center’s $200,000 annual budget, of which 

65 percent is earmarked for research. 

About 80 percent of the research program 

is of an applied, goal-oriented nature, with 

the balance for basic research. The 

practice, according to Diem, has been to 

limit the number of Center-based projects 

to about 25 in any one season, with others 

assigned to various locations in the fourstate area. Most are granted support for no 

more than three years. 

Fifteen investigations currently are in 

progress at the Center or have been 

scheduled for completion or start during 

the 1982-3season. Seven others are based 

elsewhere, but are being conducted under 

the aegis of the Center. Although most are 

relevant to National Park applications, 

some have broader - even global - 

implications. 

Examples this season include studies to 

estabhsh baseline data and fundamental 

inventories of park resources, to assess 

factors bearing on understanding the 

productivity of Yellowstone Lake, to 

improve the accuracy of visitor statistics 

obtained in Grand Teton NP. to further 

catalog the bewildering variety of 

mushrooms native to the area. to 

document the population dynamics of the 

mouse-like voles that are a staple in the 

fauna1 food chain, and several geological 

studies. Animal parasites, otter behavior, 

the history of rabies in the area, the 

characteristics of small mammals in high 

radiation background areas of 

Yellowstone Park, and a wide-ranging 

survey of water resources in the Big Horn 

Basin are among additional projects under 

study this year. 

This by-no-means-complete hshng 

reflects the characteristic variety of 

investigations sponsored under the Center 

banner and their general relevance to 

National Park management. 

One more detailed example is the work 

on Yellowstone Lake - centerpiece of 

America’s first and best-known National 

Park. Scientists operating through the 

Center are conducting research to 

determine if the lake is undergoing a 

decline in productivity and ability to 

support a complex natural food chain. If 

so, they hope to pinpoint the underlying 

causes and to offer suggestions for 

restoring the natural balance if human 

activity is the cause. 

William Romme, a botanist on the 

faculty of Ft. Lewis College in Durango, 

Colo.. is spearheading the effort in 

cooperation with NPS and U.S. Fish and 

Wildlife research biologists. Romme cites 

“some evidence that the lake’s primary 

productivity has been declining over the 

past 100 years. Water analyses made 

periodically since 1884. measuring 

nutrients critical to alaal growth. suggest 

that some vital elements have reached 

extremely low concentrations in recent 

years.” He adds it is doubtful that the lake 

will become completely sterile. 

Core samples of the lake bottom 

sediments comprise a record of diatom 

8 

Botanist William II Romme demonstrates the use 

of a device which extracts a smaii dnmeter 

(3/167 core sample rn which the annual rings 

can be counted to determine the tree’s age. 

production over the past 1.600years. Their 

concentrations in the samples reflect a 

gradual decline, reaching a very low 

concentration in the past century. 

“It’s an enormous lake, very complex. 

None of these things is conclusive, but 

taken together they are bothersome,” he 

says. 

Romme is proceeding on several fronts 

and hooes to comolete his current 

investigation by Apri’l 1983. His work 

includes gathering previously developed 

information from unpublished reports and 

other widely scattered sources. He also is 

in contact with Canadian authorities 

investigating cases in which some of their 

lakes, like Yellowstone. appear to be 

declining in productivity rather than 

becoming more productive with age, as is 

usuallv the case. 

“We’re also looking at several possible 

factors that may be exerting subtle but 

potentially profound influences on longterm productivity,” he says. “Is it actually 

happening? If so, is it occurring naturally? 

These are the real questions, both from an 

academic and from park management 

standpoints.” 

Romme is directing his field work 

toward the forests of t”he watershed that 

drain into thelake. These inflows bringthe 

lake much of its nutrients in amounts that 

largely determine productivity levels 

Young, vigorously growing forest tends to 

spring up in the wake of fires, and such 

stands may take up more of the available 

nutrients than do the older, more stable 

stands. Followrng extensive fire, the 

denuded watershed might yield more of its 
Research Facility al Jackson Hole [continuedf 

nutrients to the lake until such time asnew 

forest growth creates a marked reduction 

in nutrient yield. 

Romme hypothesizes that the 1880’s 

survey may have been made shortly after 

such a fire and at a time when peak 

amounts of nutrients were reaching the 

lake from lightly vegetated watersheds, 

boosting lake produchvity to an unusually 

high level. If there is a current decline, it 

may well be part of a natural cycle of 

nutrient flux, he says. 

“In the Yellowstone area, there appears 

to be a natural fire cycle in which areas as 

large as lOsquare miles are burned over in 

a short time every 300 to 400years. Such 

occurrences could produce enormous 

oulses in the nutrient cycle,” he says. 

Romme is working with Dennis H. 

Knight, UW botany professor, on this 

aspect of the lake’s history and on the 

larger picture of how old and new forest 

stands affect nutrient availability in the 

ecpsystem in their varying patterns. He is 

developing a fire history of the lake 

watersheds, extracting core samples from 

living trees and gathering trunk slices 

throughout the area. These tell him a great 

deal about the extent of past fires, when 

they occurred, and how soon the young 

second qrowth may have placed nutrient 

drain onthe system. 

Romme also is lookino at ihe possible 

impact of “the removal 07 more than 3,000 

tons of trout from the lake”since it became 

accessible to human predators - 

fishermen -overthepast lOOyears.“That 

represents a lot of nutrient material lost to 

the lake ecology and it may have some 

bearing on the possible reduction of 

productivity,” he notes. 

Romme will investigate the vegetation 

ecology of the area in relation to other 

information coming to light and will either 

offer an explanation for the suspected 

change or suggest additional areas for 

investigation. 

Press releases on most of the research 

projects -similar to theexcerptsfrom the 

Yellowstone Lake study -are constantly 

being prepared by the UW information 

staff, creating interest and support among 

the public and informing people about the 

resources that they, as the public, hold title 

to. 

Diem has been director of the research 

center since the cooperative agreement 

between UW and NPS was signed 

establishing the facility in 1977. UW holds 

a 15year special use permit for the site, 

which is the early-day AMK Ranch, 

homesteaded in 1890 by John Dudley 

Sargent and purchased in 1975 by the NPS 

from its last private owners, the A.C. 

Berol family of the Eagle Pencil Co. It had 

served the family as a summer homesince 

1934. and all the original structures, except 

those erected by Sargent, still stand. 

The buildings, most of them crafted of 

logs so finely fitted and carefully designed 

Oak Savanna Habitat 

Restoration Underway 

By Karen Leslie Swirsky and Tim Thomas 

In California, native landscape restoration is a fairly new idea. In many cases the 

landscapes proposed for restoration are 

so little studied that knowlege of ecosystems operation, species composition, and 

cyclic events can only be inferred. Facts 

have been lost forever to development, 

grazing, cultivation, and other manipulations such as fire suppression. 

An example of a quickly disappearing 

native California landscape is the valley 

oak savanna. This ecosystem occurs on 

rich valley bottoms and foothills that also 

are extremely attractive for agriculture 

and development. Valley oaks (Ouercus 

lobala) are endemic to California, ranging 

from Mount Shasta to the Santa Monica 

Mountains. 

This is a familiar landscape: majestic 

oaks up to 30 meters tall and at leasttwice 

as wide in canopy, surrounded by seas of 

meter-high grasses. It is a landscape in 

real danger of disappearing. Even where 

development does not remove habitat, the 

valley oak is largely non-regenerative 

throughout most of its range. 

The major component of the savanna is 

the grasslands. Native grasses are 

believed to be composed of largely perennial bunchgrasses and have been replaced 

over the last century by Europeon grazingadapted grasses introduced by cattle and 

sheep ranchers. 

The Santa Monica Mountains National 

Recreation Area includes valley oak 

savanna at the southern limit of its occurrence, and here a valley oak savanna habitat rehabilitation project has been 

established. This project takes two directions. The first is a comparison of three 

valley oak savanna sites. Each site has a 

different level of disturbance, ranging 

from severe to moderate. No undisturbed 

valley oak savannas remain in the Santa 

Monica Moun!ains. These three sites are 

being mapped for vegetation, for comparison between sites and to future mappings. 

The second part of the project is to conduct experiments of restoration methods 

on study plots located on the most 

severely disturbed site. The problem is 

how to encourage native grasses, forbs, 

shrubs, and trees while discouraging the 

non-natives. A technique may satisfy 

some of the experimental requirements 

while violating others. For example, burning is a logical choice for grassland manipulation, having been proven in the field; 

but a fire will kill valley oak seedlings. 

Various management approaches will be 

attempted in a permutuation grid. Within 

each experimental plot, several “gardening” methods will be used, such as planting nursery propagated grass and oak 

seedlings, fertilizing, mulching, and 

excluding animals. 

Since this is initially a short-term project, the major applied goals are efforts to 

determine which management techniques 

have the best first year results in establishing grassland patterns, and to define 

the questions for future research. For 

example: What are the conditions most 

conducive to healthy valley oak savanna? 

How much space is required for habitat 

maintenance? What is the natural density 

of valley oaks within thesavanna?What is 

the natural seedling mortality for valley 

oaks? What role does fire olav in this 

, 

ecosystem? 

This oroiect will suoolv information for 

valley oak’savanna rkqu~rements. for the 

management of existing but ailing preserves, and for the establishment of new 

ones. 

Swirsky is in Resource Management 

and Thomas is in Visitor SeWiCeS at 

Santa Monica Mountains NRA. 

that they are among examples marked for 

historic preservation, have proved 

adaptable to scientific research and 

support activity. The new location was 

occupied in the summer of 1978, when the 

activities of Uw’s forerunner, the Jackson 

Hole Biological Research Station, were 

moved to the 120acre AMK Ranch. 

Living quarters accommodate 50 or 

more well-equipped laboratories, shop 

buildings, storage areas, and a massive 

boathouse and dock complete the 

facilities. The Berol Lodge, a huge fog 

structure on Jackson Lake, encloses labs, 

two large meeting rooms, the director’s 

office, a three-.room researcher’s 

apartment, and a branch of the UWScience 

Library that has proved invaluable to the 

operation. 

9 

Dominating all are the Tetons. which 

vault from the far lakeshore 8,OOOfeet into 

the western sky. Thousands of tourists 

pass the approach road daily, unaware of 

the facility; even most park personnel 

don’t know of its existence. Researchers 

prize the privacy and commonly spend 12 

to 14 hours a day in the field or lab. 

working right through weekends and 

holidays. 

The investigators pay nominal fees for 

their accommodations and either cook 

their own meals or use the Coulter Bay 

restaurants. They are enthusiastic in their 

praise of the Center and the situation that 

permits study in an untouched area 

beyond the reach of disturbing 

development (a condition vital to longterm research). 
Oral History Adds 

Cultural Texture 

At John Day NM 

By Royal 9 Jackson 

Anew program of research whosefocus 

is the cultural history of John Day Fossil 

Beds NM, has recently been initiated by 

Supt. Ben Ladd. The world famous fossil 

beds, located near Dayville in Eastern 

Oregon’s John Day Valley, have long been 

known and visited by scientists and others 

interested in the past. The story revealed 

through these rich paleontological resources is an ancient one that has intrigued 

many over the years. lndicatrve of the 

more recent human history are the livestock industry-associated buildings, structures and implements, which are much in 

evidence today. They suggest the story of 

the human use and occupation of this area 

which is so much better known for its rich 

fossil remains. 

The focus of this research is the Cant 

Ranch: its relatioship to the Monument’s 

natural and cultural resources, and its 

representative role as a typical livestock 

operatron in the John Day Valley in the 

early 1900’s. The National Park Service’s 

visitor center and headquarters presently 

is housed in the original three-story family 

home of James and Elizabeth Cant, an 

early Scottrsh ranching family. The Cant 

family is important to understanding the 

history of John Day Fossil Beds NMfortwo 

reasons: It was from their holdings that a 

large portron of the Monument’s fossil 

resources wasacquired intheearly 1970’s; 

and, their story exemplifies the dominant 

historical themes of the area’s history. 

The Cants 

In 190.5 the young and energetic James 

Cant arrived to the John Day Valley after 

spending several years in Argentina raismg horses for use in the Boer War. He 

immediately went to work herding sheep 

for a fellow countryman from Scotland, 

Alexander Murray, and began to build up 

his own band of sheep. In 1907 he sent to 

Scotland for his boyhood sweetheart, Elizabeth Grant; they married and through 

hard work were able to acquire. by 1910. 

the land that became the nucleus of the 

Cant Ranch. 

In ensuing years the Cants prospered in 

the livestock business, first raising sheep, 

then shifting their operation to cattleas did 

most area ranchers. They became a well 

known and respected family in the sparsely settled area north of Picture Gorgeon 

the John Day River. Their three-story 

home, which was built in 1917, was an 

elegant residence for its time; it served as 

a landmark and hospitable lodging place 

for weary travellers on the rough road up 

the John Day Valley. 

The Cant Ranch became an established 

linkinthenetworkofraochesthat madeup 

the rural ranching community between 

Dayville and Kimberly. Over the years It 

was the scene of many social gatherings, 

resounding to the distinctive and lively 

bagpipe music that was played for the traditional Scottish dances. The large Scottish community in the John Day Valley 

provided the stimulus for celebrating cultural activities; the Cant Ranch often provided the place. 

In ordertoeducatethefourCantchildren 

a school was started on the third floor of 

their home and children from nearby 

ranches were invited to attend. A live-in 

teacher brought from “back east” cheerfully struggled with the three R’s; children 

accustomed to the excitement and constant activity of a working ranch were 

sometimes not the most receptive to formal education. On numerous occasionsthe 

“schoolhouse” was converted to a dance 

hall and men, women, and children accustomed to long hours of physrcal labor gave 

themselves over to dancino. socializino 

and general merriment. ” 

Although these occastonal social events 

were memorable highpoints and some respite from everyday work, ranch life was 

dominated far more by work than by leisure. The primary economic activity of the 

Cant Ranch, livestock raising, provided 

the rhythm of life just as it did for most 

rural residents of the area at this time. 

Lambing, shearing, branding, marking, 

moving stock to summer range, mending 

fence, coping with severe weather, and 

dealing with predators -these were more 

typical of everyday activities than the 

occasional social event. A visitor to most 

ranches would have recognized quickly 

the din of newly born lambs bawling for 

their mothers, the easy conversation of the 

sheepshearing crew members at their 

noon meal, the clang of metal from the 

blacksmith shop and the tantalizing baking smells from Elizabeth Cant’s busy krtthen. All of these sights, sounds, and 

smells were typical of rural life in Eastern 

Oregon during the early decades of the 

2Mh century. 

By the time Mr. and Mrs. JamesCant had 

passed away in 1972, the Cants and their 

ranch had become a part of the local history, leaving indelible marks on the land 

and its people. In 1975 the National Park 

Service acquired a part of the famrly’s land 

holdings and incorporated them into John 

Day Fossil Beds National Monument. 

Oral History as a 

Research Methodology 

The first step in documenting the cultural history of the Monument is being carried out through a methodology little used 

in the past but gaining greater acceptance 

-oral history. Oral history is the collecting of anyindividual’sspoken memories of 

his life, of people he has known, and 

events he has witnessed or participated in. 

Orally communicated historical information can provide supplementary details 

for topics documented through these traditional means. This is particularly true for 

past material culture - buildings, work 

implements, corrals, bridges, roads and 

other man-made artifacts. Thus, oral history is increasingly being employed to 

obtain data fro the management of cultural 

resources on public lands. It also is useful 

in capturing historical information about 

changes in the land over time e.g., thecondition of the range, prevalence of wildlife. 

and agricultural practices no longer 

employed. 

A second use of oral sources is to oroTyprcal YI~W from the wmdow of John Day V&yrnnch house around the turn of the century was shee 

and therr associaied auf buildings 

10 
Oral History Adds Cultural Texture [continued) 

vide complementary information i.e., buttressing the written record through a more 

intimate and personal viewpoint on welldocumented occurrences. Dramatic events 

such as floods, murders, volcanic eruptions, accidents, epidemics and other lifechanging experiences are likely to be 

recalled in highly personal terms. An 

example would be recollections of federal 

government programs during the 30’s. in 

which thousands of sheep were slaughtered, piled and burned. This Depression 

era measure still evokes vivid and colorful 

memories amonq _ many western 

stockmen. 

Dral historv also is useful as a tool to 

create primary documents i.e., wherethere 

are no written records about a given event 

the oral account may constitute the only 

original source of information. Information about activities which in some way 

transgress laws, mores or customs Is 

often difficult to obtain; e.g.. deer poachmg. “moonshining”. cattle rustling, and 

illicit sex. For the non-literate or those 

more at ease with oral than written forms, 

it may be the only way to share historical 

knowledge. 

In summary, oral history is useful to 

resource managers for: (1) gathering supplementary information about topics 

already documented through other sources, (2) complementing the written record 

with information that is more personal and 

often vividly recalled, thus offering a subjective dimension, and (3) creating primary source material where no previous 

written record exists. Each of these 

approaches is being usefully employed in 

obtaining historical information about the 

Cant Ranch and its environs. 

The Oral History 

Program al the Cant Ranch 

The oral history program was initiated 

by meduring Spring 1982. NPSsupplied me 

with a list of individuals who have first 

hand knowledge of the topics being invesligated: (1) the historical relationship of 

the Cant Ranch with the Monument’s natural and cultural resources, (2) and the Cant 

Ranch as it exemplifies the livestock 

Industry in the John Day Valley in theearly 

1900’s. 

The initial list of potential narrators 

named 10 people, most of whom were 6010 

75 years of age; two of the Cant’s four 

children were included. Background 

research on local and regional history was 

carried out using primary and secondary 

sources in libraries, archives, museums 

and private collections. A preliminary 

interview format was constructed and 

pilot tested. These tape-recorded interviews provided the basis for additional 

research, site visits to the study area, and 

revisions in the question set. The resulting 

interview format contained about 75ques 

tions that touched all aspects of the topics 

under study. To date Eof the lOinformants 

have been interviewed one or more times, 

and all tapes have been transcribed on a 

word processor. In some cases transcripts 

have been submitted to narrators for revision and additions; ultimately all wilt complete this process. 

Included in the thematic framework Of 

the research are the following: the John 

Day River as a common thread of rural life; 

changes in the land overtime; stability and 

change in the livestock industry; rural 

social life patterns; the Scottish-Amerrcan 

subculture; attitudes toward federal land 

management; influence of the natural and 

cultural environment on work and leisure; 

Indian-white relations; transportation and 

communication; agricultural practice and 

change; exploitation of the fossil resources; past material culture - cultural 

resources; and, National Park Service 

administrative history of the Monument. 

Implications for Management 

The findings of this research will be useful in carrying out the mandated tasks of 

planning, managing and interpreting the 

Monument’s resources. Supplementary 

information is being obtained about the 

location, age and uses of burldings. corrals, roads, water systems, gardens and 

other improvements at the Cant Ranch. 

This data helps the manager better comply 

with historic preservation laws governing 

the maintenance, alteration, and removal 

of cultural resources. 

Narrators also are providing complementary historical information. For example, much is known about the constructron 

of the Cant home which is now the visitor 

center: construction date, materials used, 

builders’ names and other information. 

Complementing this data are narrators’ 

descriptions of the housewarming, which 

was well remembered by all who attended 

as the highpoint of that winter’s social season. This information provides insights 

into the social customs of the day and is 

useful to the NPS interpretive programs. 

Some applications could be in slide-tapes, 

films written narratives, pamphlets, 

exhibits living history programs, and similar media. 

The interviews also are producing complementary and primary source information about such topics as the effects of 

fencing on the open range, relations with 

the Indians who seasonally migrated 

through the area. development of major 

roads and communication patterns, federal land management and the distinctive 

place of the Scottish-American subculture 

that flourished in the John Day Valley in an 

earlier day. This expanded historic data 

base provides management with better 

information for decision-making. 

The oral history program at John Day 

Fossil Beds also is enhancing NPScommunity linkages. All federal land managers have been called upon to seek 

11 

Letters to 

the Editor 

To the Editor: 

Among the many gems m your Winter 

issue was the final exchange with Supt. 

Bill Briggle on the role of Park Rangers in 

resource management and appreciahon. 

lndivrdual specialization and the centralization of talent by Service policy have 

combined to relocate resourcemanagement skills from uniformed people 

in the oarks to staff people in centers and 

centrai offices. 

Bv this statement I do not intend any 

demgration of the expertise and the necessary role of staff specialists and scientis!s 

_ in both the natural and cultural resource 

fields. Rather, I call for a balance. We need 

discipline-competent people in the 

resource, people who are part of the park 

management team in itsday-to-day operation. Lacking this balance, people detached from and often totally inexperienced 

in area operations end up effectively calling the resource-management shots. 

Often, because of the intimidation fostered 

by the priesthood of expertise, resident 

park people - reduced to custodial functions - abdicate their resourcemanagement responsibilities. 

I belreve that Briggle’s comment has germinal import. It ramifiesthroughorgamzational structures and long-established (if 

not venerated) personnel policies of the 

Service. We have left crihcal posts 

unmanned in the parks, relying instead on 

occasional visitations by teams of 

experts. It does not work. It lacks the synthesis of general and area-specific 

knowledges. 

This subject deserves some concentrated thought. There needs to be a forum 

established for such thought. Particularly 

is this true in a time of austerity and institutional stress, Ascentral mechanismsfalter, the parks are forced to become more 

autonomous. 

William E. Brown 

Regional Historian, 

Alaska Regional Office 

greater public involvement m resource 

management decisions. The knowledge 

and historical perspectives of long-time 

residents of the John Day Valley are partlcularly valuable to NPS employees who 

often are not from the local area. The oral 

history program is bringing these narrators into the management process to share 

their collective historical views, and this in 

turn, stimulates a cooperative spnrt 

between agency and community. 

Jackson is an associate professor in the 

Department of Resource Recreation Management at Oregon State University. 
Information 

Crossfile 

Word comes from Skip Snow, North Unit 

District Naturalist at Theodore Roosevelt 

NP, ND, that an article in the January 1983 

issue of American Libraries “has helped in 

sorting out where to spend my money.” 

Thearticleisentitled “Microcomputerperiodicals for libraries.” The author, Karl 

Beiser. is district consultant for the NE 

Maine Library District at Bangor and a personal computer enthusiast. His Spage 

article amounts to an abstract of general 

computer periodicals, and periodicals that 

keep up with library applications of microcomputers. It also contains a listing of specialized and highly technical periodicals in 

the microcomputing field. 

t * (I 

California’s fog is far more polluted than 

acid rain, according to research described 

by Leslie Roberts in the November 1982 

BioScience (Vol. 32 No. 10. pp. 778.9). 

Roberts tells of research done by environmental enginners at the California Institute 

of Technology (CIT), showing that fog 

tends to be “far more acidic than rain 

often acidic enough to corrode metal.” 

According to Roberts, the CIT research 

team speculates that “pre-existing smog 

aerosol forms the seed for the formation of 

acid fog. Furthermore, SO2 and NOX are 

converted to sulfuric and nitric acids 

within the fog droplets.” 

The Nov. 12. 1981 issue of Science (pp. 

677-9) carriesatechnicaldescriptionofthe 

findings -“Chemical composition of Acid 

Fog” - authored by Prof. Michael R. Hoffmann and the CIT students who ran the 

study with him. The work was done from 

the W.M. Keck Laboratories at CIT, Pasadena, CA 91125. The pH of the fog waterwas 

reported to range from 2.2 to 4.0. 

* f f 

A condensed but highly inclusive article, 

“The Acid Precipitation Phenomenon and 

Its Ecological Consequences,” by Ellis 6. 

Cowling and Rick A. Linthurst in the 

October 1981 BioScience (pp. 649-53) contains a section of summary statements 

describing the general status of knowledge about acid precipitation and its ecological consequences as of December 

1980. They are synthesis of observations 

and inferences derived from “many independent investigations,” and abbreviated 

from the more complete and referenced 

statements by E.B. Cowling in a 1981 

research report entitled “An historical 

resume of progress in scientific and public 

understanding of acid precipitation and its 

biological consequences.” As of October 

1981. the Cowling report was in press. 

f . f 

The January 1983 issue of Discover describes geneticengineering in 1982to create 

bacteria useful in industrial processes. 

Those engineered by a .microbiologist at 

the University of Illinois may soon be 

separating petroleum into useful components. One strain will be field tested to 

determine how well it can digest waxes 

and paraffins, leaving behind only commercially profitable light crude oil. 

Another strain developed there in 1982 

thrives on sulfur compounds in high-sulfur 

oil, converting them to water-soluble sulfates that can easily be removed so the oil 

will burn more cleanly. The University College, Cardiff. in Wales, reported that two 

naturally occurring species of thiobacillus 

bacteria could be used to remove silver 

from sulfide ore minerals and accumulate 

it on their surfaces. Even further out is the 

news from the Tokyo Institute of Technology, where a bacterium was reportedly 

used in the generation of electric power. 

The bacterium digests glucose to produce 

hydrogen, in a polymer gel laced with 

molasses. The hydrogen thus produced 

was fed to a hydrogen-oxygen fuel cell (ot 

type used in the space shuttle) to generate 

electricity. 

* f (I 

A fairly new entry into the field of management, maintenance and design publications is Parks and Recreation 

Resources. an international magazine for 

managers of parks, recreation areas, 

resorts, grounds, golf courses, waterways 

and zoos. Vol. 1, Nos. Sand lO(September- 

/October 1982) carries an article, “American Photographers and the National 

Parks,” by Robert G. Ketchum, describing 

the traveling exhibit of the same name that 

opened in Minneapolis in October 1982, 

moved to the Denver Art Museum in January 1983. and will wind up in Los Angeles 

at the County Museum of Art April 7 

through June 26. Ketchum traces the historic impact of photography upon the 

National Park idea, which he calls “one of 

the very finest of the ideas that have risen 

from the American consciousness.” The 

younger photographers whose work is 

being shown “offer clear evidence,” 

according to Ketchum, “that the first circle 

of thought has been completed and that we 

stand on the threshold of new ideas. The 

work of these artists has been fed by the 

parks, rather than feeding them, and it 

shows that the parks are a resource of 

great intellectual breadth, as well as 

recreational playgrounds.” 

Elizabeth Johnston is managing editor; 

2307 Hamilton Road, Okemos. Ml 48864. 

f f . 

The February 1983issue of Oregon W/dwife carries news of “understandable 

embarrassment” in Idaho when the state’s 

1982 fishing regulations came out with an 

ad encouraging sportsmen to donate 

money to the state’s nongame “wildlife 

fund.” To this typographical error was 

added the slogan “Do something wild in 

1982.” A Lewiston, Ida. sports shop owner 

12 

was so taken with the goof that he had 500 

T-shirts printed proclaiming Idaho’s “Wildwife Program.” The first 350 shirts were 

gone in one week: $250 profit from the 

sales went to Idaho’s nongame program. 

t * . 

Australian Ranger Bulletin is the same 

name of the Australian Natronal Parks and 

Wildlife Service bulletin published twice a 

year in Canberra City (Box 636, PO Canberra City, ACT 2601 Australia). Established in 1981 “to provide a forum for 

training, commumcation and idea sharing 

on a national level by and for rangers on 

parks and wildlife,” the bulletin is a handsome, illustrated, approximately 4Dpage 

publication that covers a wide variety of 

management subjects in a breezy, conversational style. One issue (Vol. 1 No. 2) discusses the organism causing blindness in 

wallabies -toxoplasmosis, with “one of 

the most frighteningly versatilelifecycles 

known.” In the same issue the effects of 

feral animals (pigs, goats and rabbits, 

introduced in 1790) on islands in Botany 

Bay are examined and plant regeneration 

work is described. “Planning and Development: Adhocism vs. a Systems Approach” 

discusses real life problems in Australian 

parks resulting from failure to recognize 

the “components” and “linkages” in management actions and the consequences 

that could have been anticipated. 

. * 1 

Western forester (1326 American Bank 

Bldg., Portland, OR 97205) in its February 

1983 issue, carries an editorial by Bob 

Ethington and Sarah Greene in defense of 

the USFS Research Natural Areas. “We 

argue,” they write, “that unless our only 

objective is short-term availability of 

forest resources, the completed system of 

Research Natural Areas is vital to all 

resource managers.” Greene is a research 

forester and Ethington is Director of the 

Pacific Northwest Forest and Range Experiment Station in Portland, (809 N.E. Sixth 

Ave.), OR 97232. 

f . . 

The first application in Alaska of the 

Recreation Opportunity Spectrum (ROS) - 

in the White Mountains National Recreation Area - is described by Richard B. 

Tobin BLM outdoor recreation planner 

from Fairbanks, in the January 1983issue 

of Agroborealis. The full color publication 

of the USDA Agricultural Experiment Station at the University of Alaska, Fairbanks 

99701, also contains an article by Glenn P. 

Juday describing an exploration of one of 

five potential Research Natural Areas 

within the 2.2 million acres that comprise 

the White Mountains NRA and the Steese 

National Conservation Area. Although it 

has been overshadowed in attention bythe 

NPSand National Wildlife Refuge Systems, 

the White Mountains recreation opportunities rival those found anywhere in Alaska, 

according to Tobin. 
Study Documents 

Plant Poaching In 

Great Smokies 

By Susan Power Bratton 

National Park Service managers frequently complain about people who trample, pick or dig up showy wildflowers and 

rare plants. Desert parks report difficulties 

with cactus fanciers who check out the 

park during the day, then sneak out into 

the desert at night and remove unusual or 

especially attractive species of cacti. The 

sub-tropical parks, such as Everglades, 

find orchid enthusiasts can not resist removing epiphytic orchids and other “air 

plants”. In many cases, a park may have 

both amateur plant poachers, (the people 

who dig plants for their own home gardens 

or casually pick a few flowers), and the 

professional poachers, (those who gather 

large numbers of plants for sale). 

In the Great Smoky Mountains NP. plant 

poachers are known to harvest medicinal 

plants, especially ginseng (Panax quinquefo/iumJ, an herb supposed to increase 

one’s life span and virility. Poachers also 

dig up showy flowering plants, such as 

azaleas, rhododendrons, and orchids, and 

strip off moss mats that can be used to 

decorate terrariums. Some species can be 

sold to dealers who specialize in wild 

plants. Dried ginseng root will bring up to 

$140 a pound, azaleas a few dollars each, 

and woodland orchids a dollar or two for 

each flowering shoot. 

Since some endangered species may be 

subject to poaching, and poachers may be 

harming the experience of park visitors by 

removing the best populations of showy 

flowering species, plant poaching has 

received increasing attention as a resources management and law enforcement 

concern. 

Unfortunately most of the information 

on plant poaching is anecdotal. Rare plant 

monitoring is a relatively new activity in 

most parks, so long term data on possible 

population declines, due to poaching and 

other factors, are uncommon. Poaching is 

difficult to study because poachers usually know what they are doing is against 

the law and try to avoid being seen. Since 

one or two diggers can remove over a 

hundred shoots of an herbaceous plant in a 

few hours, a very low number of poaching 

incidents could greatly depletealocal population of plants. Once the plants havedisappeared, there is no way of to quantify 

population changes and poaching 

impacts. 

In Great Smoky Mountains NP. two projects are atternpting to determine the magnitude of the poaching problem. First, 

Peter White, of Uplands Field Research 

Library in the Great Smokies has been 

cooperating with Rob Sutter from the 

North Carolina Department of Agriculture, 

Pesticides and Plant Protection Division, in 

establishing a ginseng monitoring program. The original idea was to find “pristine” or “undisturbed” populations in the 

park to use as controls for populations 

outside the park. Due to the large percentage of small or immature plants, however, 

it is now thought even Smokies ginseng 

populations several miles from thenearest 

trail are subject to at least some digging. 

The plant is so valued by poachers that it 

almost never is seen near park roads or 

trails, even where there is good habitat. 

The ginseng monitoring was initiated by 

locating populations in remote 

watersheds, including “virgin”forest, then 

marking each study site with metal stakes 

and aluminum tree tags. The investigators 

sample a strip heading upslope. Individual 

shoots are censused, the number of 

“prongs” (leaves) is counted, and the presence and number of flowers is recorded. 

Botanists can return late to these sites and 

determine if the populations are increasing 

or decreasing and if their structure has 

changed. 

The second project was a field survey of 

two species of woodland orchids known to 

be favored by wildflower gardeners. One of 

Showy orchis. a smaii. spring. forest floor herb 

known fo be harvested by wddflowergardeners 

m fhe Great Smoky Mountams NP 

the species, showy orchis (Orchis spectabilisj, occurs at scattered locations in low 

elevation stream valleys. A small plant, 

usually less than eight inches tall, it produces sprays of delicate lavender and white 

flowers from mid-April to early May. The 

second species, pink lady slipper (Cypripedium acao/e), prefers pine and oak forests. 

Often over a foot tall and easy to locate, it 

produces a single large pink flower from 

late April to early June. 

13 

Research teams, including volunteers 

from EARTHWATCH sampled orchid populations in four types of areas: 1) vehicular 

access or very easvaccess. such as nature 

trails, 2) moderate access, foot and horse 

trails, 3) difficult access, trails more than 5 

km from the nearest vehicle road, and 4) 

cross-country access, site without maintained trails. 

The teams sampled a 50 m wide 

swath along a road or trail (or in the case 

of cross-country routes along a stream or 

ridge line) and attempted to locate all the 

orchids over a distance of 1 km or more. 

Each team recorded a series of environmental variables, such as slope and forest 

type, both every 200 m and every timethey 

encountered a new population of orchids. 

For each individual shoot the investigators 

recorded length of longest leaf, number of 

leaves per shoot, presence or absence of 

flowers: distance from nearest automobile 

road, drstance from nearest trail, and visibility from nearest road or trail. Information also was collected on distance to the 

next nearest shoot of the same species. 

Preliminary data analysis has shown, 

first, that the showy orchis responds 

favorably to disturbances along roads and 

trails. Along routes most heavily used by 

visitors, 1245 showy orchis plants were 

found within 0 to 9 m of the trail edge, 983 

from 1Oto 19m, and only362from40to49 

m. The percentage of plants blooming was 

only slightly higher for the distant individuals: 26 percent of the plants 40m or more 

away from the trail were blooming as 

opposed to 23percent of the plants within 0 

to 9 m of the trail. Further, the population 

structure in the high visitor access sites 

was very similar to that in the remote offtrail populations. The mean length of the 

longest leaf for the high access was 7.49 

cm, while it was 7.46 cm for the off-trail 

samples. The average percentage of plants 

blooming along easy access trails was 25 

percent, 21 percent for remote areas. There 

was thus very little evidence that plant 

poaching or the presence of developments 

such as trails was harming the populations of this species. 

The pink lady slipper situation wasquite 

different. Lady slipper populations along 

automobile roads and nature trails had 

smaller plants and fewer flowering individuals than those in remote, backcountry 

areas. The average length of the longest 

leaf was 7.29 cm: 10.57 cm, 11.08 cm and 

14.61 cm for vehtcle roads, nature trawls. 

moderate access sites and remote sites 

respectively. The percentage of plants 

with flowers was only 3to 4percent for the 

roads and nature trails, while it was 11 

percent for moderate access, and 24 percent for remote sites. Ironically. in one of 

the most heavily visited areas of the Smokies. Cades Cove Loop Road, over 1200 

lady slipper shoots were located with in 50 

m of the road, but only 3 of these plants 

were found to be bloomtng. (Over grazing 

by deer may be contributing to the small 
Study Oocuments Plant Poaching [continued) 

Measuring the length of the iongesf /eat 01 a 

pink iady slipper. Asrde from counirng @v/dual plants m the samphng areas, as $eries,of 

morphological measures were taken mcludmg 

number of /eaves, length of longest leaf, presence of flowers, anddistancefothenextnearest 

~/ant of the same species. 

EAATHWATCH volunteers takmg basic environmental measurements and determinmg the distance fo 

the nearest road and trad forpopulatio, of showy orcha growing in a park puic area. 

size and lack of mature orchids, in this 

case). The three nature trails sampled had 

347 plants total, about IO of which were 

blooming. The data showed that only the 

larger lady slippers bloomed, and that 

once the plants reached about 26 cm leaf 

length, they almost always bloomed. If 

poachers were removing primarilyflowering individuals they also would be removing the largest plants, perhaps accounting 

for the smaller size of the orchids in the 

high use areas. Grazing or trampling could 

also, by reducing leaf size and plant productivity, inhibit blooming. 

Although there are still numerous 

healthy lady slipper populations in the 

Great Smoky Mountains NP. and the existence of the species is not critically threatened by human activities, densely 

flowering populations of lady slippers are 

not present in sites with easy visitor 

access. Since lady slippers have a favorable response to disturbances, such ascanopy opening, there is little reason to 

believe the presence of roads and trails is 

causing difficulties. These openings 

appear in some cases to stimulate the populations. It is more likely thatdirectdisturbance by people, including digging, flower 

picking and trampling while viewing flowers is depleting the number of blooming 

plants. Evidence of digging was noted during this survey. 

The data indicate that plant poaching 

should be a concern for park management 

in the Great Smokies. but that further information is needed. Monitoring of ginseng 

and of lady slippers should continue and 

park botanists should attempt to determine if any other species populations are 

presently subject to significant impact. 

Yellow lady slippers, which are much rarer 

in the park than the pink, should certainly 

be censused and monitored as should all 

the threatened or endangered orchids and 

lilies. Law enforcement and interpretive 

staff can assist in the effort by providing 

data on poaching incidents and by making 

visitors more aware of the damagecaused 

by poaching. 

Bratton is a research bmtogist with the 

NPWCPSU at the University of Georgia’s 

institute of Ecology. 

14 

A road side in Great Smokxs Such s&s are 

good w,ldflowerhab,taf, butareheawlyusedby 

v;sitors and are easdy accessrble to plant 

poachers. 
Bear Research Scientists 

Hold 6th World Meeting 

By David M. Graber 

Some of us wondered if we could pull it 

Off one more time. How much attention 

could one small family of mammals possibly command, particularly after some 15 

years of intensive research, headlinemaking management and conservation 

issues, and 5 international conferences. 

We had nothing to worry about. After 4 

exciting/grueling days of paper presentations. workshops, poster sessions, special 

SeSSiOflS, rump sessions, and block-thehallway sessions, the Sixth International 

Conference on Bear Research and Management had marked a professional turning 

point for an organization and a renewed 

awareness that the study and concern for 

Ursidae is more urgent than ever. 

The small group of biologists that had 

met in Whitehorse. Yukon, in 1968 to talk 

about bears; had defined itself in Calgary, 

Alberta in 1970 and Binghamton, N.Y. in 

1974; had grown and formalized itself as 

the Bear Biology Association in Kalispell, 

Mont., in 1977 and Madison, Wis.. in 1980, 

was at last a fully mature organization by 

the time the Grand Canyon, Ariz.. rolled 

around in 1983. In recognition not only of 

its long-standing representation of Canadian members, but of increasing participation by members working in Asia, Europe, 

South America, and Mexico, BBArenamed 

itself the “international Association for 

Bear Research and Management,” (abbreviated acronym: IBA). 

Because the study of bears has traditionally been tied to management concerns -bears’ roles as pests or threats on 

one hand and as a dimimshing resource on 

the other - IBA membership and attendence at conferences has always leaned 

heavily to public resource managers and 

the biologists who feed them information. 

That old complaint by managers that the 

information given them is irrelevant to 

mangement or incomprehensible was 

never uttered (at least in the presence of 

this reporter) at Grand Canyon. 

On the contrary, a significant change 

was the inclusion of some fascinating new 

work on the physiology of hibernation and 

the blood changes associated with pregnancy. Zoo workers presented papers on 

captive sloth bears (Melursus ursinus) and 

spectacled bears (Tremarctos ornaros). 

species little known from field investigation. A pair of Spanish papers and their 

accompanying film looked at brown bear 

(Ursus arclos) behavior essentially 

unknown in this intensely-studied species 

in the wild. 

If there was one topic of exceptional 

interest, it was concern for the welfare of 

the Yellowstone grizzly bear (Ursusarctos 

horribilis) population, and continued survival of remnant populations in the Selkirk 

Mountains, the Selway-Bitterroot Mountains, the North Cascades, and the 

Cabinet-Yaak Mountains. Recent population trend evidence suggests a continued 

decline in numbers, while there have been 

an alarming number of known and suspected mortalities by illegal taking in 

lands surrounding Yellowstone National 

Park. Richard Kmght, NPS scientist and 

Yellowstone Interagency Study Team 

Leader, did not attend, but Chris Servheen 

of the Fish & Wildlife Service reviewed 

research and management programs. 

Concern for the lack of quality census 

data was a recurring theme, as Dale 

McCullough (U/Cal), Harold Picton 

(MT/S/U), presented different population 

models linking population dynamics toclimate, food availability, and age/sex composition of the population. McCullough 

electrified the gathering by proposing, at 

the conclusion of his technical paper, a 

simplified management scheme in which 

bears in the Yellowstone ecosystem would 

be censused each year by a direct aerial 

count; which would establish a known 

minimum number of animals. Whenever 

that minimum count yielded a number 

below some predetermined acceptable 

number, emergency intervention measures would automatically begin. 

Actions that have been discussed include 

the elimination of timber harvests, stock 

allotments, and all hunting (grizzly bears 

are, of course, protected from hunting but 

not from depredation and “self-defense” 

kills) in the lands surrounding the Park, 

and artificial carrion feeding at remote 

sites within the Park. The former actions 

would presumably reduce the number of 

mortalities, while feeding would increase 

fertility, and concentrate bears inside the 

Park but away from visitors. 

McCullough observed that with his system, there would be a strong motivation 

for National Forest users not to kill grizzlies, since a reduced count could jeopardire their operations. The McCullough plan 

circumvents the present stumbling block 

that dependable and consistent population 

figures have not been produced for the 

past decade; almost invariably population 

modelers have had to rely on data col- 

$;;i, by the Craighead team during the 

Polar bears were represented not only 

by some of the finest technical papers of 

the conference, but also by a meeting of 

the Internation Union for the Conservation 

of Nature and Natural Resources (IUCN) 

Survival Service Commission: Polar Bear 

Specialist Group. Representatives of the 5 

nations with polar bear populations meet 

regularly to discuss conservation and 

management of this animal on an international basis. Thor Larsen, of Norway, pres15 

ented a spectacular Norwegian film on the 

polar bear. In one cooperative venture 

among American, Canadian, and Norwegian scientist, polar bears werefitted with 

radio transmitters and then tracked by 

satellite as they moved with the ice floes. 

One arresting commonality of several of 

the 50.odd papers washow loss of fertile 

lowland habitat - in Alaska, in Italy, in 

Canada, in Peru, and In China -to human 

development had restricted bearto Inferior 

montane habitat and set the stage of bearhuman conflicts in which bears always are 

the ultimate losers. Bernard Peyton. who 

has been studying the virtually unknown 

and rapidly disappearing spectacled bear 

of the Andes, revealed in graphic detail 

how burgeoning human populations are 

creeping up the mountain, replacing native 

forest with corn fields. 

George Schaller. project leader of the 

international giant panda (Ailuropoda 

melanoleuca) research project in China, 

was at Grand Canyon to find out 11 the 

biology of bears may shed light on their 

mysterious cousin. Schaller’s fascinating 

presentation of the research and conservation problems of the giant panda 

revealed once more how loss of bottomland to human agriculture had placed the 

pandas in montane habitat rendered 

unstable by the bloom-and-die cycles of 

the bamboo food resource. 

Your reporter led a workshop entitled 

“The Impact of Biologists on Bears,” 

designed to explorethedual phenomenaof 

(1) ways in which research activities modify the ecology or behavior of bears, thus 

producing sourious results, and (2) ethlcal 

responsibilities toward our study subjects 

since some common procedures - capture, sedation, radio-collars, den visits, 

tooth extractions -clearly impose some 

costs on the animals. Participation by an 

appointed panel and by the conferees as a 

whole was animated and intense. There 

was a general feeling that our professionspecialty had matured to the point where a 

code of ethics and guides to minimize 

trauma to study subjects were appropriate 

responsibilities of the IBA. 

There was a common thread of concern 

for the welfare of bears outside North 

America and Europe. Charles Jonkel 

(U/MT) is chairman of the IUCN-SSC Bear 

Specialist Group; he held several sessions 

discussing ways in which IBA and its 

members could accelerate the study and 

protection of spectacled bears, sloth 

bears, sun bears (Helarctos malayanus), 

Asiatic black bear (Ursus thibetanus), and 

several races of brown bears (U. arckx) 

where their future existence is m jeopardy. 

One thing seemed certain at Grand 

Canyon: the future survival of research 

and interest in bears is not now 

threatened. 

Graber is a research scientisf at Sequoia 

and Kings Canyon NP and served as IBA 

Conference Prodeedings Editor. 
Colorado Tick Fever 

In 

Rocky Mountain NP 

Editor’s Note: The manaoement 

implications stemming from a recent 

study, by U.S. Forest Service scientist 

Andrew 8. Carev. are so we// DreStVted 

and follow so /o$ca//y from the’research, 

that Dr. Carey’s presentafion lsomewhaf 

different from Park Sciencestyle) are here 

set forth as submitted. 

By Andrew B. Carey 

The Disease: Colorado tick fever (CTF; 

historically referred to as “mountain 

fever” or “American mountain fever”) is a 

viral disease acquired through the bite of a 

tick. The disease may be mild and go 

unnoticed but usually has an abrupt onset 

three to six days after a tick bite, with 

symptoms being chilly sensations, high 

fever, severe headache, sensitivity to 

light, lethargy, and muscle-ache.Thefever 

lasts two to three days, subsides for one or 

two days, and then recurs for two or three 

days. In rare cases, primarily in children, 

the disease may be worse, with 

encephalitis or bleeding. A rash may 

develop and the disease is often 

misdiagnosed as Rocky Mountain spotted 

fever (a bacterial tick-borne disease). 

Diagnosis: Tick bite and symptoms may 

suggest CTF. but confirmation rests on 

isolation of the virus from the blood by 

inoculating red blood cells into newborn 

mice or tissue culture. If the mice or the 

cells die, fluorescent antibody staining is 

used to identify the virus. Tests for 

antibody specific to CTF may be used also. 

Treatment: There is no specific treatment: 

in other words “take two aspirin and go to 

bed.” Rest, general supportive care, and 

medicine to reduce fever and pain 

generally serve to ameliorate the 

symptoms. Recovery is usually rapid. 

Causative Agent: CTF is caused by a virus 

in the genus Orbivirus. A related virus 

(Eyach) has been found in ticks in Europe. 

CTF virus infects red blood cells, where it 

is protected from antibody and other bodydefense mechanisms. CTF virus is 

unrelated to the rickettsia that causes 

Rocky Mountain spotted fever. 

Vector: CTF virus is carried and 

transmitted primarily by the Rocky 

Mountain wood tick (Dermacentor 

andersoni). The wood tick also transmits 

Rocky Mountain spotted fever and causes 

a disease called “tick paralysis.” 

The wood tick has four stages in its life 

cycle: egg, larvae, nymph, adult. The tick 

increases in size with each stage. Each 

stage feeds once. Males feed lightly until 

they are attracted to a feeding female by 

her chemical signals. Males impregnate 

the partially engorged, feeding females. 

Larvae, nymphs, and females feed until 

they are engorged with blood. After 

feeding, these ticks drop off the host and 

seek shelter. The larvae molt to nymphs; 

nymphs molt to adults: females lay eggs 

and die. Each stage feeds on successively 

larger mammals; for example, larvae feed 

on mice [Peromyscus) and chipmunks 

(Eutamias), nymphs on chipmunks and 

ground squirrels (Spermophilus). and 

adults on oorcuoines (Erethizon 

dorsalurn). 

Distribution: Peoole become infected with 

CTF virus throughout the mountainous 

regions of the western United States and 

Canada. Distribution of the disease is 

correlated with that of the wood tick, 

however it is certain the virus occurs 

outside the range of the wood tick. Eight 

other species of ticks have been found 

infected with the virus. The actual 

incidence of the disease is unknown 

because the disease frequently is 

misdiagnosed and underreported. 

Colorado reported 77 percent of the 1.767 

cases reported during 19561965. 

During 1970.1977. Colorado reported an 

average of 174 cases/year. A large 

proportion (46 percent) of these cases 

were in the two-county area 

encompassing Rocky Mountain NP. An 

independent study by the Vector-borne 

Diseases Dtvtsion of the Centers for 

Disease Control (WC. U.S. Public Health 

Service) estimated that as many as 391 

cases of CTF may have been contracted m 

one campground in Rocky Mountain NPin 

one year. The risk of infection was 

calculated to be 1 case/346 camper-days. 

Natural Cycles of Infection: Nymphal wood 

ttcks carry the virus through the winter 

and infect small mammals the next 

summer: the small mammals then infect 

larval wood ticks, which molt to nymphs 

and carry the virus through the winter. 

Thus, circulation of the virus IS maintamed 

among the larvae, nymphs, and small 

Larval wood tick IS shown (above) at the end of a ]eweler’s forceps, being removed from a deer rimuse 

_ the same genus as the white-footed mouse. In the photo below, Carey draws blood efiiclently 

and harmlessly from a deer mouse’s post-orbltal capillary. Both methods were used in Carey’s 

studieslxodesdammm (vector of LymedIsease) and Dermacentor andersom (vector of Colorado 

tick fever.) 

16 
mammals. Nymphs become adults, and 

although adults are a “dead-end” for the 

virus because they feed on larger hosts 

than the nymphs and larvae, it is the adults 

that transmit the virus to humans. 

Research In Rocky Mountain National Park: 

The CDC. under the direction of Bob 

McLean, began ah investigation of the CTF 

natural cycle in Rocky Mountain NP in 

1974. Thefirst stepwastodeterminewhere 

the virus and ticks occurred altitudinally 

Small mammals were trapped atsites8,OOO 

to 11,400 feet in elevation. McLean found 

that the least chipmunk (E. minimus) and 

the golden-mantled ground squirrel (S. 

lateralis) were the m,ost frequently 

infected small mammals and that they had 

the greatest infestations of immature 

wood ticks. It also was apparent that the 

ticks were most abundant at the lower 

elevations (the upper montane zone) and 

on rocky, south-facing slopes. 

Armed with this knowledge, the CDC 

launched an investigation to determine 

more precisely where the natural cycle 

was maintained and, more importantly, 

why the cycle was localized in the 

landscape. Two study areas were chosen 

to encompass all the plant communities 

found on south-facing slopes in the upper 

montane region of the Park. 

Intensive studies of flora, fauna, and 

environmental structure over a two-year 

period developed a clear picture of the CTF 

cycle in the Park. The south-facing slopes 

in the upper montane were characterized 

by major ecological gradients of soil depth 

and soil moisture. Wood ticks were 

confined to areas of shallow soil, steep 

slope, exposed rock, and rock crevices by 

their physiological tolerances for soil 

temperature and soil moisture. Solar 

radiation must be great enough to warm 

the soil sufficiently for egg development in 

the summer. The warm period of summer 

must be long enough for larvae and 

nymphs to emerge, find a host, feed, and 

molt before winter. But,, winter soil 

temperatures must be suffrctently cold to 

physiologically release the adults from the 

diapause that prevents them from feeding 

in the fall. These low soil temperatures 

also prevent the immature ticks from 

attempting to feed at the wrong time of the 

year. Soil relative humidities must be high 

enough to prevent desiccation of eggs and 

ticks. Thus, suitable conditions for tick 

survival depend oh latitude, altitude, 

aspect, vegetative cover, and litter. 

Another requirement of the ticks must be 

met -they must have hosts to feed upon. 

Golden-mantled ground squirrels, least 

chipmunks, and porcupines were 

abundant on the rocky slopes, where they 

found all their requisite food and cover. 

The influence of environmental structure 

was so pervasive that equations 

(discriminant functions) could be 

developed to predict where the ticks and 

virus occurred. These equations were 

based on easily measured environmental 

variables such as soil depth, amount of 

shallow soil (less than two inches), degree 

of slope, shrub cover, and amount of grass 

litter. Unfortunately. research funds were 

too limited to evaluate these equations in 

new areas and only a statistical validation 

was performed. 

Applicability of the Research: The 

descriptions of the environment amenable 

to virus and ticks (and the discriminant 

functions if they were fully validated) 

could be used to locate recreational 

facilities and activities to minimize human 

exposure to the virus. The tick 

discriminate function could be used in the 

aoplication of acaricides (pesticides). 

The research provided information on 

other problems. For example, 

Richardson’s ground squirrel is a reservoir 

for plague (Yersinia pestis). Results of the 

study suggested that if Richardson’s 

ground squirrels werecontrolled (killed) to 

minimize human exposure to plague in 

Moraine Park Campground (such an effort 

was instituted in 1976 and 1977), they 

would be replaced by golden-mantled 

ground squirrels, a major carrier of CTF. 

However, this would not increase the risk 

of human exposure to CTF virus because 

the golden-mantled ground squirrels 

would have moved out of the area that was 

climatically suited for ticks. 

Prevention of CTF: CTF is best prevented by 

being aware of the danger posed by the 

adult ticks. In Rocky Mountain NP. adult 

ticks are most active during May and June 

and are most abundant on rocky, southfacing slopes between 7.900and 8.900feet. 

People should be encouraged to avoid 

spending too much time in these areas in 

the spring. Also, people should be 

encouraged to assist one another in 

detecting and removing ticks from their 

clothing and bodies. Light-colored 

clothing make the dark ticks more 

apparent. “Blousing,” or tucking pant legs 

into boots or socks, prevents the ticks 

from quickly becoming concealed beneath 

the trousers. Personal examination after a 

hike or other recreational activity 

(concentratmg on the groin, belt line, and 

hair line on the neck - ticks respond to 

tight places in determining where to feed) 

can often detect ticks beforetheycomplete 

attachment and begin to feed. 

Further Information: More detail on CTF in 

Rocky Mountain NP can be found in the 

following reports: Carey, A.B. 1979. 

Discriminant analysis: a method of 

identifying foci of vector-borne diseases. 

Amertcan Journal of Tropical Medicine 

and Hygiene 28 (4): 751X755; Carey et al. 

1980. The structure of a Colorado tick fever 

ecosystem. Ecological Monographs 50 (2) 

:131-151; and McLean et al. 1981. The 

ecology of Colorado tick fever in Rocky 

Mountain National Park in 1974. American 

Journal of Tropical Medicine and Hygiene 

30(2): 483-489. 

17 

NEW TICK 

DISEASE HITS 

FIRE ISLAND 

By Jean Matthews. Editor 

A new human affliction, dubbed Lyme 

disease in “honor” of the Connecticut town 

where it first achieved notoriety, is moving 

down the Eastern seaboard and causing 

consternation at such parks as Fire Island 

NS and Gateway NRA, according to personnel from both National Park areas. 

The causative organism appears to be a 

spirochete, transmitted by lxodes dammini, known as the northern deer tick. 

Initial sign of the disease is a red ring 

around the bite, differing from ordinary 

insect bites by a continued expansion over 

a period of several days -up to a foot or 

more in diameter. In the early stages, victims are subject to a variety of symptoms 

in several combinations, including headache, nausea, stiffness in the neck, and 

fever. Some people report arthritis-like 

pain in the joints, flaring and waning intermittently over several years. 

Len Bobinchock, Fire Island resource 

management specialist, reports that 

science has been following the disease 

only since 1976, so very little is known yet 

about either its history or its prognosis. 

Bobinchock has made a study of articles 

appearing in medical journals and has 

oresented his report to East Coast park 

personnel. 

The northern deer tick hosts, in the immature (larval and nvmohal) stases. on small 

mammals such as the white-footed mouse. 

lo the adult stage, the tick prefers larger 

animals such as the white-tailed deer. Anywhere along the line of progression the tick 

will host on humans if they becomeavailable. From present research, it appears that 

both the nymphal and adult stages may 

transmit the disease-causing spirochete. 

Several staff people at Fire Island have 

contracted the disease, as have many of 

the approximately 20,000 persons who 

reside in the summertime within Fire 

Island National Seashore. Bobinchock 

reports that pressure is mounting from 

residents who want the park ‘Yo get rid of” 

the deer and white-footed mice. 

“We view this approach as overly drastic,” Bobinchock said, adding that Supt. 

Jack Hauptman has been working closely 

with New York State Department of Health 

authorities, who agree that attempts to 

exterminate the deer and mouse carriers 

might well increase the likelihood of the 

ticks’ attacking more humans. 

Preventive measures are preferred at 

this stage, according to Bobinchock. who 

is following the literature and working 

with local health officials to find effective 

means for containing the disease. 
REGIONAL HIGHLIGHTS 

PACIFIC NORTHWEST REGION 

An interagency, multidisciplinary 

research effort, the Old Growth Wildlife 

Habitat Research and Development Program, has set up an OGWHP lnformatmn 

Exchange. Research Coordinator Andrew 

Et Carey announced this means of promoting rapid exchange of newly developed 

information - inciting researchers to 

maintain a steady flow of information to 

the Program in exchange for a return flow 

of information. The first packet contained 

a summary of on-going spotted owl 

research and an un-to-date chronoloqy of 

Program developments. The research listing, by agencies, includes three NPS studies: fire htstory in Olympic NP by Jim 

Agee, University of Washington CPSU; 

ungulates in old-growth forest in Olympic 

NP by Ed Starkey, Oregon State University 

CPSU; andfisherystudiesinOlympic NPby 

Doug Houston, PNR research biologist. 

* * f 

The following publications became 

available in the past quarter: “Management of Roosevelt Elk Habitat and Harvest,” E.E. Starkey, D.S. decalesta and G.W. 

Witmer, reprinted from Transactions ofthe 

47th North American Wildlife and Natural 

Resources Conference, 1982: “Social Organiratiton of Roosevelt Elk inanold-Growth 

Forest,” Kurt J. Jenkins and Edward E. 

Starkey, reprint from Journal of Mammalogy. Vol. 63, No. 2, May 1982; and “Problems of Natural Resource Management at 

Small Historic Sites,” by R. Gerald Wright, 

as published in Parks, Vol. 7. No. 3. DctDec., 1982. 

f * (I 

Annual Reports for 1982 from all three 

CPSU’s in the PNR are now avarlable; the 

addresses are University of Washington, 

Seattle 98195: University of Idaho, Moscow 83843; and Oregon State University, 

Corvallis 97331. An addition, the U/ID 

CPSU has publrshed “A Survey of Unauthorazed Roads in the Coulee Dam NRA.” by 

Gerry Shimek. 

f . * 

The October, November, December 1982 

issue of Parks carries a I-page article by R. 

Gerald Wright, biology project leaderofthe 

University of Idaho CPSU, entitled “Problems of Natural Resource Management at 

Small Historic Sites.” Management problems at such sites are examined from both 

the historic and the current perspectrves, 

usmg three characteristic sites as study 

examples: Whitman Mission NHS, Walla 

Walla, WA; Nez Perce NHS. Spalding, ID, 

and the Fort Spokane area of Coulee Dam 

NRA, near Davenport, WA. 

ROCKY MOUNTAIN REGION 

Richard W. Klukas, research biologist at 

Wind Cave NP, reports on-going experiments with prescribed fire in an effort to 

reintroduce the burning that was a natural 

part of the ecosystem in the past and to 

determine its effects on birds and small 

mammals. 

Initial reason for the burn was to protect 

the park’s grasslands from pine encroachment and provrde more room and food for 

buffalo. The burning had caused bird population to decrease especially the grasshopper sparrow, while population of 

small mammals has increased. Klukas 

satd the bird population IS expected to 

rebound within two or three years, but 

research into this matter will continue. The 

increase in prairie deer mice, 13lined 

ground squirrels, and prairie voles seems 

to be due to increase in food supply. The 

fire burns old grass, releasing nutrients 

into the soil and providing more grass and 

seed for the small mammals, Klukas said. 

Research is being conducted with graduate students from Michigan Technological 

University’s forestry department. 

MIOWEST REGION 

Apostle Islands National Lakeshore 

hosted tts 4th Annual Research Conference 

on Oct. 29. 1982, in the Headquartersivisitar Center Auditorrum. Bayfield, Wise. Topics ranged from birds and bears to 

shipwrecks and loggmg camps as researchers from nearly a dozen area agencies 

and universities gathered to report on 

their past year’s work at the Lakeshore. 

The meeting is held annually as a 

regional information exchange. It provides 

opportunity to learn about the natural and 

cultural resources of the area as well as 

some of the management approaches and 

projects currently being carried out wtthin 

the Lakeshore. 

This year’s program included basic ecologtcal inventories, electro-fishing surveys, floral and fauna1 habitat studies, 

water resources and wildlife management, 

and several historical research projects. 

The Park Superintendent and representatives from the Midwest Regional Office in 

Omaha keynoted the program with a look 

at the role of research in NPS planning and 

programs. 

WAS0 

At the request of the Western Regional 

office, WASD has completed an Interagency Agreement with the U.S. Soil Conservation Service relative to making so11 

surveys on lands administered by NPS. 

This joint umbrella agreement enables any 

Regton or Park to approach the local SCS 

offtce for soil survey work needed. 

18 

Alaska Region 

This Last Treasure: Alaska Nahonal 

Parklands is the name of a 128page, full 

color, album-size book just published by 

the Alaska Natural History Association, 

540 West Fifth Ave.. Anchorage, AK 99501. 

A veritable treasure itself, the book 

abounds in great quotes from sensitive 

observers and writers whose personal 

impressions span two centuries. NPS Writer William E. Grown. with talent and taste, 

has assembled and spun thesequotes into 

a seamless whole, reflecting almost every 

facet of the enormous complexity that is 

Alaska - natural and cultural. 

The soft cover edition sells for $10.95 

plus 62.00 for handling and postage; hard 

cover books are $25, with an additional $4 

for mailing. 

* f L 

The first Glacier Bay Science Symposium, “A Century After Muir: The Screntific 

Adventure,” will be held Sept. 2325, 1983. 

at Glacier Bay Lodge in the Park. Cosponsored by the Park and Friends of Glacier Ray NP. the conference will bring 

together past and present researchers for 

an intensive interdisciplinary look at 

research needs for the future. Interrelationships -affecting every component of 

the park from plant succession, the marine 

system, and glaciology to fauna and climate - will be the thread tying together 

the findings and directmg the look toward 

tomorrow’s projects. Publication of the 

Conference Proceedings is planned. 

Mid-Atlantic Region 

A virtually unstudied bird, the vultures 

of Gettysburg National Military Park are 

finally getting their scientific picture 

taken. The study effort involves the 

National Park Service, Pennsylvania State 

University, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, the Virginia Polytechnic Institute. the 

Unrversity of Slacksburg. Va., and the 

Eastern National Parks and Monuments 

Association. The latter contributed $7.000 

to the study. 

Interpretation at the Park describes the 

battle carnage that originally drew vultures to the scene. Current studies of the 

black and turkey vultures, now an institution at the site, aim at determining the 

winter and summer ecology of the birds 

-why they contmue to use the park. Tony 

Wright, a wildlife management major at 

PSU. is heading the study as part of his 

graduate work. Hal Greenlee, natural 

resource management specialist at Gettysburg NMP, calls the relationship between 

the vultures’ presence and the 1863 Battle 

of Gettysburg “still speculative,” but notes 

that it would be reasonable to assume that 

vultures would have come to thesite tfthe 

animals killed there were left unburned. 

* * 0 
Regional Highlights fcontinuedf 

Four new publications now available 

from MAR’s Division of Natural Sciences 

are: “Rare and Endangered Plant Species 

Within the New Jersey Portion of the Delaware Water Gap NRA,” “Trees for Urban 

Parks: A Guide for Selection and Culture of 

Trees in Northeastern Cities,” “lnterpretation of the Landscape in Independence 

NHP,” and “Population Characteristics, 

Habitat Utilization. and Feeding Habits of 

the Feral Ponies, Sika Deer, and Whitetailed Deer Within Assateague Island 

National Seashore.” 

Southeast Region 

Four new Research/Resources Management reports now are available, through 

the NPS, Southeast Regional Office. 75 

Spring St., S.W.. Atlanta, GA 30303: 

R/RM Report SER-60,“The Ponds 

and Lagoons of Horn and Petit Bois 

Islands. Mississippi, Gulf Islands 

National Seashore: Their Physical 

Size. Literature Review and Recommendations for Future Research” by 

Stephen Shabica and Janet Watkins. 

R/RM Report SER-61, “Sea Turtle 

Nesting at Virgin Islands National 

Park and Buck Island Reef National 

Monument,” by Vonnie Small. 

RlRM Report SER-62. “Reference 

Marker-Photopoint Resources Management System” by Jerry L. Case, 

Patrick L. Toops and Stephen V. 

Shabica. 

R/RM Report SER.63. “Vegetation 

of the Sourthern Appalachians: An 

Indexed Bibliography,” by Harry R. 

DeYoung, Peter S. White and H. R. 

OeSelm. 

# # # # 

A Symposium and Workshop entitled, 

“Biosphere Reserves and Other Protected 

Areas for Sustainable Conservation of 

Smaller Caribbean Islands” is scheduled 

May i&12. 1983. at Caneel Bay, St. John, 

U.S. Virgin Islands. Invited participants 

will include governmental officials, scientists, and natural resource managers from 

small Caribbean island nations and the 

major territories and dependences of the 

United States and western European 

countries. 

The symposium and workshop will 

focus on sustainable conservation of 

small island ecosystems, with particular 

emphasis on the role of Biosphere 

Reserves and other protected areas in conserving biological diversity and providing 

the scientific basis for intelligent management and use of these ecosystems in the 

Caribbean Basin. 

Sponsors include the UNESCO Man and 

the Biosphere Program, the U.S. NPS, and 

the Caribbean Conservation Association, 

among others. In addition, the Park Service plans to dedicate the Virgin Islands NP 

as an international Biosphere Reserve on 

the last day of the symposium and workshop, The dedication will draw public 

attention to the importance of integrated 

development and the role of biosphere 

reserves in providing the scientific basis 

for sustainable conservation of the ecosystems of the region. 

Denver Service Center 

The NASA Computer System given to the 

NPS Denver Service Center is now “up 

and functional,” according to Maury 

Nyquist. Chief, Remote Sensing Section at 

DSC. Received in 1982. the system became 

operational in November and presently is 

engaged in projects such as FIREPRO for 

Yosemite NP and vegetational mapping of 

North Cascades NP. 

The System consists of a quarter million 

dollars worth of hardware, backed upwith 

what Nyquist estimates as “several million 

dollars worth of software.” The Earth 

Resources Laboratory Applications Software (ELAS)allows the processing of multispectral data. The digital data can come 

from LANDSAT (satellite), from aircraft 

multispectral scanners (MSS). or from 

LANOSAT thematic mappers (TM) and can 

be used in concert with other geographically referenced data in the other half of 

the System, known as the Geographic 

Information System (GIS). The GIS allows 

almost unlimited manipulations of the cellular data for resource management applications of all kinds. 

The new Forest Service software developed by the Northern Forest Fire Lab at 

Missoula, (Fuel Modeling and Fire Behavior Modeling - known as BEHAVE), is 

being transferred to the System in Denver 

as part of operation FIREPRO. 

MAB Notes 

A personal communication from Ric 

Davidge, Special Assistant to the Assrstant Secretary for Fish and Wildlife and 

Parks at Interior, to the Deputy Assistant 

Secretary of State for International Organization Affairs, played a key role in the 

decision of the State Department to maintain the Man and the Biosphere (MAB) 

Secretariat at State, despite a decision to 

discontinue funding for the U.S. National 

Commisssion for UNESCO. 

Davidge’s letter set forth attributes of 

the MAB Program that “give it a special 

potential to promote more effective international cooperation at lower cost than 

possible through other means.” He listed 

these attributes as (1) established international reputation, (2) unbiased approach, 

(3) catalytic role, (4) emphasis on initiatives by individuals, (5) high voluntarism, 

and (6) continuity. 

An up-to-date on MAB activities, from 

William P. Gregg, Jr., MAB Coordinator for 

NPS. WASO, includes the following: 

19 

Nomination of the world’s first multiplesite Biosphere Reserve, in the coast redwoods region. The proposed California 

Coast Ranges Biosphere Reserve consists 

of six sites. under administration of the 

NPS. the USFS, the BLM. the California 

State Parks and Recreation Department, 

and The Nature Conservancy. It would protect examples of most of the representative ecosystems of the region and provide 

opportunities for cooperation and a full 

range of baseline and experimental 

research activities. Decision is expected in 

April 1983 by the International MAB 

Bureau; 

Endorsement of Death Valley and 

Joshua Tree National Monuments as parts 

of a California-Mojave Desert Biosphere 

Reserve, by a selection panel chaired by 

Dan Cheatham of the University of Cafifornia Natural Areas system; 

Pending nominations (approved by MAB 

in 1982 but not yet designated by UNESCO) 

of Apalachicola River Unit of the Florida 

Biosphere Reserve, the Congaree Swamp 

National Monument, and the New Jersey 

Pinelands Unit of the Atlantic Coastal Plain 

Biosphere Reserve. Action on these nominations also is expected in April; 

Expected recommendation later in 1983 

by a bi-lateral U.S. Canada selection 

panel of Biosphere Reserve sites in the 

Sitkan Biogeographic Province of Southeastern Alaska and western British 

Columbia; 

The planned dedication in May 1983 of 

the Virgin Islands NPBiosphere Reserve, to 

be followed by two MAB workshops on 

conservation of biological diversity in 

small Caribbean Islands and the establishment and use of marine reserves; 

The on-going ethnobotanical survey of 

the Great Smoky Mountains NP Biosphere 

reserve. The first survey of the cultural 

significance of the flora protected in a 

major national park soon will begin, under 

a contract with Tennessee State University 

through the Historically Black Colleges 

program; 

The continuing program of cooperation 

between the U.S. and the U.S.S.R. onselection and use of Biosohere reserves. Rav 

Herrmann (Water Resources Lab at Fort 

Collins), Susan Bratton (University of 

Georgia CPSU), and Bob Stottlemyer 

(Michigan Technological University CPSU) 

were among the U.S. delegation that 

visited several Soviet Union Biosphere 

Reserves in October 1982. 

In addition, Gregg reports that copies of 

the comprehensive bibliography and history of scientific activities at the Great 

Smoky Mountains Reserve are available 

from him, Special Science Projects Division, NPS, Department of the Interior. 

Washington, D.C. 20240. Additional projects now underway, or soon to be, are at 

Big Bend, Channel Islands. Organ Pipe Cactus, Waterton Lakes-Glacier (in cooperation with MAB Canada), Isle Royale. and 

Vrrgin Islands NPS. 
Regional Highlights [continued) 

NATIONAL CAPITAL REGION 

Research on the largest squirrel population ever recorded in Lafayette Park, 

across the street from the White House, 

has been undertaken by an unusually 

expert level of volunteers under the direction of Jeness Hall, of the President’s Park 

Unit of NCR. Hall’s volunteers work two 

hours in the mornina and two in the afternoon, counting squirrels, observing the 

food they eat, and photographing their 

activities. The data is being added to the 

base compiled two years ago by David 

Manski, NPS wildlife biologist (whose 

results were reported in the Winter 1982 

issue of Park Science). The volunteer 

researchers, many of whom are professionals in the collection of wildlife and 

vegetation information, are contributing 

their expertise in this urban setting in an 

attempt to determine whether the old, historic trees of Lafayette Park may be in 

danger from the enormous squirrel population. 

FIRE MANAGEMENT REVIEW 

HELD 

One of the more lively discussions atthe 

NPS Annual Fire Management Program 

Review in Boise, Jan. 24-28, centered on 

qualifications for persons running prescribed fire programs. According to Dave 

Butts, NPS Branch of Fire Management, the 

initial proposal is for astandardized qualification structure, to be implemented in 

each Region on the basis of the Region’s 

vegetative complexes as represented by 

fuel models. For instance, Butts explained, 

the experience needed for carrying out a 

low-fuel prairie grass fire is much less 

than that required for a California chaparral fire. 

The meeting, attended by Regional fire 

coodinators and the NPS Branch of Fire 

Management staff, discussed implementation and status reports of the new FIREPRO 

activities, editing of a proposed new 

national fire report, and development of 

wildland fire equipment specifications. 

(I l . 

The Oregonian reports the Oregon Fish 

and Wildlife Department has a satellite 

that makes it possible for the first time to 

project what elk habitat will be in the 

future. The satellite’s sensors are said to 

be able to distinguish between cover that 

provides therman protection and cover 

suitable for hiding, and to show how much 

forage is available. The new tool is being 

used in a study that is “likely to provide 

environmentalists and sportsmen’s 

groups with a potent new weapon in their 

on-going debate with the timber industry 

and Forest Service over logging’s impact 

on elk.” 

Technical Writing 

As a Tool - An Art 

By Jim Wood 

Editor’s Note: Amen! 

The need for high quality in research 

papers has never been more evident than 

in today’s fast-paced, complex technological age. Our minds boggle from the accelerating expansion of research and all the 

publications resulting from it. The practicrng scientist, manager, or administrator 

has only limrted timeto keep abreast of the 

voluminous literature. His problems multiply and intensify when that literature is 

verbose, vague, and boring. He deserves 

to read articles that are technically sound, 

informative, well-organized, and a pleasure to read. He must be able to grasp 

information and ideas at a single reading, 

without having to re-read sentences or 

puzzle over ambiguities. 

Although I believe the writing of many 

NPS scientists is of high quality, as an 

editor I have seen no manuscripts that 

could not be polished and improved. Some 

have been prepared so poorly and in such 

careless, sloppy language that theyfellfar 

short of the high standards on which the 

Service must insist. It was impossible to 

judge their scientific worth until they were 

translated into reasonably acceptable 

English. 

Some of the best (and some of the poorest) written English I have seen is the work 

of technical men and women -biologists, 

geologists, social scientists. Technical 

writers, whethertheyrealizeitornot,start 

with an advantage. Their basic material is 

concrete facts and events. Their main 

object is to describe such and show the 

relationships between them. 

In my judgment, the best technical writing 

is being done by persons at the top of their 

professions. They have done important 

work, understand its meaning, and write 

about it withconfidence. They are bold and 

sure enough to write simple, direct 

English. 

Too many others, who lack experience 

and assurance, tend to write with an 

uneasiness that leads to fog. They smother 

their meaning in qualification and jargon. 

Still others are so engrossed in their work 

that its “special language” has become 

second nature to them. They overlook how 

awkward and puzzling this gobbledygook 

can become when allowed to clot on paper. 

The scientist who is sure of himself 

includes, of course, qualification and specialized technical terms when required. 

But he also recognizes the surplus that can 

be safely shed. This is an important part of 

wisdom and essential to clear 

commumcation. 

I find it ironic that: 

1. Most scientists do very well in oral 

communication, talk simply and 

20 

2 

clearly, and can explain to a layman 

what they are doing. But once they 

begin to write they shun simple English and slip into an odd jargon they 

consider “traditional” and “safe.” 

They are afraid that if they did otherwise, their writing might seem “unprofessional.” It is never unprofessional 

in the sciences to make oneself clear! 

Although many technical and professional people are poor writers, they 

read no better and are no less confused by fog than laymen. This is easy 

to judge from the lively oral discussions often printed following the 

scientific papers of technical meetings. Many scientists habitually skim 

the articles, then read closely the oral 

discussions! 

All theforegoingdoesn’t meanscientists 

should write their reports for gradeschoolers. Neither should they write their 

papers as “all things to all people.” What I 

want to emphasize is -any piece of writing should revolve around the intended 

reader. The report should be related to the 

reader’s experience. It should prepare him 

for what he is about to read. It should be 

presented in a rational, logical manner and 

enable him to gain facts and their relationships in the shortest possible time. 

Any scientist who writes a paper has spent 

time gathering facts and contemplating 

their meaning. The interpretation of meaning is usually the most important part of 

the paper. The author owes it to the reader 

to make clear the meamng he has been 

able to draw from the facts - wifhout 

neglecting to underline points that are still 

unclear or unsolved. This is especially 

important for scientists working for public 

land management agencies like the 

National Park Service -they have a clear 

obligation to park managers charged with 

the stewardship of these lands. 

When a scientist writes for those outside 

his field he should take care to avoid or 

explain technical terms that are not commonly familiar. In writing for people within 

his own field, he should review his technical writing self-critically and ask himself: 

Am I using these words to express or to 

impress? Am I using them because they 

are necessary to make my ideas clear? Or 

am I using them merely to signal that I am 

an expert? 

Four guldelines will help: 

I. Arrange the material logically. Organize 

your wrltmg in logical order. Don’t 

begin your report in unknown specifics rather than familiar basics. It is 

much better to start with something 

the reader is familiar with and then 

one section and “meters” or “kilometers” in another. If for some reason we 

need to use both systems, ordinarily 

we give the familiar one first, then use 

parentheses to convert the figures 

into the other system. 
Technical Writing As A Tool fcontinued) 

2. 

I 

3 

Preler the active voice. Technical writers should make a special effort to 

avoid a monotonous series of passive 

constructions; active onesareshorter 

and more readable. Example: 

PASSIVE: 

The meltino ooint of the allov was 

lowered 50”ddgrees by adding 30 per 

cent of aluminum. 

ACTIVE: 

Adding 10 per cent of aluminum 

lowered the meltinq point 50deqtees. 

Don’t make nouns ovt of good, itrong 

“working verbs.” Making nouns out of 

verbs tends tosmother the meaning of 

sentences. Example: 

SMOTHERED: 

Authorization must be received from 

the Research Director before utilization of new methods can be incorporated in this project. 

IMPROVED: 

The Research Director must authorize 

new methods before they are used in 

this project. 

(Why not “utilize”? Isn’t that the verb 

form of “utilization”? Yes, it is. But 

“use” is shorter, crisper, and less 

stuffy.) 

The main trouble with smothered verbs 

is this: anytime you change a working verb 

to a noun, you must add another verb to 

complete the sentence. Also, you can see 

from the above examples that smothered 

verbs and passive constructions frequently go together. In fact, they are 

almost inseparable. If you can 

“unsmother” a verb and, at the same time, 

change a passive to an active construction, you’ll cut sentence length by a third 

and increase the chance for interest and 

understanding. 

4. Be concise - cut out excess baggage. 

Technical writers should strove to 

eliminate unnecessary complexity by 

reducing sentence length. Example: 

ORIGINAL: 

Comparison of data obtained with 

these paints using Barco with those 

using Lenol revealed that use of Barco 

solvent slowed the drying appreciably 

(approximately doubling the time in 

most instances) but had very little 

effect on the viscosity characteristics 

obtained. 

REVISION: 

The data showed paints using Barco 

were no more viscous than those 

using Lenol, but dried only about half 

as fast. 

The above guidelines do not cover every 

possible “poor writing” situation -just a 

few of the more common ones. For those 

who wish to learn more, I suggest this 

paperback: Writing wfh Precision by Jefferson D. Bates. Published by Acropolis 

Books, Ltd., Washington, D.C. 20009; $6.95 

Computerized Data Base Built 

For Vacular Flora of NP System 

By Gary S. Waggoner and 

Nancy K. Thorwardson 

Over the past several years, a servicewide need has grown to obtain basic information in an accurate, efficient manner 

about the vascular flora of the National 

Park System. Recently, the Service has 

needed information concerning the distribution of plants sensitive to air pollutants, 

the presence and distribution of exotic versus native species, and rare, threatened, 

or endangered species in the System. A 

systematic listing of such plants, called a 

“flora”, for any one park unit has limited 

value when questions arise concerning 

species m all or a group of parks. 

The collection and merging of these park 

floras into a single Park Service Flora 

would enable researchers to address these 

questions. Consequently, the Air Duality 

and Natural Science Divisions, Office of 

Science and Technology, WASO. initiated 

such a project in FY ‘82 and requested the 

Branch of Special Programs, Denver Service Center to construct a computerized 

data base of vascular flora in the National 

Park Svstem. The objectives used in 

designing the data base were descrrbed by 

James P. Bennett in the George Wright 

Society FORUM, Spring 1982 “A 

Computerized Flora of the National Parks.” 

A core staff of four was formed to conduct 

the work; Gary S. Waggoner, Project 

Manager/Botanist; Nancy K. Thorwardson, Data Base Manager; Connie L. 

Malcolm, Data Entry Technician; and 

Ronald J. Buss, Computer Consultant. 

Seventeen class I park units (those units 

given the most stringent level of protection 

from the effects of air pollution under the 

Clean Air Act as amended in 1977) were 

chosen for entry into the data base by the 

Air Quality Division. The 17 units occur in 

all NPS Regions except Alaska and the 

National Caprtal Region. Personnel at the 

park units were contacted and the latest 

checklists on floras of vascular olants for 

each park were obtained. 

Two recently produced computerized 

inventories of the vascular flora of North 

America are: 

per copy. 

In these days, more than ever before, the 

reading time of a scientist is precious. Few 

of them like the task of writing. Butwriting 

is the chief means (and oermanent record) 

of handing on what they have learned. 

Remember - write for the reader, not 

the filing cabinet! And most of all, wrote 10 

Inform -not to prove that you’re smarter 

than your readers! 

Wood is technical publications editor with 

the NPS Southeast Regional Office. 

21 

A Synonymized Checklist of the Vascular Flora of the United States, Canada, and 

Green/and - Volume II, The Biota of North 

America, by John T. and Rosemarie Kartesz. 1980 (The University of North Carolina Press, Chapel Hill, NC); The National 

List of Scientific Plant Names,(NLSPN). a 

1982 publication of the Soil Conservation 

Service (SC%TP-159). comprised of two 

separate volumes: Volume I -List of Plant 

Names, and Volume II - Synonomy. 

Both publications are current and 

represent professional treatments of the 

Nation’s flora but are decidedly different in 

nomenclature. Our work uses the NLSPN 

as the principal source document, following its nomenclature and synonomy wherever possible. The Kartesz and Kartesz 

publication is used whenever the NSLPN 

does not adequately treat a partrcular 

taxon. One of the strongest reasons for 

making this selection is that the NLSPN 

includes distribution and habit (information on general characteristics) which is 

especially useful for the NPS data base: 

1. Distribution in North America (including Alaska, Hawaii, Canada, and the 

Carribean) 

2. Annual/biennial/perennial 

3. Native/introduced 

4. Submersed/emergent/floating 

5 Epiphyticlparasiticlsaprophytic 

6. Woody/partly woody/succulent 

7. Treelshrublvinelherbaceous forb- 

/grasslike herb 

The procedure used to develop the NPS 

data base, called NPFLORA, was to enter 

the appropriate park data to the NLSPNfor 

each plant appearing in the park floras. In 

numerous instances (an estimated 10 percent of the taxa) recent changes in botanical nomenclature required the project 

manager to update the scientific names of 

the plants. In a few cases (less than 1 per 

cent of the taxa) the proper scientific name 

could not be determined. These problems 

will be resolved in futureconsultation with 

appropriate park staff. lnfraspecific taxa 

at the forma level were not included in the 

data base. Such taxa are listed at the species. subsoecies. or varietv level. 

The analysis package used with 

NPFLORA is SYSTEM 2000, a data base 

management system developed and maintained by Intel Systems Corporation. SYSTEM 2000 offers areat flexibilitv in desion 

and use of a data base and, more imp&- 

tantly, in update and revision. Querycapabilities are virtually limitless and SYSTEM 

2000 includes a Report Writer Feature that 

allows the user to define and generate 

many different report formats. 

Levels of information in the data base 

include; Family, Genus, Species, Infraspeties (subspecies and/or variety), Habit 

(General Charactertstics). Distribution, 
Computerized Data Base [continued) 

and Parks. The hierarchical, or “tree” 

structure of the data base allows rapid, 

cost effective searches and minimizes file 

sizes and storage costs. Queries may be 

made at any level of the hierarchy. For 

example, a user may wish to determine in 

which parks tlanonculus repens (creeping 

buttercup) occurs, and to discover the 

habit and distribution characteristics of 

the plant. Asimple run of SYSTEM 2000on 

the NPFLORA data base yieldsthe information presented in Fig. 1. 

The species occurs in 7 of the 19 parks 

currently in the data base: Olympic, Rocky 

Mountain, Shenandoah, Great Smoky 

Mountains, Isle Royale. Sequoiaand Kings 

Canyon. The plant is introduced to the continental United States and Hawaii, isaperennial. and is herbaceous. It occurs in 

regions 1,2.3,6.8.9,0,A,H,W.E.M. and G 

(Fig. 2). 

The user may also make park-specific 

queries. For example, a query concerning 

introduced (exotic) olants in the Black 

6’ RANUNCULACEAE 

12’ RANUNCULUS 

22’ REPENS 

41’ I 

42’ I f 

Z*P .~* r 

Figure 3. Introduced Plants in the Black 

Canyon of the Gunnison NM 

Agropyron desertorum 

Agrosfis afba 

Bromus commuiatus 

Bromus inermis 

Bromos tectorum 

Poa glauca 

Utica dioica 

43‘ 1 

49’ 123. 6. B90AH WEMG Brassica juncea 

Lepidium perfoliafum 

51’ OLYM Sisymbrhm altissimum 

51’ ROM0 Rubos idaeus 

51’SHEN Hypericum perforatom 

51’ GRSM 

51’ ISRO Tamarix galica 

51’SEKl Convolvulus arvensis 

Laooula redowskii 

Carduus nutans 

Figure 1: Query about ftanunculus repens Cirsium arvense 

Figure 2: Regional Distribution Map (Taken from NLSPN) 

Canyon of the Gunnison, yields the information that there are 17 (Fig. 3). Further 

inquiry reveals that these introduced spe.. 

ties comprise approximately B percent of 

the total vascular flora in the park, and 35 

percent of the introduced specres are 

annuals. 

It also is possible to determine the presence of a specific plant in a specific park, 

such as Agrostis alba in Great Smoky 

Mountains National Park. The examples 

presented represent only a few of the many 

query possibilities available. The system 

is flexible and efficient; the example data 

were generated in a single run of five 

minutes. 

Currently 7019 taxa of vascular plants, 

from 19 Class I units. have been entered 

into NPFLORA. The Class I units are: 

Acadia NP 

Big Bend NP 

Black Canyon of the Gunnison NM 

Canyonlands NP 

Chiricahua NM 

Everglades NP 

Great Sand Dunes NM 

Great Smoky Mountains NP 

Guadalupe Mountains NP 

Isle Royale NP 

Kings Canyon NP 

Lava Beds NM 

Mesa Verde NP 

Mount Ranier NP 

Olympic NP 

Rocky Mountain NP 

Sequoia NP 

Shenandoah NP 

Theodore Roosevelt NHP 

FLORISTIC DATA ON SELECTED 

CLASS 1 NPS UNITS 

(Data in NPFLORA as of 2115183) 

Totai number of taxa: 7019 

Total number of families: 187 

Total number of native taxa: 6146 

Total number of introduced (exotic) 

taxa: 655 

Percentage of total flora which is 

native: 88% 

Percentage of total flora which is 

introduced (exotic): 9% 

?lRI TDTLL ,“TROO”c.nl h “1nYr % ““InOwn % 

1WD 268 10,15%, Z,8,8,%, IO ,4%, 

BlBE 960 48 is%) 902 ,S&, 10 ,!%I 

arc.4 213 17 ,S%, 193 19090, 3 ,2%, 

C#iY 321 23 ,7v 291 @*%I d I%, 

CHlR J9* 36 ,9%, 352190%~ 1,1%, 

EVE8 809 127 1,696, E42 ,rsv 40 ,5%, 

GRSA ZdB ld 1&, 231 ,93%1 3 il’nl 

GRSM ,419 Z8,17%, ,127,79%, 54 ,&, 

GUM0 889 46 ,5%, 833 ,94%, r0 ,I%, 

,SRD SBB 89,13%, 587 18sX.1 12 a%, 

LABE 234 31 ,13%, 201 ,85V ? ,I%, 

hrE”E 422 54 ,13%, 361 ,85”61 7 ,*y 

MOR4 478 d8 ,lD%, dl8 ,Bi%j 12 (J%, 

or YM ,228 239 ,lS%, 972 ,,g9%1 I, ,I%, 

R0MO 893 59, 7%, 822 (9296, 12 ,I%, 

SEX, ,834 130, 7%) 1667 ,w%i 31 ,Z%, 

SHEN ,021 203 ,my 772 ,760 46 ,5%, 

THRD 31* 31 ,,O%, 276 ,smi 7 P%, 

TOTALS: 12,631 ,473 IO.868 290 

LKAAOI: 7wpark **,part ,12%, 6wpark 186%) 1wpart 180, 

Edi!or’s Note: Park Science will print an up-date of this Data on a semi-annual basis 

22 
The 19 units represent 40 percent of the 

total number of Class I parks and Gpercent 

of the total units in the System. Table I 

contains summary data for the NPFLORA 

data base. 

The goal for FY’83 is to enter into 

NPFLORA 30 additional floras, with priority given to Class I units. In addition, a 

survey is being conducted to identify those 

unitsforwhichreasonablycompletefloras 

are available. Plans for the future include 

the entry of all available floras, thus providing the National Park Service with a 

valuable tool for science and resource 

management. 

The development of NPFLORA is being 

funded jointly by the Air Quality and the 

Natural Science Orvisions, WASO. Thechoice of parks that are entered into the data 

base is made by sctentists in those divisions. Copies of the FY ‘82 Status Report 

were recently sent to all Regional Chief 

Scientists and Regional Air Quality coordinators. At this ttme. the Science and 

Remote Sensing Sections will perform 

searches and queries of the data base at no 

cost, but in the future, users will pay for 

requested searches. If you have questions 

or queries of the data base, please contact 

the authors in the Denver Service Center 

(FTS 234-4527) or the Air Quality Division 

(FTS 234-6620). 

Thorwardson is a geographer and 

Waggoner is a plant eco/og,st at fhe NPS 

Denver Service Center. 

The authors, Waggoner and Thorwardson. are 

shown here querying NPFLORA via their remote 

terminal at the Denver Service Center. 

Haleakala 

Silversword: An 

Optimistic Note 

By Lloyd Loope 

Our research group at Haleakala is 

lnvestlgating the population biology of a 

number of the park’s endemic plant species as part of a program to develop iongterm management strategies. The 

prognosis for many nahve species is not 

good unless management efforts by the 

NPS succeed in drastically reducing feral 

pig and goat populations. Hawaii is an 

exciting place for a biologist to work only 

if one can avoid depression and despair at 

the continuing precipitous decline of one of 

the world’s most remarkable biotas. 

Not all species are declining, however, 

and we are pleased to report that despite 

reports to the contrary (e.g., S. Carlquist. 

Bioscience 32(5):350, 1982). the Haleakala 

slIversword (Argyroxlphium sandwchense) is doing just fine -at least for now. 

We have initiated a long-term inveshgation involving silversword population 

monitoring and biology in view of the 

Importance of preserving this species. The 

silversword receives more attention from 

visitors to Haleakala than any other species because of its bizarre and beautiful 

appearance and Its uniqueness. Scientific 

Interest in this and closely related taxa is 

substantial. The Argyroxiphium-Dubautia 

group, consisting of about two dozen specles. is one of the best existing examples of 

the evolutionary phenomenon known as 

adaptive radiation. Detailed studies of the 

evolution and physiological ecology of 

this group, underway by Dr. Gerald Carr of 

the University of Hawaii and Dr. Robert 

Robichaux of the University of California 

at Berkeley. will yield much basicinformation regarding evolutionary processes. 

The Haleakala silversword has historically received condiderable attention from 

park managers because it has, in the past, 

appeared in danger of extinction. The longterm survival of the silversword is clearly 

somewhat precarious because of its restricted habitat, moderate numbers, its 

monocarpic habit (it grows for 7-20 years 

in a rosette stage, then flowers and dies), 

and its dependence on establishment of 

seedlings (virtually no vegetative reproduction). Flowering is sporadic, with 

heavy flowering in some years and no 

flowering in other years. Preliminary indications are that cross-pollination by 

endemic insects is essential for adequate 

production of viable seeds. Loss of pollinators (for example, perhaps due to predation by some introduced predatory insect, 

such as the ground-nesting yellow-jacket, 

Vespula pennsylvanica) could be disastrous. In the past, much concern has been 

focused on the seemingly precarious relationship between the silversword and its 

23 

#2-Larvae 01 Plagrihmysus terryi. a long-horned 

(Cerambycidaej beetle endemic 10 Haleakala. 

feed m the pith of silversword rwts (show here) 

and stems of flowering plants. About a dozen 

w$$c msects are associated wth the silver- 

#3 - Goat-damaged silversword. Fortunately. 

browsed plants are the except,“” rather than 

the rule for the remaining sllversword populat1on. 

native seed predators. Concern was certainly warranted, since by the late-1920’s 

goat and cattle browsing and human vandalism had reduced the once abundant