VOLUME 2 - NUMBER 1 FALL 1981 

PARK SCIENCE 

A RESOURCES MANAGEMENT BULLETIN 

NATIONAL PARK SERVICE 

U.S. DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR 
PARK 

SCIENCE - ~- A report to park managers of recent and onNATIONAL PARK SERVICE 

SPRING 1981 

going research in parks with emphasis on its 

implications for planning and management 

In This issue 

A Manager Looks at What 

Swnce Can Do (page 3) 

Interpretive Ideas (page 4) 

NPS Fire Research I” Olympic NP (page 4) 

River Recreation Research Publtshed (page 4) 

Olympic NP Stages Well-Run 

Removal of Exotic Goats (page 5) 

Ripwan Management (page 6) 

Threats to Parks Symposium Set (page 7) 

Acid Rain Problem at Great Smokies NP (page a) 

Feedback (page 9) 

Management and Science Reorgamzed (page 9) 

lntemat~onal Mountain Society Formed (page 9) 

lnventory!ng Rare Plant Spew (Page 10) 

B~olcg~cal Control 01 Klamath 

Weed in Yosemite NP (page 10) 

Regtonal Hlghllghis (page 11) 

Greenland Ice Yields Data (page 12) 

Mule Deer Study Provides Needed 

Baseline Data (page 13) 

Data Banks on Old-growih 

Forest Jointly Funded (page 14) 

Society Named for First NPS Scientist (pace 14) 

Bass Collection (page 15) 

The MAB Program (page 16) 

Gene Preservation Conferences (Page 18) 

Extmctlona (Page la) 

Information Crossftle (Page 19) 

Supenntendents’ Corner Ipage 19) 

Grizzly Bear Hearings (page 20) 

From the Editor, 

With thls issue, Volume II, No. 1, ParkSciencedrops its regional designation and becomes what indeed it has 

been from the beginning-a truly national bullettn. 

Thechange will not be in presentatlonorsubjectmatter, but in emphaswshifiingfromaPacilic-orientedviewof 

the National Park System to one that gives equal consideration to all reglow 

The focus will remain on field actiwties-the information developed through research and the applicattons of that 

information to the field management of park rewrces and sites. Natural. cultural and historic research as it relates 

to management, maintenance, planning and mterprelatlon are welcome in these pages, and the application of research findlngs are most Important of all. Pure research has Its own outlets in the wous refereed foumals of the 

scientlflc community-an extremely important activity. This bulletin has another purpose: to keep managers and 

research personnel in touch through a communication process that closely parallels the research/management 

application process. 

Because the success of this venture depends so much on lively input from the field-scientists and managers 

alike-itwasdecided tostartoff thisflrstlssuewith the piece byJimThompson (page l).Theeditor~alstafffeels that 

Ihrsarticle, developedoveraperiodoi half adecade, speaks directly to theoppaltunihlpresented by ParkSnence. 

Thompson wnds up wtlh ‘find the vehicles for that dtalogue. use them. and make sure that they continue to serve 

that purpose.’ 

Thts IS the challenge we echo. Let us hear your response. 

RUSSELL E. DICKENSON, Director 

National Park Service 

U.S. Department of the Interior 

Editorial Board: 

Daniel J. (Jim) Tobtn, Regional Director, and 

Donald R. Field, Asswate Regional DIrector for Scwce and Technology, Pacific Northwest Regr 

Ronald C. Wauer, Chlel, Natural Resources Management, and 

John Dennis. blologlst, Washington Offse; 

Supt. W~llkam M. Lukens, Padre Island National Seashore, and 

Asst. Supt. Dale B. Engqwt, Indiana Dunes National Lakeshore. 

Cover Photo: Team effori IS required to handle and 

markadu//deerarCrafec ollheMwnNat;ooalMonumen!. Seasonal Park Ranger Mary Lasplna and Park 

Ranger Neil King assfsr Research Biologist Brad Gnffith MI anaching radio collar to adult doe 

Jean Malthews. Editor: Oregon State University NPSCPSU, Room 126 Forestry Sciences Lab, 

3200 Jefferson Way, Cowallrs, OR 97331(503) 757-4579; a-420-4579 

Please address requests for mformallon to appropriale Regional Chief Scientists: 

Anderson. Willlam H 

NATIONAL CAPITAL REGION 

1lOOOh1o Drive. S.W 

Washmgton. DC. 20242 

8-426-6660 (202) 426.6660 

Field, Donald R. 

PACIFIC NORTHWEST REGION 

Room 1920 Westln Building 

2001 Sixth Avenue 

Seattle, WA 96121 

a-399.1355 (206) 442.1355 

Fleet, Harvey 

Chief, Science Center 

DENVER SERVICE CENTER 

P.O. Box 25287 

Denver, CO 80225 

(303) 234.4527 

Fletcher, Milford F. 

SOUTHWESTREGION 

P 0. Box 728 

sm me, NM a7501 

8-476-6412 (505) 968.6412 

Gogue, G. Jay 

SOUTHEAST REGION 

75 Spmlg st., S.W. 

Atlanta, GA 30303 

a-242-3643 (404) 221-3643 

Karlsh, John R. 

MID ATLANTIC REGION 

Furgerson Bldg., Room 209-B 

Pennsylvania State Umverslty 

Unlverslty Park, PA 16802 

8 (814) 865.7974 

Larson, Gary 

MIDWEST REGION 

1709 Jackson St. 

Omaha, NE 66102 

6-864-3438 (402) 221.3438 

2 

Lows, Allan L. 

ALASKA REGION 

540 W. Fifth Avenue, Room 202 

Anchorage, AK 99501 

6 (907) 271-4212 

Buckley, Paul A. 

NORTH ATLANTIC REGION 

15 State Street 

Boslon, MA 02109 

6.2237765 (617) 223.7765 

Fenn, Denrvs B. 

WESTERN REGION 

450 Golden Gate Avenue 

P.O. Box 36063 

San Franc~sco, CA 94102 

6-556-4968 (415) 556.4966 

Reid, Neil J. (Jim) 

ROCKY MOUNTAIN REGION 

P.O. Box 25827 

Denver, CO 60225 

8-234-2764 (303) 234-2764 
A Manager Looks At 

What Science Can Do 

Editor’s Note: Perhaps nowhere has fhe somet;mes 

stormy “amage between scence and management 

been better described than It was four years ago by 

James 8. Thompson-then assonate ieg;onai director for management and operat!ons in the Pa&c 

Northwest Regron. In a “essagesandw,chedinsBces 

of /lghl wry. Thompson lo/d a Park Sew~ce galhermg 

how a manager (him&j sees the contrfbut;ons of 

“these divergmg subspenes” and how lhey can be 

made to funcbon togelher in “anagmg park resources. Here IS a kghtiy &led vers,o” 01 Ihe 1977 

message wth a 1981 postscnpt from Thompson. now 

Deputy Regional Drector for the Rocky Mountain 

Region. 

By James 6. Thompson 

During the past several years as a park manager. I 

haven enJoyed a harmonious and rewarding relationship with scientists studying park resources. Perhaps 

the most rewarding Involved the management of what 

may betheworld’ssmallestverlebrate h&tat-thatof 

the Devil’s Hole pupfish. This cr,“er was endangered 

because 11s h&tat was being deslroyed by a subsistence farmmg operation in Nevada conducted by an 

absentee landlord I” MISSISSIPPI. 

The culmination 01 cooperative efforts of park management and scientists was the simultaneous success 

of an experimental speces recovery plan and a deusion bytheU.S.SupremeCourtinfavorofthepupfIsh. 

which IS also the precedental case for Federal reserved waler rights for underground water. At the New 

Orleans %!e”ce conference you may have .seen Dr. 

James Deacon’s 3.screen extravaganza on lhis subject: I was as proud of that presentation as Jim was{ 

But at that same meeting I was shaken to learn that 

scientists and managers do not coexist peacefully, let 

alone function cooperatively. As I wandered from sesslon to sas%on. hearing more about ‘us and them,’ I 

resolved to explore what bad traits I had been blissfully 

overlookmg among sclenttsls and what shorlcomings 

managers intrinsically possess to the irritation of 

sclentlsts. 

Having been repeatedly told that week that my 

friends were in fact my enem!es. I have subsequently 

learned that others were wiser than I, and that in fact 

we canNOT get along. For those of you who have 

failed to NOT get along, perhaps I can help you perceive problems where none now exisl. 

IF park managers wish to manage sclentlsts, and 

scientists wIshlo manage parks, problems WILL arise. 

And II such sublimmal or hidden agendas exist, it may 

be uselul to explore the differences and charactenstics that natural selection has decreed to dlstlnguish 

scientists and managers. and how these dlvergmg 

subspecIes might be brought lo bear on the problem of 

managing park rasourcas. 

My task today is to relate to scientists a manager‘s 

v!ew of the Resources Management Plan. I have been 

employed in the past as a scientist I” both government 

and mdustry I have also had the respons!blllly of managing four different areas 01 the NP System, mcluding 

archeological, historical and natural areas. However, 

a menlist friend recently told me, ‘All you managers 

are alike!” Apparently in transltnn from scfentlst to 

manager one loses all Ihe virtues of the sclentlst (objectlvity sclentlfic methodology, etc.), and begms making bad decisions he never would have made before. 

I might interject here that some researchers I have 

known hold “right thInking’ be a substitute for objettivity and a philosophical premise as a substllute Ior 

sclentlfic method. These approaches to research are 

decision-onented rather than data-onented, yet the 

manager must either accept them or make a ~wrong’ 

declslon In lact, the manager serves more than the 

wishes of the scientist, Ihe local people conservation1st~ and user groups. He soon learns that he cannot 

please all of these someof thetlme. norsomeoi these 

all the time. 

The manager arrives at this sorry state in roughly 

the followmg manner: II he is fortunate he has avaIlable a resources management special~sl who IS. I” fact, 

a generalIst, and a research scientist who IS. I” fact. a 

speclallst. A specialist IS one who knows a great deal 

about very lkdle and goes on learrung more and more 

about less and less until he knows everythmg about 

nothing. A generalist. on the other hand. starts out 

knowing very i!ttle about a great deal and goes on 

IearnIng less and less about more and more unlll he 

knows nothIng aboul everyihlng. A manager IS a person who presumably starts oul knowing quite a bit 

about quite a lot and ends up knowing nothlng about 

anylhlng, due lo his rekance on specialists and gen- 

~L?lSlS. 

Another dellnltlon IS that speclal6ts are people who 

come to these meetings. give theft papers and leave. 

Generallstscome tothesemeetlngs, give their papers 

and stay. Managers coma to these meetings and sit I” 

the back of the mom. 

I have been appalled by the unfamiliarity shown by 

NPS managersand sclentlstsaltke wtthiheactual pollcies of NPS toward resources management Some 

characterizatvxs are more reilective of conservation1st perlodlcals than of the actual policies derived from 

the Leopold report ( W,idiife Management m /he Nationai Parks, Leopold, et. al., 1963.) Take such a 

dlvergenceof viewpomtsof rightthlnkersandtheunlnformed, comblnethem wtth the inability of managersto 

make right decisions. and obviously some vehicle 

must be found for bringmg together the disciplines of 

science. the legal requisites, the managerial responsebllttles and capabtlltles, and the publtc rev,ew of both 

policy and method. 

The Resource Management Plan IS such a vehicle, 

w!th an added dimension -that of coping with matters 

01 monetary slgnllicance. Such matlers must be 

placed !n the perspective andcontext oftheirlongierm 

Impacts on both resources and policy. If the RMP IS 

sufticiently flexible it can cope with such items wlthoul 

their ovenvhelmmg the purposes of the park and 

sound longterm management. 

What we do m managlng park rasourcas must. IIke 

the actions of any public servant, be based on law. 

Leglslatlon establlshed each park for particular purposes Another body of law, including the Antlqultles 

Act, the NatIonal Park Act. andothers, establlshesthe 

3 

framework of National Park policy. 

The evolution of an RMP starts with the “Statement 

of Management document, which reviews the leglslatlve purposes of the park and applies NPS policy to 

these purposes. The result IS a set of management 

objectives. 

The next step IS to mventory the natural and cultural 

reso”rces of the park and then to analyze the status of 

each reso”rce. 

The difference between status and management 

obiectlve IS the deflnltton of a resoume manaoement 

p&m. 

Althispo~ntweintroducearangeofalternat~vesolut~ons. includlna the ldenllflcationof research needed to 

determ~nesta~us,expandorevaluatealternatives etc. 

This then, is the framework for an enwronmental 

assessment for iniemal and public review. 

FolIowIng thIsstep, alternat~vesareselected and recast I” a resources management plan The plan is a 

pubk documenl. but It 1s. most impodantly, a guide to 

park managers that provides both longrange dtrectlon 

and shortrange “how to do It ~ 

The superintendent IS ultimately responslbleforihe 

stewardshlp of the natural and cultural rew~es of 

the park. whether 01 not ha has the capablllty to ma”- 

age them properly. Therefore. the RMP must be the 

gutding hand Ior the supermtendent and his successors to brmg contlnulty to the re?.ource management 

process 

In my opinion, format IS the least Important and mosl 

dIscussed element of an RMP Sclentlsls and managers have argued it lot years, set and changed standards. guidellnes, elc. Yet each park IS unique. established for unique purposes. It may conlam hlslorlc 

zones where not only hlstorlc fabric IS to be preserved. 

but associated natural resources are managed to perpetuate the historic scene. It may contain natural 

zones where natural resources are managed to perpetuate the natural processes as they lunctloned prior 

lo the ,ntervent,on of technologtcal ma”. The manager 

isrespons~blelotall these rasourcas, withoulregardto 

programmatic and dlsclpllnary subdivIsion of government offices, natural and social sciences, etc. 

The format should be that wh!ch best facflitates the 

managemenl 01 the pari~cular park’s particular resource problems. I am not arguing agalnst separate 

treatment of natural zones, hlstorlc zones, research 

needs, program and budget requrements. Rather I 

argue for maximum tlexibllltyfor the manager to frame 

his own management tcQ and for recognition by others that THAT, prlmarlly, is what the resource maoagement plan IS 

P.S. The above comments were made during a reglonal science conference in 1977 Much was urnprompiu observation made dung the conference and 

added to my subject I’ve been asked to update my 

views. My subject was resource management plans, 

but I was really talkmg about commumcat~ons. and I 

still am. I was, and am, endorslng, as an essential part 

of our jobs, an active pursuit of contlnulng constructive 
dialogue. If my tone IS more somber. it is partly because it is eawr to be glib in a stand-up routine. But It 

IS also because our situation has changed slgnlflcantly Yet your ability to work as ateam, to communicate 

and cooperate, have not kept pace. 

Economic and political worldwide changes have affected park science needs. Ii sounds pretentious, but 

INS true. Just a few years ago. we were focusmg much 

of science on baw data lor planning and single resource ISSUES. But world-wide economic problems 

resource and energy demands have thrown us mto a 

more defensive posture: i e, protecting park resources and values from threats to theu very ~YIStence. Most such situations have very little lead time. 

the other side has its homework done, and managers 

will react with extremely lImIted enthusiasm to the 

news that the answer they want WIII take five years of 

d&gathering! 

In addition, resource managers find themselves 

confronted with scientific and technological issues 

which are unlamlllar and will reqwe unfamiliar responses. Every park manager must view research not 

only as a management tool, but as a lktigation weapon 

a weapon not just to be used. but also to be faced! 

This dramatic shift in priorities and content vastly increases the need for lrequent and continuing dialogue 

between managers and scientists. Neither can we 

assume. as we did 5 or 10 years ago, that enwronmental conservation is regarded by the general public 

as a morally superior philosophy that will stand ahead 

of economic and other demands. Park scientists and 

managers need IO be together- down in the trenches. 

In 1977 I regarded the rewrce management plan 

as a basic vehicle for that dialogue. But today’s circumstances also dlctale a need for a broader range of 

dialogue between scientists and managers a dlalogue which assures that both are readmg soc~eiy’s 

slgnposts and can mutually see that those signposts 

have placed us on some new roads to some uncertain 

places. 

In itsslmplesland most profound lorm, that dialogue 

needs to consider ‘where are we and what are we gomg to do?’ The challenge to each of us IS to find the 

vehicles for that dialogue, use them, and make sure 

that they continue to serve that purpose. 

Interpretive 

Ideas 

At Craters of the Moon NM, interpreters have 

covered the mule deer research (see p. 13) in a way 

that hasadded to both thevisltorexperlenceand tothe 

success of lhe research. Dave Clark, park interpreter, 

mcluded an Item on the tagging of mule deer in the 

park newspaper listing interpretive aCtlvlt!es and management problems. V~stors were asked to repot? any 

slghlings of marked deer. 

All four of the seasonal interpreters mentioned the 

deer research in their talks and several explained 

some of the reasons it was necessary The mformation 

was well recewed at Ihe evening campflres and on the 

early morning walks. Vlsltors expressed thew interest 

by reporbng 20 to 30 slghtlngs, all of which helped the 

research team in monltorlng the movements of the 

monument deer. 

Cold and Soggy are hvo words. the lull meaning of whfch can scarce/y be understood until one has worked and 

camped outdoors m the Olympics dunng the rainy season. members of Quest Northwestpedoormed iher burn srte 

kwentorydutes at the park with such h!ghgoodcheer ‘They even kept MYspmts up. ~said Jim Agee, CPSU Pro@ 

Leaderaf the University of Washington. who worked with them n ihe held. 

NPS Fire Research 

In dlympic NP Aided By Quest 

Park managers who are hardput. under personnel 

and budget constraints, to develop the scient~l~c Information they need in order to manage thelr sates at 

maximum levels of protection and use may be pleased 

to learn of a highly successful group now operating in 

Ihe Pacific Northwest Regton. 

Quest Northwest, a non-profit outdoor school. has 

been assisting NPS researchers for two seasons at 

Olympic NP. After some initial discussions with James 

K. Agee, project leaderatthe Universlly of WashIngtan 

CPSU, Quest crews spent a week in 1980 mventoty 

ing the structure of a 160.year-old burn I” the western 

Olympic Mountains. This pilot involvement was so 

successful that Quest returned in 1961 to help Inventory another old lire sate. 

Since 1973, theQueststaff hasfunctioned asanenvironmental aducatlon resource team for numerous 

schwls, community organizations, and governmental 

aoencies. Individual parllcioanls have ranaed from 

h;gh school stud&to adults. Success oithe program sterns from the community serwes b-sing parformed in stimulatlnq learning environments. benefttlng both the participants and-the agency. 

“The Quest crews are highly motivated and the high 

staH:student ratio makes careful data collection possible.” says Agee. ‘7hey have always been salety conSCUJUS and very well prepared for unfavorable weather. On top of this, the cost efticlency of utilung Quest 

Nolthwest has made them indlspenslble.” During the 

1961 Olympic fire research, crew worked effectively 

and camped uncomplainingly in chill, rainy weather. 

They completed water quality sampling projects at 

Olympic and North Cascades NatIonal Parks this past 

season. and proved their ability to work with minimal 

NPS supews~on. 

The Quest Northwest craws could prove useful for 

other national park management and research prolects, Agee pointed out. They are able to handle awide 

range of acl~v~i~es, and are developing parhcular ey_ 

pertise I” water quality sampling. Anyone interested in 

obtaining thelr 1961 prospectus or dwussing potend 

tla projects may we Miles Hanchen, D~rector;Quest 

Northwest, 1140 Slerra Place, Edmonds, WA 96020, 

(206) 776.4027. For further Information. contact Dr. 

Agee at the Cooperative Park Studies Unit, College of 

Forest Resources (AR-lo), Urwers~ty of WashIngton. 

Se& WA (206) 543.2668. 

River Recreation 

Research Published 

“Some Recent Products of Rover Recreation Research” IS the title 01 a USDA Forest Service General 

Technical Report(NC-63)publlshed bytheNoithCen_ 

tral Forest Experiment St&on. 1392 Folwell Ave.. St. 

Paul. MN 55106. David W. Lime of the Forest Expew 

mental Station and Donald R. Field, Associate Dlrectar for Science and Technology in the NPS Pacific 

Northwest Regton didthe technicalcootdmation ofthe 

nine papers, orlginally presented at the Second Conference on Scientific Research in Nattonal Parks, Nov. 

26.30, 1979, I” San Franwco. An introductory ‘Highlights” statement observes: ‘One CONCLUSION lrom the 

Conference was that the future of social science research in support of resource management hmges upon the accumulation of national and reglonal data. 

Once establIshed, the data base could provide the 

foundation to deiermme whether managemenl concerns and issues associated with a speclflc s!ie require addltional research and might likewise provlde trend information on changing patterns of recreation use, changes in the camposltion of user populat~ons. and provide comparisons m recreation use between Forest Service, Park Service, and Bureau of 

Land Management areas Rnally. a national and 

regional data base might well provide the basis upon 

which management objectives and policies are exammed, leadmg lo a more effective resource management policy ” 
1 I I 

Olympic NP Stages 

Well-Run Removal 

Of Exotic Goats 

Between June 30 and July 8 1981, a team of 

rangers and scientists at Olympic NP successfully 

live-captured 52 mountain goats (Oreamnos amer;. 

can+~) and transferred them by helicopter from high 

atop Klahhane Ridge. The animals were distrtbufed 

elsewhere under the direction of the Washington Department of Game. The operation initiated alhree year 

experlmental attemptatOlymp~cto reducethenumber 

and impact of mountain goats on Klahhane Ridge and, 

in the process. to develop information leading 10 an 

overall management plan for lhls exotic species. 

Mountan goats are large herbivores adapted to 

mountams throughout the Pacific Norihwesl and 

Alaska.,However, they never occurred in the Olympic 

Mountains of northwestern WashIngton until 11 or 12 

were lnfroduced by man in the 1920s. well before the 

Park was created in 1938 The Olympics have been 

isolated by continental glaciers and, mow recently, by 

lowlands and saltwater of the Puget Sound trough. A 

number of mammals, including the mounlar goat, in 

the high Cascade Mountains of central Washtngton, 

were unable lo reach the Olympic Peninsula Other 

mammals unable lo cross the Pugei trough barw m 

elude blghom sheep, pika, grizzly bear, wolverine. and 

lynx. Alpine isolation m the Olympic Mountams also 

iid to unique life forms, including 11 endemic plants 

and four mammals. 

For many years goals were only occasionally reported in small numbers from a few remote lccat~ons. 

However, by the late 1960s increases were noted. 

Studies by NPS and University of Washington scienlists m the 1970s confirmed an estimate of a widespread goat population of 600 to700.90percentofthe 

goats were found in the park, with the remafnmg 10 

percent on adjacent U.S. Forest Selvlce lands. 

Intensive research begun in 1977 on Klahhane 

Ridge, m the north central mountains, documented a 

presence of at least 200 goats, or about 40 per square 

mile -one of the hewest concentrations recorded in 

North America. Obsewations of marked animals show 

much movement from Klahhane Ridge to other parts 

of the mountains. Five of nine monitored subpopulalions showed increases in 1980. On Klahhane Ridge, 

contracted studies by University of Washington plant 

Scienttsts under Dr. L.C. Bless, documented disturbance by goats, including numerous trails, dusting 

wallows and related erosion, endemic plants, grazing. 

declines in abundance of preferred forage species, 

and olher changes 10 the structure and producwty of 

affected plant communities. 

To complicate problems, goats are atfracted to 

people, whose perspiration and urine deposits are 

eagerly sought as salt. As goats increase, more re. 

ports are rewed of disruptwe and even potentially 

hazardous encounters between salt-hungry goats and 

backcountry hikers and campers. Moreover, increased trampling and eroslo” IS occurring along 

popular routes. such as the Klahhane Ridge trail, as 

groups of goats and woous witors continually 

Interact. 

In February 1981, anenvironmenlalassessment for 

publ!creviewoftheseproblemswascompletad Three 

management altematwes were considered: (1) no action. (2) control goats to ltmlt their Impact, and (3) 

remove goals lo restore the native enwonment. Although no single alternative was chosen, an experimental programwasrecommended totestthefeasw 

ity of control or removal as alternatives. To assist in 

presenting the problem to the public, an audio-visual 

Goats gather at the salt l!ck under lhe ca@,re nettug 

program en&d “Olympic’s Aip~ne Transplants: 

Blessing or Blunder” was prepared. This proved helpful in nine public meetings and 19other presentations 

throughout western Washington dwng March and 

April. Over 750 people attended these meetings. Of 

these, nearly 350 wrote comments indicating they op. 

posed no acflon (75%). and favored control (84%) 

over removal (38%) as an altematlve. Most (76%) also 

favored an experimental management approach, 

whichwaspresented inaquestlonnaireanddescrlbed 

in public briefings. 

A decision was reached by Superintendent Roger 

Conior in mid-April, 1981, toembarkonanexperimental program over three years using small-scale herd 

manipulations to evaluate the relative effectiveness 

and cost of various control strategies. Each year, 50 to 

60 goats will be removed from the dense Klahhane 

Ridge subpopulation, which IS also believed lo affect 

abundance elsewhere. The reprcductlve ability of 

goats to compensate for these known removals WIII be 

closely monItored to estimate levels of control required. Field experiments will be conducted on the 

prarztlcability of tubal ligation and other reproduction 

mhlbltlng proceduresas mdirectcontrols. Hypotheses 

about recovery changes in various plant communllles 

following releases from grazing pressure also will be 

tested on Klahhane Ridge. 

A major incentive lo experiment with various control procedures at Olympic IS the tameness of goats 

and relative ease of capture. Scientists here havecap 

tured and marked well over 200 goats, usmg simple 

rope foot-snares placed around salt. To capture family 

groups, a large drop-net measuring 40 by 40 feet was 

specially dwgned and constructed. It is erected tentlike, atop conduit poles ttghtly moored in place over a 

capture site. Manual trigger-lines pulled at the comers 

and a center pole rapldly collapse the net around 

animals lured beneath tosalt. This makespossiblethe 

capture of SIX or mote goats at one time, mcludmg 

small kids (the preferred grouping for release at Ihe 

transfer sites.) 

The safe capture and relocation of 50 to 60 large 

animals reqwed close planning and teamwork between park rangers, scientists, various collaborators, 

and volunteers Eleven NPS employees were prinapals in the 1981 operations. Team roles included: pubIIC inform&on. equipment preparation, and sitesecurity: animal restraint, measurement, and care: crating 

and helicopter transfers. and truck coordination and 

hauling to release sites. A medwl protocol developed 

by Dr. James Foster, veterinarian at the Woodland 

ParkZoo& Seattle, contributed tomimmal injuriesand 

prevention of animal loss. Sclentiflc meaurement of 

the animals, as well as before-and-after census of the 

5 

Cratedgoat swings beneath airborne hellcopter 

population, was the responsibility of Doug Houslon, 

Pacific Norfhwest Regional scientist assigned to 

Olympic. 

Total cost to the Service for the 1981 transfer operation on Klahhane Ridge was $19,482, or $384 per 

goat. A recurrent cost estimate (total mmus capital 

equipment and IraIning) reduces costs to about $274 

per goat. Helicopter costs were loweredapproximately 30 percent by combining goat flights with other park 

fiy1ng needs. 

On July 1, a “press day”was held at the capture site 

for 25 to 30 news representatives, who were hiked to 

the top of Klahhane Ridge to photograph and report on 

the event. Very posltlve coverage was gwen to the operation by the media. A press-packet, given to each 

news person, provided background informatlon and 

parliculars about the operation. 

The program I” 1981 is off to a good start. Manage. 

ment andsclenceareInaclose_working partnershipat 

Olympic and public support of the program has grown 

as inform&r is developed and made available. 

*‘* 

GOAT ECOLOGY TREATED 

IN NATURAL HISTORY 

For an informatlve, well-illustrated arlicle on mountain goat ecology in the Olympic NP, see the January 

1981 issue of Natural History and the article by Michael Hutchins and Victorta Stevens. 
I I B 

Riparian Management 

And The Colorado River 

By R. Roy Johnson 

(Second of two artrcles) 

The Colorado River is probably the single most 

important rasource to several million inhabitants of 

a large p&on of the Rocky Mountain, Colorado P!a; 

tea”, and Basin and Range (geologic) Provlnces.Orlglnatmg inand near Rocky Mountain NP, theriverdralns 

about 245,000 square miles-an area the size of 12 

northeastern states from Maine to the Virginias. Major 

trlbutarles in the Upper Colorado River Basin Include 

the Green, Gunnison, and San Juan; the Lower Basin 

is dralned mainly by the Linle Colorado and Gila. AHer 

nearly a century of management. almost no water now 

flows into the Gulf of Mexico through the nearly dry 

Colorado River delta. 

The region contains some of the most outstanding 

scenery in the world. In his book, Physiographyolthe 

United Srates, Geologist C.B. Hunt calls the Grand 

Canyon and Painted Desell (on the Little Colorado 

River) “easily the most colorful palt of the United 

States.” Nattonal Park areas along the Colorado and 

its trlbutarles include six National Parks, four National 

Recreation Areas and more than a dozen National 

Monuments. These streams also flow through more 

than a dozen National Forests, numerous National 

WIldlIfe Refuges. and approximately a dozen Indian 

reservabons. 

A major strain on this resource is the export of sey_ 

eral billion gallons of water daily through hundreds of 

miles of canals and aqueducts for Irrigation. municipal 

and industrial purposes. Th6 water goes to mlll!ons in 

Los Angeles. the Central Valley of California, the 

Wellton-Mohawk lrrlgatlon district, the Lower Colorado River Valley in Arizona, and other areas-vastly 

increasing the area that is dependent on the river. 

Management of park resources and visitor activities 

along the Colorado IS one of the most challenging 

tasks facing the Nattonal Park Serwce today. This 

challenge IS perhaps the most difficult of all at Grand 

Canyon NP, where bitter disputes among the NPS. 

river runnmg concess~onares. pwate whItewater 

boatmen, and conservation organlzatlons have gone 

on for a decade. ChampIons of one cause or another 

have chosen as their battlegrounds the air wavas. 

newspapers. television, letters. courtrooms, even the 

floor of Congress. Key issues have Included motors 

vs. oars user levels, and allocabon of use between 

concess;onalres and private users. Actually, even 

more basic issues of natIonwIde interest, such as 

“what constitutes a wilderness expenence? and 

what is a proper role of concessionaires on public 

lands?” are at the hearf of the matter. 

In 1973, the NPS embarked on three years of research. conslstmg of approximately 30 separate, multidwplinary projects, to determine the quality of the 

whItewater experience as well as the interrelationships between whltewater recreatiomsts and the natural enwonment. While sociologists attempted to 

determlne visltor anltudes. biologists studied the 

aquatlc and rlparlan ecosystems. Effects of the Glen 

Canyon Dam 16 miles upstream oHen complicated attempts to answer resource orlented questions and 

these effects conhnue to wmpound the problems of 

both the manager and the researcher. 

In July, the press announced a new plan by the 

Bureau of Reclamabon - to add turbines at the Glen 

Canyon Dam that would increase power output, and at 

the sametime reduce theriverflowto atrickleformost 

of the day and then release huge volumes of water In 

sudden bursts. 

Researchers measure amounls of human debds, charcoal concentrations, and sand drscolorabon to determine 

;mpacts on heavily-used recreational sites along the Colorado Rwer in Glen Canyon NRS. 

Fire pita pose a SB~KX resource management problem along the Colorado Fiwer m Grand Canyon NP and Glen 

Canyon NRA. WIthaul conlarner;zation ofires, debris degrades the surroundrng beach area. 

6 
Research by NPS and cooperatmg scientists conf~nues to document changes in the Grand Canyon. A 

vastly modifted river regime has greatly affected the ripawn and aquatIc ecosystems. Impacts that contlnue 

to pose problems include such sysiemlc changes as 

(1) clear waterdueto the dropout of sediment in upper 

Lake Powell, more than 100 miles upstream from 

Grand Canyon incontrasttolhereddlsh, silt ladenpredam water: lb) stable, year-round lower temperature 

(approximately 50’F.) of water released from deep, 

cold waters 01 Lake Powell, I” contrast to pre-dam 

waters warm enough for comfortable swimming in 

wnmer but freezing in winter; (c) Invasion by exotic 

plant and animal species and expansion of their populatlons; and (d) change in the river regune from seaso&?//y alternating flows (flood to low water) to d&/y 

*yo-yo” fluctuations the result of increasing decreasIng flows related lo changes in generation 01 electrtctty 

at Glen Canyon Dam. 

I hese changes have alded the development ot a 

whitewaler recreation industry that grosses several 

million dollars annually; but the native ecosystem, including several threatened or endangered animals, 

hassuffered. Notableisthehumpbackchub, known to 

breed now in only one locality - Ihe warmer waters 

near the mouth of the Little Colorado Rover. 

In addition to dam influenced changes’ in the aquatic ecosystem of the Colorado. numerous rlparlan 

(streamslde) changes have occurred. In Grand Canyon, these consist of (a) mcreases in non-native plant 

speaes; (b) development of new riparian plant and 

animal communities: and (c)erosion of beaches swtable for camplng. 

Establishment of stable riparian plant commumlies 

!n GrandCanyon NP ~sapost-damdevelopment. Prior 

to Glen Canyon Dam, frequent floods scoured the 

streamslde. preventing permanent eslabllshment of 

these plant communltles. The new plant communities 

with their associated wIldlIfe are of great interest to 

sclentlsts and visitors altke. Birdwatching IS one of the 

favorite actlvitles of a good number of the 15,M)O 

whItewaler recreattonists who pass through the Park 

annually. Scientists such as Dr. Steven Carothers al 

the Museum of Northern Artzona and Dr. Mary Willson, University of Illinois, are aidmg NPS sctentlsts m 

studying the effects of these new plant communities 

on nesting bards Bryan Brown. a seasonal biologist, is 

working wth our research staff at the UnlversQ of 

Arizona on the importance of these new habitats to 

migrating bards. 

This newly developed hablfai is of two principal 

types-marshy vegetation such ascaftails. bullrushes 

and reeds m wet areas. and riparian scrub. with coyote 

willow, saltcedar and arrowweed on sandy, dry terraces. Estlmaies of ripawn habitat loss range from 80 

to 95 percent for the Colorado River lowlands. Thus, 

the establishment of new rlparlan hablfal m this region 

~samajorevent. Thevegetation in these areas iscomposed to some extent of introduced speues such as 

saltcedar, cam&horn and RussIan thIstIe. Camping, 

plcnicklng, and other recreational actlvitlesaredifficult 

to impossible where these plants have taken over. 

VisItor related problems, include trampling of riparian vegelallon, trailing from the river to attraction sites, 

fires (usually set m vegetation by burning toilet paper), 

and lltfenng. 

Some of the mosl severe problems arise from complacated intetaclion between dwct man-caused and 

dam-related factors. Drs. Robert Dolan and Alan 

Howard, beach eroslonexperfsatthe Unwersityof Virglnla. have conducted studies related to these prob 

lems. River-runn~ngrecreal~onistsspendmorelimeon 

shore-camping, eating, hiklng to attraction sites, etc. 

than on the water. Before ConstructIon of the dam, 

wel terraces (beaches) were eroded away and redepostled by periodic flooding of the wer. but with the 

cessation of seasonal flooding this IS no longer the 

case. Even though great care IS taken by most dver 

guides and boat crews to keep these prime campsites 

clean, ashes from campfires 01 other debris dropped 

on the sand remams - almost mdeftnltely - and 

creates what Dolan calls ~a sandbox condltlon.” 

Another post-dam problem involves the clear fasl 

wafer, coupled wth the daily river level fluctuations. 

which gradually is eroding many of these beaches. As 

people walk on them, the sand IS pushed downslope 

Into the wer and washed away, 

Management schemes on the Colorado are chang 

Ing constantly Joint planning efforts currently are be 

mg conducted between NPS. Bureau of Reclamation. 

U.S. FIshand WtldlifeService.ArlzonaGameandFlsh 

Department, and others. Of parhculat concern IS Ihe 

recently proposed generation of up to an addItIonal 

250 megawatts of electrluty at Glen Canyon Dam; 

flowsthrough the Grand Canyon would reachapproxfmately 40,000 cubic feet per second (cfs) rather than 

the approximately 5,000 to 25,000 cfs released dwng 

the current rafting seasons. This would affect wewater recreation. the outslandlng trout fishery just 

downstream from the dam, and the newly formed IIparban habltats m Grand Canyon. 

Thus, combined teams of resource managers and 

researchers must continue strenuous efforts to develop management schemes that will match the rapldly 

changing wer conditions and preserve as many re. 

source values as possible for the conllnuing enpy 

ment of park wtors. 

Roy Johnson IS Sensor Research Saenf~st and 

Leader of the NPS’CPSUal the Unwers@ofAtizona. 

Research photo taken I” 198 1 by S W Carothers. 

Threats To Parks 

Symposium Set 

Five NPS scientists wlli jointly present a symposum 

on “External Threats to Ecosystems of the National 

Parks” on Friday, Jan. 8, 1982, at 9 a.m. in the Pan 

American Room of the Capital Hilton m WashIngton. 

D.C.-partoftheJan.3-Eannualmeet~ngoftheAmer- 

(can Association for the Advancement of Swnce. 

J. Robert Stonlemyer, NPS research scienflst with 

the Great Lakes Research Areastudy unitandadlunct 

professor in the Mlchlgan Technology Unwrsity depattment of blologlcal sciences at Houghton, MI. 

arranged the symposium and WIII preside. R Roy 

Johnson of the Western Region will handle “Ecosystem Impacts Resultmg from Hydrologic Regulatlon;~ Paul G. Godfrey of the North Atlantic Region and 

an associate professor of botany at the Uwers~ty of 

Massachusetts, “External Influences on the Manage. 

ment of Barwr Island Parks:’ Susan P. Bratton. research sctentlst at Great Smoky Mountain NP, ‘Effects 

of Exotic Plant and Animal Spews on Park Ecosystems;’ and Clifford J. Martinka, research biologist at 

Glactet NP, “Effects of Co-termmus Land Use on Endangered Grizzly Bear.“ Stonlemyer WIII dwss”Ecosystem Evaluation of Anthropogemc Atmospheric 

“Inputs.” 

The Symposium abstract reads: “NatIonal park resources are becoming mcreasingly imporiant I” the intematlonal conservation 01 genetIc resources and 

their supportIng enwronment. Deslgnallon of almost 

15 national parks as intematlonal biosphere reserves 

IS recognlhon of this value. Present admlnlstratlve 

authority appears adequate to resolve most resource 

Impacts that origlnate wthln park boundaries. But a recent survey shows most threats to park natural values 

orlglnate beyond park boundarIes. The mitigation of 

such threats will requwaconslderableexpanslonand 

mafor shlfi I” Park Service research Case studies 

documented by research on toptcs as d!verse as the 

external regulatton of hydrologic budgets, exotic 

speaes, management of barrier Islands. air pollution. 

and co-termmus land use, point out the need to use an 

ecosystem approach m assessmg the magnitude of 

these external threats. This approach more fully accountsforthecomplexityof such threats. and provides 

better Information for mitigation strategies.” 
Scientists Measure 

Acid Rain Problem 

At Great Smokies NP 

By Jim Wood 

Acid rain IS 11s name. Enwonmental degradation IS 

IIS game It begins with the nation’s automobile facIorles. coal- and all-llred steam plants steel mills. reflnerles and smelters, which spew myriad chemical 

gases into a!r already contaminated by cars and 

trucks. These pollutanls combme chemically wth 

watervaportoformcaust~csullur~cand nltricacldsand 

may be lransported greatdlstances by winds. Eventually lhey fall back to earlh in the form of acid rain and 

snow 

Acid la\” knows no political twndarles. It falls on 

the trout IakesolOniar~o, thelirand oakforestsof New 

Enaland andthe Adtrondackmounla,nsof New York It 

sp;eads southward through the Appalachians of 

Pennsylvania. the V~rglnws. and Kentucky and 

reaches the Great Smoky Mountains of Tennessee 

and North Car&a. 

High up on Clingman’s Dome in Great Smoky 

Mountains NP. dala on acid prec~pltat~on are bemg 

gathered using special instruments made for Ihe purpose NPS SClantiSISfearlhattha Great Smokiessoon 

may experience ecological damage similar 10 that already encountered in the Adirondacks and elsewhere 

A 1975 survey showed more than half of Ihe Adirondacks’ high elevation lakes were devoid 01 all fish Ilie. 

due lo acid ra,n. In Ontarto, 146 lakes have now been 

pronounced ‘dead.” Canadian sclenllsts say that 1 

acid rain continues unabated. anolher46.000 lakes in 

Ontario WIII die wlthln 20 years. 

The effects of acid ra,” are nol restricted lo lakes 

and fish In the c!lles marble statuas and Stone and 

metal bulldings corrode. House paints and auto finlshes deteriorate Ac!d ,a,” effects on hlghways and 

bridges are the subject of federal government studies 

Some sclenlists suspect that already acid rain may be 

causmg declines I” farm crops and ttmber hawsts 

Dr Tom Cracker of the Uwers~ty of Wyoming estlmates damages 10 materials (such as stone and auto 

pamt) forest and aquatic ecosystems crops, water 

suppIles and other health-related systems at $5 bIllIon 

for 1978 I” the eastern I_ S. alone. 

The acldlly of any solution IS measured with what IS 

knawnasfhepHscale,numberedfromOto14.ApHof 

seven IS neutral. neither acidic nor alkaline. Distilled 

water 1s an example of a neutral substance: anyihtng 

under sew” IS acldlc. anythIng over sewn IS alkaline. 

The pti scale IS logarithmic that IS. each change of 

one pH ““I, represents a IO-fold change I” actdlty. 

Thus, a drop from pH 6 to pH 3 1s a thousandlold 

i”craaSa. 

Pure rainwater has a theorelical pH of 5.6 because 

some a&y occurs naturally due to dust and carbon 

doxlde in the atmosphere. However. during the past 

20 years, the average acldlty of rain and snow along 

the eastern U.S has dropped from pH 5 6 to behveen 

4 and 4.5. This change represents a value 40 to 50 

times more acidic. and some recent mdiwdual storms 

have dumped rain at pH levels even lower Kane, PA. 

for example, recorded a shower at pH 2.3. a level far 

more a&c than vinegar. 

Exactly what causes acid rain? The complex chemical process starts ‘wth oxldes of sulfur and nitrogen 

emlned by the burningoffossll luels Thesegasesstay 

alon long enough to interact wllh water and create %Ifurlc and nltrlc acids The sulfur oxides emanate mostly from power plants, whllethe n~tr~coxldes come from 

both power plants and mlernal combuslion engmes 01 

cars and trucks The Enwonmental ProtectIon AgenRay Mathews checks out weafher instrumentation on Converlrble Data Collectron PlaHorm (COW) mountedat 

Elkmont, a low elevalion samplrng site m GRSM The CDCP is powered by lead-acd battenes augmenled with a 

rechaigrng syslem prov;ded by a solar panel. 

cy (EPA) estimates the country‘s total man-made 

sulfur dioxide emissions al 26 million metric tons par 

year. For nitric oxldes, the yearly metric tonnage is 23 

millton. These very fine acidic paritcles can stay m the 

atmosphere for an indefinite perlod and can travel 

thousands of miles. When they flnally fall, they can 

cause extreme changes I” local enwronmenls especially aquatlc enwonments 

When the pH 01 a lake or stream drops below five, 

the a&y can kill young fish and prevenl reprodutilon 

inolderlish. IntheAdirondacklakes,notonlyhavellsh 

died, but the increased acidity has kllled counlless 

salamanders, frogs, plankton, and bacteria -all components of the aquatlc ecosystem. 

High acidity also incraa~es the solubllity of toxic 

heavy metals, such as aluminum, mercury and lead. In 

lakes that have not yet gone dead, such metals contamlnate the fish and can make then unsafe to eat. If 

these lakes happen to serve as public drinking waler 

supplies, human health may be endangered in hidden 

ways. Waler from New Yorrs Hinckley Reservoir has 

acidified to such an extent that when the water passes 

through household plumbing systems, lead from soldered jolnis dissolves into the water al concentrations 

higher than maximum recommended health levels. 

A recent two-year study m southern Caltlornia 

showed a mean pH of 3.9 lor rat” I” Pasadena Acid 

prec~p~tal~oo readings between pH4and5nowara bemg recorded ,n Portland. OR, Spokane. WA, Tucson. 

AZ, and the state 01 Colorado. Across the Atlantic, 

Swedish sc,anl,st Svante Oden has reported 20,000 

acldifvad lakes in Sweden, wth al leas1 a third of these 

dead. Norway’s lakes are slmtlarly affected. Oden 

lraced their acid ra,n sources lo the heavily mdustrlalized areasof Great Br~tam. Germany and France. 

Small high elevation lakes like those in Ontano, the 

Adirondacks. the High Sierras. the Rocky Mountains, 

Sweden and Norway. are especially sensitive because they are poorly ~bunered.‘Thetr ~011s are thin 

and their bedrocks do not conla,” enough alkalme 

substances (such as limestone and calcium carbonate) tocounterthe acldlty. AccordingtoGene Llkensof 

Cornell University, Cayouga Lake in New York has not 

gone acid because It IS located in a geologlcal area 

rich I” limestone The lImestone swes as a bullt.in 

8 

‘Roland’ to neutralize the acidity However, in other 

areas where the bunermg capacity is small, this R&d 

factor can be used up in a very few years 

Because many parks and wldernesses are in aadsensttive mountains and loresls, the NPS has set up 

afr pollution monlioring stations in 16 parksthroughout 

thenation. Great Smoky Mountains NP JGRSM) isone 

of them. 

“Our monitoring program consists of three par& 

Dr. Gary Larson of the NPS said. (Dr. Larson recently 

transferred to Omaha, NE, where he now is Midwest 

RegIonal Chtef Scvantlst.) “First. we collect weekly rain 

and snow samples for pH analyses. Second, we study 

stream pH - how Ihe acid precipitation changes the 

chemistry of streams in the park. And third, we study 

the effects of these chemical changes on a selected 

living organism -in our case, salamanders.’ 

Ray Mathews, NPS biological technician, who 

works wtth Dr. Larson. explained why salamanders 

were chosen as enwonmental Indicators. ‘Salamaw 

ders often spawn I” pools or pockets of standing water 

along the streams.” he said These pools are formed 

by rainwater or melted snow and could be more acldlc 

than the main body 01 the stream ~tsell. Any problems 

may show up in the salamanders first. We think of 

lhem as lkvlng environmental barometers.’ 

Mathews and Larson have mstalled specialized rain 

and snow collectors at live locations within the park. 

four at dlnerenl elevations along Ihe park perimeter 

and one near the lop of Cllngman’s Dome, the parks 

highest point (6,642 feet above sea level.) Equipment 

at all II’@ sites was designed and conslruded by the 

Tennesse Valley Authority 

Slream water quality also is being monitored at IWO 

streams elsewhere in the park. One stream IS located 

I” a watershed that was cut over about 70 years ago 

the other IS I” a v,rg,n (unlogged) watershed. Although 

both watersheds are clawfied as cove hardwoods. 

the logged area has fewer large trees and a greater 

number of small trees, saplings and shrubs. The NPE 

team wants to compare dlHerences in streamchemlstry between logged and prlstlne areas, to see whether 

acid rain affects the two watersheds I” dlfferent ways 

Hourly stream analyses are made usmg specla! remote sensmg lnstrumenls A sensor called a ‘Hydra. 
lab Surveyor” is immersed in the stream. It contains 

probes for measuring pH, water temperature, dissolved oxygen and other water quality parameters. 

This sensor is connected to a convertible data collection platform (CDCP) that transmits the data to a” 

orbiting Geostatlonary Operational Environmental 

Satellite (GOES). The CDCP also is connected to a 

weather instrument package that measures rainfall, 

air temperature, relative humidity barometric pressure, and wnd speed and direction. “The system has 

the ability to correlate changes in stream pH with 

changes I” the weather,” Mathews explained. “We are 

the” able to see how major and mmor rainstorms affect the streams’ PH.” 

During the past year, the team has recorded rainfall 

at weekly average pH levelsofslightly lessthan4, with 

drops during the winter. ‘Contaminants in the snow 

are flushed out in the first melt and runoff Into the 

streams causes steep drops in stream pH,’ Mathews 

said. “Also, runoff from heavy rainstorms wntalns a 

slgniflcant amount of acid water that has not been 

greatly buffered by the soil. Forlunately, the streams 

are able to recover within a few days.” 

A contract wth the National Climatic Center seeks 

to produce data on what areas in the country are most 

responsible for the air pollutants that affect the Smokies. The study takes into account air mass trajecto- 

“es and storm fronts of the U.S. weather system. Prellmlnary findings indicate that most trajectones are 

from areas east. south, and west of the park. 

Paradoxically, oneoftheproblemsadd~ngtotoday’s 

acid rain dilemma IS air quality standards set by the 

Clean Air Act in 1970. The standards the” I” effect 

called for reduclions in emissions around local areas 

and communities surrounding factories. This resulted 

I” construction of taller smokestacks. Such ‘superstacks” - some up to 1,200 feet high -reduced lOcal 

pollutton by pumping the chemicals higher into the 

View of the Elkmont CDCP noie the tube-shaped 

GOES antenna to therightof theplatform. Weathern 

formation (wmd speedand d!rectnn, relative humid;& 

ram/al/, etc.) is cob&d by the CDCP and transm!tted 

lo the GOES sate/hle on a 24.hour basis. 

atmosphere. Prevarlrng winds then carried them far 

and wide, changing the chemical campos!tio” of rain 

and snow over the nation and the world. 

As the results of the testing at Great Smokies and 

elsewhere come in, measures with political and eco- 

“omtc ramifications are sure to result. Whatever 

actions are taken, the condition of our National Parks 

will be affected, and park scientists are keeping close 

track of the swatton. 

Jim Weed is wiiter-editor wth the Natural Science 

Division, SERO. 

For a scientific description of acid rain and a report 

on I& occurrence andmonitoring on the west slope of 

the Northern Cascade Range, see t?obe# C. Wasem 

sommary of progress on pp. 33.34 of the 1980 

Snence Annual Rewrt, Pacific Northwest Region, 

NPS, now in press. (Avaiiable through the PNW 

Region headquarters, Westin Bldg., 2001 6th Ave., 

Seattle, WA 98tZt.j 

feedback 

Letters to the editor may be slightly edited to fit space 

requirements. 

To the Editor: 

I just received and read my copy of Pacific Park 

Science, Spring 1981 (?!?!). I’m notwriting tocomplain 

about the delayed mailingldelivery of the ISSUB. that 

could have bee” the result ofseveralfactors; asamatterof fact, I am very appreciativeofbemg onyourmailing list and I enjoy reading the publication, anytIme. 

Two things have aroused my cunosity however. 

One is the locatlo” of Sunset Crater as being in New 

Mexico: ~From the Editor” and “lnadent at Mount St. 

Helens??’ I thought perhaps the Sunset Crater Natlonal Monument in Arizona where we camped I” 1978 

may have a namesake I” New Mexico but the statement “I” the shadow of the San Francisco Peaks”aswed ma they were one and the same. Now, I know 

theonly thing constant ~“nature~schangeand I accept 

the contInental drift theory but 1978-1981 is a linle 

rapid for Sunset Crater andthe San Francisco Peaks 

to shift from Arizona to New Mexico, don’t you agree? 

My other question regards reference to the St. Croix 

(River) as a “small stream’ (~Rpanan Resources and 

Endangered Ecosystems”). Having lived most of my 

52yearsalmost wlthi”“splttt”“d&nceofthe St. Croix 

Riverand knowng tttosomeextent from “earitsorigi” 

to itsjunctlo” wth the Mississippi wherethe St. Croixls 

the larger of the two “vers, I wonder what Mr. Johnson 

means by his designation. If the St. Croix River IS a 

“small stream” he would probably also refer to Lake 

Superior as a ‘pond.’ 

These may be moot paints but they did arouse my 

curiowty. Sincerely, 

Dr. Carl D. FInstad 

Associate Professor of Biology 

Unwers~ty of Wisconsin - River Falls 

The Editor Replies: The reason Sprmg was a iittle 

late Ihis year IS the government-wide moratorium 

placed on ailpubiications at the prense moment last 

May when the Spring issue was camera-ready The 

buliekn iangurshed 16 weeks before penission to 

print came through. /admit that NM as an abbreviation 

for Nat;onai Monument can be confusmg - especially 

when the printer precedes it with a comma that the 

near-srghted edItor overlooked You will find ii again UJ 

the page 3 story sans comma. As for your knal question: Perhaps Roy Johnson w;/l make h;s own case for 

charactewng the St. Croix as a ‘8mall stream. ‘As a 

tasf resort, he might fat/ back on the counter-quesbon 

of the researcher who, whenashed”How’syour wife’?” 

rep/led “Compared to what? 

9 

Management 

And Science 

Reorganized 

I” rewions to the Departmental Manual approved 

in June 1981, the Dwon of Natural Resources, lormerly in the Office of Science and Technology, was 

restructured into two dlwons: the DIVISION of Natural 

Science, wlthin Science and Technology, and the D#isio” of Natural Resources Management, wlthi” Management and Operations. The Intent of this reorganization action was to move to M&O those actlvitles that 

relate specifically to the management of natural resources and to retain in S8T those natural science research actlvittes that support the preservation and 

integrity of in-park natural ecosystems and natural 

processas. 

The functions transferred to M&O encompass fieldrelated oroarammatlc activities such as ADP resoonslbilitles (or bar management, pesticide managkment 

and the backcountry permit system. M&O also will 

assume responsibility for the Resource Management 

Plans, for development and prioritization of Slgntficant 

Resource Problems, and a variety of tralnrng. reporting and planning relating to management of in-park 

natural resources. 

The Natural Science Division remaining I” SBT WIII 

be responsible for natural science and “&al history 

research, for long-term blologlcal ecosystem mo”1tw 

ing, for science publications, for spwal research studies, for evaluation of field natura! science programs, 

for coordination of Service-wide programs lnvolwng 

scientific subject matter such as the Endangered 

Species Program, and for budget, policy, guidelws 

and standards relating to the conduct of NPS natural 

science research programs. 

The Natural Science Division, together with the Regional Chief Scientists. will takesteps todevelop longterm relationships with universities to provide emproved response capabilities to such research needs 

as coastal and ripana”, desert eastern and weslem 

forest, and Hawaiian and Alaskan ecosystems. 

International 

Mountain 

Society Formed 

Overuse and abuse of mounta~” lands throughout 

the world has led to organization of the lnternatlonal 

Mountain Society. P.O. 60x3148. Boulder, CO80307, 

‘to strive for a better balance between human welfare, 

mountal” environment, and development of resources.” 

Jack Ives, professor of mountain geoecology at the 

University of Colorado, IS the Society’s first president 

The $25 membershlp mcludes a subscrIptIon to the 

quarterly Journal. Mounta,n Research and Develop 

ment, co-published by United Nations Unwersrty and 

the Society, with support from UNESCO, Journal contents will embrace a wide range of dlscipllnes I” the 

natural and human saences, medicine, architecture, 

englneerlng and technology as they apply to hlghland 

areas. 

Society aims are to further lnternattonal collaboration for the protection of mountain lands and peoples 

and for the ratIonal development of natural resources, 

to encourage basic and applied lnterdiwpllnary research throughout the mountat” world, to dtssemtnate 

and apply knowledge that may help solve mountam 

land-use problems, and to help create research centers and natlonal lnstltutions throughout the world. 
Inventorying Rare Plant Species 

By Larry L. Nonis 

It is important that park managers have an accurate 

data base upon which to rely when making decisions 

that wll affect raw species. Federal law requires the 

protection of species that have been classified as 

threatened or endangered. Many plants are now 

clawfied and many others have been proposed for 

classification and must be given special consideration 

for protection. The impollance olgaining knowledgeof 

rare plants, including their numbers, localities. vigor. 

and habitat is obwous whenever park operations 

threaten to alter an area. The expansion of a camp 

ground or relocation of a section of trail may impact 

one 01 more populations of rare plants. In order to protect rare plants, managers in charge of such pro@s 

need InformatIon on the species and populations that 

might be impacted. 

In the National Park Service the need for rare plant 

inventories is now being recogmzed and a number of 

studies have been or are being completed. In Sequoia 

and Kings Canyon NPs this represents a sxable 

undertaking. The combined acreage IS 862,429 acres. 

Much of the parIs 862,429 acreage is rugged, isolated and difficult to access. The manner in which an 

tnventow was to ba carried out had to be carefullv 

planned: 

Before the inventory could begin a list of raw plants 

known or suspected to occur in the parks had to be 

develooed. Four sowces of mformation were consulted to lkam what species should be considered. First 

we recognized the rare plant list for the state of California, compiled by the California Native Plant Society 

and adopted by the U.S. F!sh and Wildlife Service as 

delinltiveforthestate. Plantsappearmgon this list and 

known to occur in Sequoia and Kings Canyon were of 

primaryconcern.Those likelytooccurwlthln the parks 

also were considered. 

Secondly, an extensive herbarium search was conducted to gain more detailed information on known 

localibes withtn park boundaries of the plants of concern. These lxslltles were then plotted on a park 

vicinity map to Indicate rare plant concentrations and 

areas requiring intensive field survey efforts. Next, an 

inspection of other we plant inventories by neighboring agencies (in our case three National Fwasts) or 

pwate researchers was made to determine possible 

rare plant localities near the park boundary. 

Finally, personal contact was made with those botamstswho havecollectedormadeobservatians within 

the parks I” the past. Their information was of conslderable helo in olannmo and carIy,no out the field 

inventory. ” - 

After compilation of the rare plant list (30 species in 

Sequoia and Kinqs Canvon NPs) the habitat requirements 01 each spectes had to be documented. This 

was accomplished through lkterature research, 

through inform&on gained from the herbarium labels, 

and from botanists familiar with the plants. The next 

step wastodeduce whereeach rarespawswaslikely 

to occur in the parks. This was done with the help of 

topographic maps and air photos. For instance. one 

spews, Oreonana pwpumscens, grows on clear 

ridges surrounded by red fir forests at elevations between 800 and 8500 feet. Topographic maps helped 

the mventory team locate such ndges, and air photos 

indicated whether they we forested 01 not. Field 

searches to some of these -ideal’ ridges located severa1 populations of 0. purppurascens in the parks. 

These were of only suspected occwance prior to the 

study. 

The known populations of we plants provided the 

basis of each lowtory field trip. Locations plotted on 

the parkwnity map showed what areas needed emphasis, what the general elevations were, and how 

much timewould berequ~redfortheinventorytrip. The 

field trips were then planned !n a route that connected 

the known populations. Suspected IoCallties would be 

searched as they we encountered along the way. In 

areas of the parks that had no recorded rare plant pap 

ulations the Inventory consisted of sulveylng all potential siteslorrare plants thought possibly toocwthere. 

These tripsoften ylelded botanical surprises. 

Each population site encountered was inventoried 

on a field data collectIon form made especially for this 

study. The form gathered informatIon of the site location (geographic locale. and legal subdivision) and description (elevation, physical sening. slope aspect. 

and substrate). Thesecond half of the form deals with 

the species surrounding plant community, associated 

species and the population descrlptlon (sue or area, 

number of plants, phenology, population health, rigor,, 

density, and, lastly, any endangerment factors). 

After the data had been collected on field forms and 

the populations accurately mapped on USGS 7% 

minutequadrangles. apark status repwiforeach speties was written up. Anachments to each report included a profewonal lkne drawg, black and white 

8x10 photo of an herbarium specimen, and color 

photographsshowing aclose upoftheflower, ageneral plant photo, and a photo depicting the planrs typical 

habttat. Status reports, maps, and lllustratlons were 

then placed in large, three ring blndersandcoplasdw 

tributed to those park managers who have a need to 

know the locations and status of these rare olants. Accompanying each copy was an Index referilng to map 

and detailed location guide for quck reference. This 

saves the park manager the task of thumbing through 

the rare plant report every time a project arws. 

In short. it IS essential that park managers understand where rxe plant speciesoccurand what factors 

or activibes might threaten their w&al. A prepared 

methodology to follow I” designing and carrylog out a 

field inventory ol known and suspected rare plants is 

presented here. It has proved quite successful in 

Sequoia and Kings Canyon NPs, as well as a number 

of surroundina National Forests. (Note: examoles of 

data colle& field forms can be obtained from the 

Research Sclentisrs OffIce. Sequoia and Kings Canyon National Parks, Three Rivers, CA 93271.) 

Larry L. Norris is a research technician al Sequo;a 

and Kmgs Canyon National Parks. 

Kiamalh weed (Hypericum perforatum) 

IO 

Biological Control 

Of Klamath Weed 

In Yosemite NP 

Once again, Yosemite NP IS a biological battleground. 

In May and June, 1981, some 15,000 Chrysalina 

quadngemma beetles were released at five affected 

sites in Yosemite NP to control biologically the exotic 

Klamath weed (Hype&urn perforatum). This blological control program, in keeping with the Seticestlght 

restrlctlons on introduction of exotic species and being 

camed out in cooperation wth the California DepartmentofFoodandAgriculture,shouldcontlnueunttl the 

beetles have eliminated all known Infestations of Klamath weed. 

Theweed,also knownasst. John’swort, isnativeto 

Europe. It showed up in Califomla in the early 1900s 

and was identified in Yosemite I” the 1940s. Since 

then, various eradication programs have been mounted.Theiirsttwo attempts, hand eradicationandchemical spraying, were ineffective; the third, biological 

control, was successful. 

In 1951,9,800 Chlysolina beetles were released at 

six locations in Yosemite, and within 10 years the beetles hadvirtually ellm,nated the Klamath weed. Apparent demise of the beetle in recent years resulted in 

remvaslon by the weed, which rapidly took over roadsides and meadows. Klamath weed’s presence constitutes undesirable alteration of the natural scene because of Its ability to choke out native vegetations. In 

addibon, it can cause skin lrritatlon in humans and bllsters in animals that eat it. 

Klamath weed has an extremely high reprodutive 

capaaty It quickly spreads from one favorable site to 

another and establishes dense colonies throughout 

each site. Chrysolina beetles feed speclflcaliy on Klamath weed, and they aresoselectivethatthey actually 

differentiate between the unwanted exotic and Iwo 

closely related natlve plants. 

If lor any reason the Chrysolina beetle should fail 

this time to knock the weed “out of the park,” two pmch 

hitters are awlable - a root crown beetle and a gall 

midge. These two organisms also are known for their 

ability to target and control Klamath weed, and park 

management IS considerlog their introdutilon should 

supplemental actloos become necessary 
regional 

highlights 

NATIONAL CAPITAL REGION 

An Urban Forest Soils Workshop, co-sponsorad by 

Consodium for Environmental Studies - U.S. Forest 

Service, the College of Environmental Sciences and 

Forestry-Syracuse University, and the National Capital Region - NPS. was held in Washington, D.C. Oct. 

26-28. Focuswason urban soils. thelrcharacteristics. 

management techniques, and spwflc applications 

toward effective long term management. 

A 7.chapter workbook was prepared for pre-workshop distribution and a hands-on sewon and field trip 

dealt with solI properties, so11 profile evaluation, soil 

sites. tree pit dwgn, the “engineering” of plants into 

urban sotI systems, and long term management implicatrons of all these things. 

For full information, contact James C. Patterson, 

research agronomrst with the National Capital Region, 

(202) 426.6796. 

New Technology in the Parks is the title of a report 

on “better conservation management through use of 

alternative fuels and vehicle technologies,’ compiled 

forthe Energy andTechnology Transfer Dlvisronofthe 

Nattonal Park Service in May 1981 by John Hake, Urban Park Program Specialist with the National Capital 

Region. Hoke describes ground maintenance equipment, presents guidelInes for selection of alternatw 

vehicles, drscussesalternatefuels (includmgtheoperation of conventional equpment on alcohol and ways 

to extend the range of electric vehicles). and covers 

mobile auxiliary power and vehicle maintenance and 

parts supply. 

Hoke has kept operating records that show favorable comparison with conventional methods. Beyond 

the cost efficiency m relation to standard operation 

procedures, a whole new package of unexpected 

benefits seems to have emerged-lower basic equip 

men1 costs, lower maintenance costs, slmpler operation, a marked reduction in energy usage. less damaging Impact on the environment, quieter operation of 

maintenance vehicles, and enhanced human-scale 

interaction between visitors and NPS patrols. Hake 

was assisted by the NCR Maintenance Dnsion. 

Copies of the illustrated 18.page report are avatlable 

free from the EBTl Division, National Park SewIce. 

Department of the Interior, Washington, D.C. 20240. 

WESTERN REGION 

“Effects 01 Injuries on Spiny Lobster, Panulkus 

Argus, and Implications for Fishery Management,” by 

Gary E. Davis, NPS research scientist now at Channel 

IslandsNP,appeared~nFisheryBulletin:Vo1.78, No. 

4,1981, apparently adding new ~nlormat~on tothepubkshed literature with regard to the preuse effect of mjuries in the wild and defimtion of their origin. 

A new Redwood NP technical report, ‘Sediment 

Sources and Sediment Transport in the Redwood 

Creek Basin: Progress Report.“identifies sourcesand 

causes of erosion and sedimentation in the highly erasive RedwoodCreekwatershedof northernCalifornia. 

Publtshed in May 1981, the paper is the third in Redwood stechn~cal reportseries. Earlierreporlsincluded 

evaluationsof 1978 watershed andofthe 1979Alrstrip 

Creek watershed rehabilltatlon sites. Upcoming re 

ports will deal with staf~c pile cornposting, vegetation 

s”ccess~on aHer loggmg, and revegetat!on techlvques. 

Gary Larson, center, poses wrth his award, presentedbySEROChiefSc!entistJay Gogue, left andGRSM Super- 

!ntendent Dave Beal, right. 

Larson Cited for Superior Service 

The Depaltment of the Interior Superror Service mental in implementing a network of remote, autoAward was conferred June 26 on Gary L. Larson, mat!catmosphericpollutionand water aual~tvmonitorfishery biologist at Great Smoky Mountains NP. Lar- ing stations in the park (see story on page q?), the first 

son, who joined NPS I” 1977, for the past three years 01 its kind in the National Park System. 

has served as research coordinator of the Uplands Larson has accepted the posibon of Regional Chief 

Field Research Laboratory in the Great Smokies. HIS Scientist, Midwest Region, and IS now at his new duty 

work has resulted in “an outstandtng multid!sciplinary station in Omaha, NE. 

natural science program at the park.’ Ha was ~nstruSOUTHEAST REGION 

The Third Annual Southeast Region Research 

Prospectus for Fiscal Year 1981 IS now available from 

the Natural Science and Research Division of the 

Southeast RegionalOffice, 75 Sprtng St., SW., Atlanta, GA 30303. The 132.page document contains reports of ongolng scientific studres m the region and 

carries in an envelope attached to the inside back 

cover a brochure prowding general informatron about 

the region’s scrence program 

PACIFIC NORTHWEST REGION 

An old adage, “Nothing is more useless than the 

answer to an unasked question,” provides the philasophic backdrop lor OSU!CPSU Report 61-2: Social 

Impacts of Desrgn Alternatives - Crater Lake National 

Park, by So Shelby and Donald W. Wolf of the OSU 

School of Forestry Vlsitor behavior and management 

alternatwes based on that behavior are presented in 

tea. figures, tables and graphs, with important clues 

for providing Information that fits visitor needs and 

motivations. Thereportleaves to managementthedecislon as to what IS preferred behauor. and then 

discusses the various results that can be expected if 

ceriain facilities are or are not provided and, 11 they are 

provided, the manner in which their prowon is 

accomplished. The study makes no value judgments 

about one behavior as opposed lo another, but does 

present findings as to what management can reasonably expect ~ntheway of behavioral responsetod~ffering management actrons. 

A 53.page report (OSUICPSU Report 81-t) by Kurt 

Jenkins, Status of Elk Populations and Lowland Ha66 

tats in Western Olympic National Park, publtshed in 

May 1981, found cow elk productiwty to be lower than 

11 

during an earlier study (1936and 1938) buttoundwlnter survival and calf recruitment was greater in the 

more recent study- leading to the conclusion that current elk populations are better adjusted to the forage 

base now than they were in the Thirties. The 1960 

study showed higher productivity among cow elk that 

summered in valley lowlands. Additional comparisons 

inside and outside the park would be useful, Jenkins 

states, to determine mfluences of hunting and forestry 

practices on productivity 01 elk !n managed lowland 

ranges outside the park. 

Fire Research Needs in National Park System 

Areas of Oregon and Washington, by James K. Agee, 

(CPSU~UW81-14), publtshed inMay1981,dealsspecifically wth Crater Lake, Mount Rainier. North Cascades, and Olympic National Parks and Oregon 

Caves NatIonal Monument. It is presented “as one 

saentist’s view of where the information gaps lie’ in 

fire research I” the Pacific Northwest and was compiled as one input toward the formulation of future fire 

research priorities. NPSpersonnelpreparingorupdating Fire Management Plans and Resource Management Plans in the Northwest have been alerted to thls 

report and encouraged to contact Agee If they have 

questions. 

Resuns gleaned from NPS patrol boat data describing downstream congestloo on the Colorado River in 

the Grand Canyon are documented rn Monitoring 

Social Impacts of River Management in Grand Canyon: 1980 Patrol Trips, OSU CPSU Report 81-3. 

published in June 1981. Authors are Bo Shelby and 

Richard Harris of the OSU School of Forestry. The 

authors point outthat a”final’vers~on of the rnermanagement plan was approved in December 1979, but 

that the Hatch Amendmenttothe Park Service appropriation bill in November 1980 has prompted rewon 

of some policies. Wtth these poll&s now going into 
effect, the on-going process of monitoring is important 

as insurance that management objectives are being 

accomplished. The study can be used as a comparison to data gathered during a 1975 study and also to 

establish a baseline for comparing patrol trip data 

gathered in the future. 

T&photometer readings from The Watchman 

(whichoverlooksCrater LakeandoffersalEO-degree 

view of the surrounding countryside) have been MIlected this year for four “targets’ to serve as baseline 

wsiblltty data for future years. Beginning July 1 and 

continuing through September, eight readings were 

taken daily (each of the four targets was “read” at 9 

a.m. and 3 p.m.) through powerful lenses with a builton computer that measures the intensity of light. The 

computer automatically figures the ratio of difference 

between the light from the sky and the light reflected 

from the target. The wider the ratlo (the sharper the 

contrast between sky and target), the clearer the air 

The project IS a joint efforl between Crater Lake NP 

and the Oregon Depariment of Environmental Quality 

Evaluation of the raw data IS being done by EPKs 

Enwronmental Monitoring Systems Lab I” Las Vegas. 

Park Snence wtll report the lab‘s findlogs m a later 

issue. 

Managers in need of information about the Mountain Pine Beetle (MPB). Dendroctonus ponderosae, 

WIII find useful a recent publication, Management of 

Mounla;n Pine Beetle Infestalnons af Coulee Dam 

NRA, by R. Gerald Wright of the University of Idaho 

CPSU and graduate student Richard Nathanson. The 

publication is CPSU UI B 81-5. The information Includes life hIstory of the beetle and its use of host 

speaes, plus an examination of different commonly 

used control measures and their enwonmental implications. 

Crater Lake ExDlosion 

Greenland Ice Yields Data 

Two different approaches to geologic dating are offertng Crater Lake interpreters and wsitors a panoramic view of ancient earth history and a choice of dates 

for the eruption that blew the top off Mount Mazama 

and created the incredible blue rewel of the NatIonal 

Park System. 

The date used by park interpreters is 6840 B.P. - 

where B.P. stands for years “before present” and the 

years are “radlocarboh years.” (Radiocarbon years 

are flgured by the carbon I4 dating method -the difference behveen radiocarbon years and calendar years 

betng a function of the strength of earth’s magnetic 

field and the consequent amount of cosmic ray bombardment occumng at the time the subject material 

was being formed.) The data on which this interpretation IS based comes from research by Charles Bacon 

of the U.S. Geologtcal Survey, Menlo Park, Calif. 

Bacon llrst suspected and then produced concluswa 

stratigraphlc proof that there were two eruptions wthin 

the overall climactu action that produced the lake. HIS 

carbon-14 dating is based on four different charcoal 

samples takenfromtheendsoftheoriglnal pyroclastic 

flows, tens of kilometers away from the blast He, and 

from one charcoal sample found underneath the onginal pumice fall (a scattering of extrusive material less 

dense than is found m pyroclastlc flows). From these 

five carbon samples, Bacon deduced a mean age of 

6840 radiocarbon years, plus or minus 50 years, before the present day as the time of the eruption. 

The so-called “main event’ - the unroofing of the 

mountain, itscollapseandthefomation ofthe lake-is 

now known, through Bacon’s studies, to have been 

preceded by perhaps l75years byaneruptlonthatproLlao rock looms over Wizard Ishndat Crater Lake. 

duced Llao Rock - the rhyodaclte (thlck lava) Ilow 

which is so prominent afeatureofthe lake’s northwest 

nm. 

Duane Champion, also of the USGS Menlo Park 

complex, was called in the past two years by Bacon to 

bring his “paleomagnetcsecularvariation”analysisto 

bear on Bacon’s radiocarbon-based results. It was the 

way the magnetite in the Instantly formed rocks of the 

two explosions lkned up with the magnetic poles of the 

earth at the time of the two blasts that confirmed the 

ttme separation. 

Champion‘s work is based on the fact that the 

earth’s magneticpolechangespositiongradualtyover 

time, both m inclination and in declination. Declination 

is the angle between ‘true north” and magnetic north 

(which is not always at the spin axis of earth.) InclKaIfon of the magnetic field varies from generally horw 

zontal near the equator to veltical at the magnetic pole. 

At the latitude of Crater Lake, the magnetrc inclmatlon 

down from the horizontal istyplcaltyabout60degrees. 

varylog from shallower to steeper than 60 degrees in 

the same way the declination angle changes. As 

Bacon had predicted, thehvo-eruption theorywascorroborated by the different recordings of magnetization 

found by Champton. 

Then, on August 9 of this yea!, the New York Times 

front-paged a story about an mternational team of 

scientists working on a platform in southern Greenland, from whichthey havedrilledalmost to the bottom 

of the Greenland ice sheet. In a chart accompanying 

this item, the Mount Mazama explosion is given as 

having occurred 6381 years B.P., a seeming discrepancyofnearly5OOyearsfrom theradlocarbondate. As 

of August 9. the team had penetrated 6,687 feet and 

expected shottly to reach bottom, “where the ice may 

date back 100,000 years to a warm period before the 

last Ice Age.’ 

ThedrlllingisajointAmertcan-Danish-Swiss project 

and the dating method uses the relative abundances 

of two forms of oxygen for counting ice layers like annual growth rings. In colder weather, the heavier of 

thetwooxygen Isotopes -oxygen 18-is less kkely to 

precipitate. Therefowvinter snow is made up predominately of oxygen 16, the lighter isotope. This summer-winter cycle of oxygen layers makes powble the 

pInpoIntIng of volcanlceruptionsforthe past nlnecentunes with an error marginofonlyoneyear The layers 

grow progressively harder to count, until at about8000 

B.C. ‘11 becomes dinicult but ages can be roughly 

estimated.’ 

Champton warns about the ‘Yudge factor” that must 

be taken Into radiocarbon dating considerations, but 

points out that this factor works to mcrease the radiocarbon age 01 Crater Lake - sening it back possibly as 

far as 7,650 to 7,770 absolute years before the present! and thus separating it even further from the time 

lndlcated by the Greenland drill team. 

‘1 can’t quarrel with their methodology,’ Champton 

said. ~Afterall, they’re counting real layers of absolute 

years. I can only surmise that the ash they found may 

have coma from some other explosion - not Mount 

Mazama.* 

From We0 

The Natural Science Division, WASO. has a large 

supply of Presewhg Our Natural Henfage, Volume 1: 

Federal Actin/ies. Individuals wshtng free copses 

should wte to Gary Johnston, Natural Scrence DIV. 

islon (494), National Park Serwe, DI, Washmgton, 

D.C. 20240. 
I 

Mule Deer Study 

Provides Needed 

Baseline Data 

By Brad Griffith 

Hlstoncally, Craters of the Moon National Monument area was mhablted by grizzly bears, blghom 

sheep. and mule deer After the turn of the century. 

domestlc grazing and subsistence hunting by local 

m~“erscreatedpress”resthatseverelydepressedthe 

populations of these three large native mammals. 

Establishment of the monument m 1924 elm%ated 

these pressures but the grizzly bear and btghorn 

sheep “wer recovered and now are extinct wIthIn the 

monument 

The mule deer were a different story They not only 

swved, but increased m numbers. In 1967 the total 

populaiion was estimated to beabout350anlmalsand 

the population now totals 500 to 600 animals 

By the late 197Os, deer were bemg killed regularly 

while crossmg the hlghway. were feeding extenswely 

on residence lawns, and were “smg forested areas 

heavily for beddlng. Park managers became concerned thatprotect~onfrom hunting and lackof compet~tlon from other ungulates would allow a population 

increase that could result in range deterioration Accordingly, they requested some kind 01 long term deer 

population and h&at mon~torlng systems that could 

be camed out through routine park operations. They 

also asked for estimates of population levels and productwrty and for an evaluation of deer usage of the 

wilderness areas so that impacts on deer habttat of a 

proposed fire management plan could be evaluated. 

Field research deslgned to satlsiy management requests began I” May 1980, and hascontlnuedthrough 

November 1981. Mommg and evenmg deer census 

routes and monitormg procedures were Implemented 

and four clusters of line-intercept transects were 

establtshed to monitor long term trends in deer h&tat 

Seasonal classtficatton counts were used to estimate 

productivity; wldemess .%a utilization was determined from relocattons of it7 raduxollared and 55 

ear-tagged deer. From the proportion of marked deer 

observed on regular censuses, the population level 

was estimated. Sources and magnitudes of moriallty 

also were mvestlgated to identity factors llmltlng the 

herd we. 

Study results indicate that the Craters deer hera IS 

extremely productive and evper~ences little fawn mortallty related to nutrition. In addillon, II was found that 

the deer use two dlstlnct summer home ranges within 

the monument and suffer a greater degree of hunting 

mortality than might be expected. Together, these 

factors identify a herd with fascinating. complex characterlstlcs. 

Because 01 excessive snow depths, mule deer are 

residents of the monument only in summer. The study 

has shown the Craters herd to be composed of deer 

from at least two separate winter ranges on BLM and 

pwate lands. Approximately half of the current populat~on (500-600) Winters 40 ml1e.s to the south and the 

other half winters 20 miles to the northwest. 

Deer begln amwng on the monument summer 

range in early April: by late April they are distributed 

throughout the monument’s 35 square miles of deer 

h&at. Approxtmately 70 percent 01 the range IS with. 

inthe wilderness portionolthemonument, whereltnle, 

1 any, free water is avatlable. Permanent water sources are llmlted to melting ice in lava tubes-water not 

accessible to the deer. Currently, it is assumed that in 

spring and early summer deer usmg the wilderness 

obtain the!r moisture lrom temporary water sources 

(suchasra~npuddles)andfromconsumedvegetatlon. 

As the summer progresses, vegetation becomes 

too dry to satisfy deer moisture requirements. When 

thisoccurs (III late July, as Indicated bydepressedfuel 

moisture readmgs from fire wither stations). wlderness deer migrate 5 to 10 m!les north to ranges in the 

north poll~on of the monument. Free water from two 

creeks IS available there. The deer occupy the new dry 

season home ranges during August and September. 

When fall rains green up the wilderness vegetation, 

the deer migrate back to the same wilderness home 

ranges they occupied in the sprfng and early summer, 

remafnfng there until December when they migrate to 

wlter ranges. 

The mid-summer northward migration causes a 

temporary four-fold ~ncrease in deer density for the 

nolthern nonwldemess porfion of the monument. 

From April through July, when uniformly distributed 

throughout the monument. deer densities average 15 

per square mile - a normal density for IntermountaIn 

mule deeron good summer range. In August and September, however, densities in the northern porl~on of 

the monument approach 60 per square mile, accountmg for the large numbers of deer observed by park 

personnel. Censuses conducted in 1981 commonly 

revealed 40 deer per mile of census route. 

An average summer density of 60 per square mile, 

as observed !n northern pollions of the monument, is 

unusual. Were the densities not transitory, range deter~orat~on ceriainly would occur To date, forage commun~t~es in the northern part 01 the monument deer 

h&tat do not show signs of excessive use. 

Forage communities in the wilderness parVan of the 

monument where 70 percent of the fawning occurs, 

show even less utllitatlon than I” the northern parl. 

BItterbrush is wdespread. abundant, and I” excellent 

condIVan. Native bunch grasses are plent~lul, the forb 

community IS dnerse, and limber pine stands provide 

excellent fawning cover. The forage communltles provide excellent nutrition for does during the crlt~cal last 

one-third of pregnancy. 

As a result of the high quality nutrition awlable. I~Itlal productlvlty I” June IS high. Nearly all does have 

twns, and triplets are not ““common. On the average 

the herd produces at least 200 fawns per 100 adult 

does. This level approaches the maumum blolog!cal 

potential for lree ranging mule deer. 

Craters herd lawns have a high surwval rate during 

the ftrst SIX months 01 IlIe. By August, less than 20 percent have dted and 165 fawns per 100 adult does remain. Fawns experience IitUe additional mortality from 

Septemberthrough November. 

Over-wmter fawn surwal also is high By Septemberlawostypically havelatdeposltson all key Indicator areas of the body and amve on adequate winter 

ranges in excellent condition. As a result, mortaltty on 

wnterrangesin 1979and 1960wasnotsubstant1al. In 

the spring of 1960 the Craters herd was characterized 

by 75 yearlmgs per 100 adult does and I” 1961 the 

spring rat10 was 125 yearlings per 100 adult does 

Few, if any, mule deer herds have spring age ratios 

this good. 

With such high productivity and s~rwal figures the 

Craters herd would be expected to grow rapidly and 

noticeably Impact its summer range. Since this has not 

occurred. limiting factors must be acting to slow the 

growth rate of the population. Some factors that may 

llmlt the growth rate are predation, disease, perlodtc 

severe winters, dispersal, and hunting morlallty. 

Evaluation of the importance 01 severe Winters and 

dispersal will require several years. Disease of significant magnitude to limit the populatton level has not 

been observed thus lar, and predator densities I” the 

monument are low compared to surrounding areas 

Preliminary evidence suggests that hunttng mortality 

may be an lmpotiant I~mlt~ng factor. Areas adjacent to 

the nollhern boundaws of the monument are accessable and recwe heavy hunting pressure. Deer move 

freely across the boundary and, as a result, the Craters herd does not receive complete protection from 

hunting. In the fall of 1960, 10 to 20 percent 01 the 

known herd of 500 to 600 animals was killed by hunters. Adult females were harvested at a higher rate (15 

to 30 percent were killed) than the population at large 

S~nceadultfemalesarethe keytorecru~tnumbersand 

growth rate. hunter removal of them may serve to sup 

press the population growth rate. 

Based on the flndmgs 01 high productlwty low natural mortality, and unusual home range uttllzatlon. research on the Craters herd will continue The long term 

research goal WIII be to Identify and evaluate lactors 

llmlting the population. Future emphasis will Include 

refinement of hunting mortality estimates, food habits 

the role of dispersal and weather patterns m population regulation, and the mlluence of winter range conditlons on herd dynamics. The deer population and 

habitat monltorlng systems devised wll facilitate long 

term documentation of the mteract!on between the 

deer population and the lorage community. 

As demands for consumptive use of publ!c lands increase, the value of national parks and monuments as 

b&me natural areas becomes more evident. 

The long term studies at Craters of the Moon WIII 

Off andaway!Aduildoe marked wi~hanindfndualcoioicombmationofeai tagsandstreameisleaves a trap Sail 

IS an efleclrve bar1 dunng hoi dry wealher. 

13 
I I 

help idenllfy the population charactertstics that can be 

expected of an mtermountain mule deer herd not Itm. 

ited by food A complex relatlonshlp between the 

Craters deer and theu umque volcanic habltat has 

been documented by current studies. As further 

understanding of the Craters herd develops, more preelse park management dwction can be defined. 

Griffith IS a PNR rovrng research b~olqfsf. assignee 

to parks in the Regfon as the need anses. Photos are 

by Daud R. C/ark. 

* 

DEER ST”D;P”BLISHED 

For definitive treatment of deer that frequent many 

Western National Parks. see Mu/e and Black-f&o 

Deer of North America. a WIldlIfe Management Institute publlcatlon edlied by Olaf C. Wallmo and publashed by the Unlverslty of Nebraska Press, 901 N. 

17th St:. Lincoln, NE 66566. The amply illustrated 

volume IS $29.95 and 605 pages. 

Data Banks On 

Old-growth Forest 

Jointly Funded 

Two programs based outside the NPS butofferlnga 

variety of cooperative hooks lor research and applications are the Old-Growth Wildlife Habitat Research 

and Development Program and the Natural Heritage 

Program. The former was launched by the Pacific 

Northwest Forest 8 Range Experiment Station. the 

latter by the State of Washington. 

The Forest Service program recognizes that oldgrowth forest stands are becoming more rare as they 

are harvested and addresses the ‘increasingly key 

issue‘ that IS posed by the continued cutting of these 

“sllwulturally decadent stands”-espeaally mwwof 

the National Forest Management Acrs mandate that 

production must meet ‘diversity” and multiple-use 

requirements. 

The Washmgton State program (which became law 

in July 1981) establishes a data bank 01 Information 

about Washington’s unique natural features and IS 

supported by enwronmental, governmental and Industry groups. The InformatIon assembly was started in 

1977 by The Nature Conservancy at the Evergreen 

State College under a contract with the Washington 

Department of Natural Resources and other state 

agencies. The 1981 legislature picked it up and prowded moneyto matchfederalfundstoconttnuedevelopment of the data bank. 

Al O’Donnell, supervIsor of DNRs Natural Area Preserves program, poloted out that the data base WIII 

allow public and pwate resource agencies to learn the 

locations of rare habttat or unique geological features 

in advance of preparing management plans thus 

saving time and costly legal delays. He est~matesthat 

local. state, and federal agencies $n Washington, 

which prepare more than 300 environmental Impact 

statements each year. could save an estimated 

$620.000 a year by utlltzlng information from the Hew 

tage Program data bank. 

Research Notes 

Application of the ecological theory of habitat 

islands and edges (blogeographlc pnnciples) to the 

preservation of regional biotic dwsity and the schedullng of timber cutting in the Douglas-fir region IS the 

sublect of a one-year study by Larry Harris of the Unlverslty of Florida, working out of the Forestry Sciences 

Lab at Oregon State Unlverslty, Cor-vall~s ELM 1s con. 

trlbutlng part of the cost through an interagency 

agreement. 

Society Named For 

First NPS Scientist 

George M. Wright - 1904 1936 

George Wnght, wasineffectthefirst “chielscientist” 

01 the Nattonal Park Setwe. and he felt so strongly 

about the need for acquiring knowledge in order to 

manage mlelllgently the System’s reso~rcas that he 

personallyfundedthe NPS Wildlife Dlvision’sfirstyear 

of operation. In his name, and wth the energetic participatlon of anumberol NPSsctentistsand historians. 

bath currently employed and alumni, the Society got 

off the ground in the spring wtth a charter meeting at 

the Grosvenor Center I” Maryland. hosted by Gordon 

Fredne and Dan Beard of the Renewable Natural Resources Foundation. Vernon C. (Tommy) GIlbert was 

elected president. Wright’s daughter, Pamela Wnght 

Lloyd, was made a member of the board of directors. 

This new so&y (the George Wright Sowty) IS 

dedicated to the protection, presefvatlon and management 01 cultural and natural parks and reserves 

through research and education. Membership of $25 

Includes subscription to the George Wright Forum. 

publIshed by Robert M. Linn. former NPS Chief Sclentest and secretary of the Society, P.O. Box 65, Hancock. Ml 49930. 

Wright, whose early single-handed efforts to bring 

science into the park management picture were 

strongly supported by then Director Horace Albright, 

was kllled m an automobile accident. together with Yellowstone Supt. Roger Toll, as they headed home from 

a research assignment pail of a U.S.-Mexican Border 

CornmIssIon. Conrad Widh, then Assistant D~rectorol 

the Park Service. also was a member01 that Comma% 

SlOn. 

Together with Ben Thompson and Joseph Dixon, 

Wright authored the precedent-sefllng report Fauna 

of the Naf~onanai Parks offhe Un~fedSfafes. the first of a 

sews that continues today under the title sclentiflc 

monographs.’ In that report the authors stated: ‘The 

realization is coming that perhapsourgreatest natural 

heritage, rather than lust scenic features IS nature itself, with all Its complexity and Its abundance 01 kfe.’ 

They suggested that Americans might soon find that 

“awesome scenery‘ can be sterile Indeed without ~the 

lntlmate details of lkvlng things. the plants. theanimals 

that live on them, and the ammals that love on those 

antmals.’ 

It is the present intent of the Sowty to pick up sponsorshlp of the “science in the parks’ conferences 

heretofore sponsored biennially by the National Park 

Serwe, expanding their focus to Include natural and 

cultural parks and reserves from the local to the internattonal level. G~lbart stressed synthesis as a primary 

goal ollheSoc!ety-to bring togetherall relevantdlsciplmes from all the interlocklog levels of impact and 

management. the better to coordinate mformation exchange, research efforls, and educational dlsseminabon of results. 

This 193Sphoto was taken durfng the Mexican border trip ofthe Comm&ion to formuiatep/ans andpolicies for 

forest reserves and widirfe refuges. George Wught is at far fen nexf to a Dr. Be// of the Biological Survey (later the 

Fish and Wfidfife Service). Connie Wnth 6 ,n the center, newt to Roger Toll, third from nghf. Does anyone know the 

name.s of the other three men in the p~cfure 7 

14 
Bass Collection Bares 

Historic Concession Roots 

:ditor> Note: Royal Jackson, Associate Professor in 

be Depaltment of Resource Recreahon Management 

I, Oregon Stale Universrty, has recerved Unwers!(y 

unds for research-related travel and a grant from the 

XU Research Counnl for prekmmary cafatcguing, 

wnsewat;on and preparatk~n of a gurde lo the Bass 

:ollectron. The NPS CPSU at OSU has agrew’ to 

wbl6h the product, for the l!ght hlrf can shedon historic 

ourwn at one of the nal1oon3 most famous scemc 

reasures. Photographs are couliesy of Heritage As- 

:ocK?tes, Inc. 

By Royal G. Jackson 

An important historical c&ction brought to light recently by Heritage Associates. Inc., a pwate cultural 

resource consultmg firm, concerns the Bass family, 

which played a central role I” the history of the Grand 

Canyon National Park and the development of tourism 

in Arizona at the turn of the century The Bass Collactlon is an assemblage of documents, letters, manuscripts. photographs, diaries, books and memorabilia 

belonglog to the late Willlam G. Bass of Wickenburg, 

Anzona. 

Wllllam W. Bass came to Arizona lrom New York in 

1883 and in 1884 became one of the first sellers on 

the South Rim of the Grand Canyon. HIS orIgInal purpose in coming to the Canyon was mining and prospecting but he soon realized the tourist potential, built 

a stage road from Williams, Arizona, to hts camp on 

the rim 75 miles distant, and began to take tourists 

there in 1885. He continued to do this for the next 38 

years. In 1926. al the age of 77, he sold his holdings to 

the Santa Fe Railway. 

During his years at the Canyon, Bass built 140 miles 

of roads to connect his enterprises with transportation 

networks. more than 40 miles of trails wlthln the Canyon, and numerous dams, cisterns, and even a 10. 

acre garden and orchard on the north side of the Colorado River. Heeslabltshedaboatlerryacrossthe river 

and built the first cable crossing over the Colorado. He 

had several working mines in the Canyon and filed 

claims on many others. His wife, Ada, was the first 

wh~tewomantora~seafamilyonthesouthrim. Healso 

constructed numerous facilltles al what became 

known as Bass Camp, and at other locatIons. 

The first schoolhouseatthe GrandCanyonwasbuilt 

by Bass. A self-taught poet, miner, geologist, photographer and bustnessman, he had friends and guests 

who Included politicians, poets, writers, and photographers well-known in their day. Bass played an active 

role in the various legislative proposals affecting the 

Grand Canyon, from Ihe mltlal establishment of Grand 

Canyon Forest Reserve ,n 1892 until the creation of 

Grand Canyon National Park in 1919. 

Bass was a good friend of the Havasu Indians and 

often wsited them, alone or with tourist parlies. He 

gave them seeds and was Instrumental in having a 

school and post office established there. Heemployed 

someofthemfrom time to time and intercededon their 

behalf in Washington. HIS longstanding lrlendships 

w!th Sen. Henry F. Ashurst and Gong. Carl Hayden, 

both of Arizona, were helpful at such times. 

Bass’ wide ranging Interests, intellectual curiosity 

and desire to learn were qualities unique among the 

early tourist operators at the Grand Canyon. His 

guests appreciated tt and returned time and again, 

establishing lifelong friendships with him. George 

Wharton James, the prolific author of travel books and 

F.H. Maude, the noted landscape photographer were 

two who spent a great deal of time at Bass Camp. 

With some justllication Bass has been called a Visionary’ by some of his contemporaries. He not only 

foresaw someofthelaterdevelopmentsatthe Canyon 

but tooksteps toadlust to them. He builtstage roads to 

accommodate the tourists that were sure to coma with 

completion of the Atlantic-Pa& Railroad (the forerunner of the Atchison, Topeka 8 Santa Fe). He saw 

Bass Camp, on the Grand Canyon s south nm, IS the seftlng for this turn of fhe century photo. WiLm W Bass IS 

second from tight 

15 

the need for a spur line to the Grand Canyon and actively lobbied for Its construction, chairing the first organizatlonal meeting of the Grand Canyon Railroad at 

the town of Williams in 1894. 

He was qwk to recognize the importance of the 

automobile and the changes It would create in travel 

patterns: he welcomed the opportunity it presented to 

break the railroatis monopoly on Grand Canyon travel. Although he never learned to drive, he bought the 

first car for his business m 1914 and added others later 

on. 

Finally, as his Canyon years drew to a close, he 

dreamed of incorporating an airplane I” histourist business. Heshould not be faulted11 hedld notforeseethe 

problems that signs, automobiles, auplanes and an 

ever mcreasfng number of witors would create half a 

century later. 

When Fred Harvey was given the contract as the 

prtncipal concessioner at Grand Canyon National 

Park, m 1920, the days 01 the Bass tourist business 

werenumbered.The 71.year-oldBass had neitherthe 

energynorthe resourcestocompete wth Fred Harvey 

and the Santa Fe Railroad. In 1923 Bass entertained 

his last guest and the family mow to Wlckenburg. 

Three years later, in 1926, Bass sold his holdings tothe 

Santa Fe Land and Improvement Company. He died 

at Wickenburg in 1933, aged 84. In accordance with his 

last request, his ashes were deposIted by airplane on 

Bass Tomb, a prominent peak in the Canyon which 

commands a view of the %&on he explored. 

Although the name of WIlllam Wallace Bass is not 

unknown to people familiar with the history of Grand 

Canyon and northern Anzona, the wde range of his 

accomplishments has gone curiously unrecognized. 

This is understandable smce the western sectlon of 

Grand Canyon National Park, so closely associated 

with the name of Bass, IS not easily accessible and until recenllv the Bass Collection has been a rather 

closely guarded family treasure. 

Preliminary cataloqinq of this wllection resulted in 

the following: Sever@three books: 503 photographs 

identlfled andannotated by WllliamG. Bass; 129glass 

plate photographIc negatwes: over 500 nitrate negatives; some 400 hand tlnted glass transparencies and 

the projector for showing them; 200 stereographs; 

diaries of both William W. Bass and his wtfe Ada: hand 

and typewriden manuscripts of poetry and prose by 

William W. Bass; letters to and from Senator Ashurst 

and Congressman Hayden: correspondence with 

Fred Harvey and the Atchison, Topeka & Santa Fe 

Railroad: permits and mine location notices and other, 

miscellaneous documents: 19 hours of oral history 

with William G. Bassand Ed Kahle,aformeremployee 

of William W. Bass; and various Items of memorabilka. 

Stephen G. Mawr, President of Heritage Assoc&s, Inc.. IS sewing I” an adwary capactty to the 

Bass family concerning financial support for curatorial 

needsandfor IocattngasultablereposltoryfortheCollect~on. A broad program of research by “mo”s H.A., 

Inc. affiliates Include an oral hlstory of the Bass family 

and others who worked at the Grand Canyon during 

these early years, analyslsofdlariesand personalcorrespondence, location and documentation of Bass-related sites in the Canyon, and mvestlgations based on 

htstorcal photographic materials. A recently completed work based on the Collection IS Lisa Madsen’s 

thesis, The Grand Canyon Tourist Busyness of the W. 

Bass Family (Unwersity 01 New Mexico. 1980). 

The Bass Collection - a umque, irreplaceable resource. encountered in a dusty, and forgotten attic in 

the Wickenburo home 01 BIII Bass - orowdes a DIICBless opportunity to open up an hithe& neglected area 

in the history of Grand Canyon National Park and 

northern Arizona. In a larger context, It offers valuable 

iwghts into someaspectsof life Inturn-ol-the-century 

Amerw.. No other collection related to Grand Canyon 

hIstory, can match the variety and slgniflcance 01 the 

mater& found in these papers. 
THE MAB PROGRAM: What It Means 

To The World And To NPS 

By William P. Gregg, Jr. 

Inessence, MAB~sawayolapproachmg problemsthatrecognlzesthe lntlmate 

interrelatunship that exists among natural ecosystems, human behawr and 

value systems. and the advancemenl of human clviltzation. It takes full cogn~zante of a world lncreaslngly dominated by our human species, which alone passenses theinteliigencetosuslain the world lndeflnlielyartoalter, perhaps forever, 

lis resource-providing ability. MAB operateson the premise that an understandmg 

of these relationshtps must underlle any attempt at problem management. 

Most institutions, governmental and non-governmental, have beenestablished 

to pursue sectorial objectives and theirsuwival dependson how well these usually short-term objectives are achieved. Gwen this framework, mstltutions tend to 

cooperate wth one another only to the extent they can do so without appearing to 

campromisethetrobfectlves. Thelong-term public lnterestafientakesa back seat 

to the sholt-term interests of tndiwdual Institutions, especially If these are able to 

control allocation of material and fiscal rasourcas. Yet national governments and 

intergovernmental organizations like the United Nations are duty-bound to furlher 

the broad public mteresi in ways that satisfy immediate material and so% needs 

without compromising the future. Few would disagree that the track record in this 

direction has been less than exemplary. Despite enormous material productivity 

thequal~tyofhumanl~feinmuchoftheworldatteststhefailureoftrad~t~onalinstitulions to deal with population growth, environmental pollution. mismanagement of 

natural ecosystems, and Inequitable distrlbullon of resources. 

To deal with such growmg disasters in numbers and on a scale unprecedented 

in the history of the human race will require balanced problem-solving 

approaches, the necessary first step to which is more and better Information. 

Without such inform&on, problem-solwng becomes guesswork, bias enters the 

picture, and mlslakes are too frequently assured. In addition. Information must be 

avaIlable at the right time and tn intelltgibie form if it is lo be used effectively. 

MAB RATIONALE 

MAB was established 10 years ago by the United Nattons Educational, Social 

and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) to improve the use of the natural and social 

sciences in helping governments deal wh growing enuronmenfal and rasourca 

management problems. It developed m a cltmate of helghiened public awareness 

that these problems, leff unchecked, would threaten the well-betng of human civilIzabon, 11 not its very suwival. This same climate heralded a new U.S. era of governmental concern and the creation of new laws and institutions to protect the 

enwonment and prevent hazards to the health and well-being of people. It also 

resulted in a new awareness of the need to balance envtronmental, soctal, and 

economic considerations in reaching decisions. 

The National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) of 1969setthetone. II required 

Government lo ~utillze a systematic, interdisciplinary approach which will unsure 

the integrated use of the natural and swial sciences and the environmental desIgnarts I” planning and dewion making which may havean impaclonman’senvlronment.’ The essence of MAB is 10 help provide the government-connected 

scientlflc support necessary to implement this p&y, at all levels Including the 

global scale. fl is the science~government tie that offers the next toehold by which 

rational, science-based intelligence may further penetrate the publ!c deasionmaking process. 

ROOTS IN THE IBP 

Many of the people involved in MAB’s early planrung also were involved in the 

lnlemational Biological Program (IBP), the ftrst international effort to apply the 

principles of the rapidly evolving sclance of ecology toward improwng our understandmg of how the worlds major ecosystems are structured. how they utlltze 

energy, and how they metabolize the chemical constituents of the environment. 

Although IBP is now hIstory 11s ~big biology” approach firmly established the 

ecosystem as a basic unit of study in ecology, supplementing the traditional emphasis on populattons and communities. In so doing, it gave us a new conceptual 

framework for assessing natural and human-caused changes and new tools for 

land management, many of them involving use of the computer. 

In some respects, MAB IS the successor to IBP. However, it doffers impottantly 

in 11s strong problem-solvingowntation (vs. IBPsemphaw on basicsludles); its 

focus on the Interplay between natural rasourcas, human activities, and human 

value systems (vs. IBPs pradomlnant emphasis on natural systems); and the involvement of both the sctentlfic community and the osers of sctentiflc information 

- patilcularly government administrators at all levels of organlzaiion (vs. IBPs 

management by scientists.) 

Thus. although MAB has roots in IBP and deals with many of the issues that 

misslon-ortented institutions do, it is one of the few scientific organizations in 

the world that operates as a vofuntaly cwperative effort between govemment agencies and the scientific community. It exlsls for the primary purpose 

of enablmg effective communication between scientists of different dw@xas 

and between scientists and decisionmakers. 

16 

UNIQUE ORGANIZATION 

MABs global program IS gwen general dIrectIon by an International CoordinatIng Council (ICC), which meets annually to review accompllshmenis, recommend 

pnorities. and coordinate actlwties. It contains representatives from UN organizatlons [such as FAO and UNEP), nongovernmental organizations (such as the 

IUCN). and some of the national MAB committees from participating countries. 

These committees, now operating in 101 nattons, constst of swntists, government oftiaals, and conservation organization representatives. They operate 

autonomously wlthln the broad ICC framework, and often cooperate on regIonal 

and global scientific and education prefects of common Interest. 

The ICC has establlshed 14 MAB project areas: 1 through 7 deal with thestruclure, function, and resource management problems of the world‘s mafor natural 

ecosystems; 9 through 14 deal with human influence on these ecosystems. Project B-perhaps most activeand visible al present -deals wth theconselvatlonof 

genetlc and ecological resources and establlshmenl of a global system of Biosphere Resews for long-term monitoring and problem-onenfed research. 

In the U.S.! dlreciorates have been esiabllshed for 12 of the 14 MAB prefects. 

Similar situations twst in the Sowet Union, the Federal Republic of Germany, and 

other countries. Day-to-day administration IS performed by MAB secretariats. A 

small secreiar~at within the U.S. National CornmIssion for UNESCO at the Stale 

Department provides financial and admu?stratwe supportto the MAB directorates 

for help in research, publications. worksho s etc. 

In the U.S , as m most countries, Federa Pa agencies are the lifeblood of MAB. Its 

ability to support b&r management depends upon the willingness of these 

agenclas to participate in planning and developing projects and to contrIbute toward their financing. Support for MAB has grown steadily. The 35.member U.S. 

Nattonal Committee now contains representailves from 10 Federal agencies; 

addltlonal membership on MAB directorates brings Federal agency participation 

to 19. Nearlv all U.S. aaencles reswnslblefornatural resource manaaement and 

enwonme~tal proiectionare takln’gpart\n thedevelopmentof MAB, b$partictpation in the fundIng IS less universal. 

FINANCIAL SUPPORT 

Federal agenw can support MAB in three ways F~rsi, through internal means 

such as direct funding of MAB publications, workshops, etc.! or by allocating personnel to be used by MAB m furihering an agency’s misston; second. through 

financial or personnel asststance to the U.S.-MAB Secretariat or to the international Secretariat in Pans: third, by supporting the MAB Consortium. which 

awards researchgrantsforprojectsthat furtherthemissionsofparticipatingagenties and MAB project directorates. 

The Department of State, the Forest Service and NPS have been the principal 

agenws stafhng and fundlng the U.S. MAB Program. The Department of State 

provides ofhce space and funding for the MAB Secretariat and funds for MAB 

workshops, pubhcations and research through the directorates. The Forest Sew 

ice ptowdes funding, details a full-time position to the Secretariat. and presently is 

the major contributor to the Consoti~um. The NPS has long supported all of MABs 

institutions. Between 1973 and 1978, It detailed a p&on to the MAB Secrelarlat 

m Paristo help develop the Biosphere Reserves project. In 1979, tt establIshed a 

MAB Cwrdlnator p&on in the Washington office to promote use of MAB within 

the Serw? and other bureaus, to plan and coordinate MABs Biosphere Reserves project. and lo work with field offices tn developing strategic wance prograins for the NPS-adminlsierad Biosphere Resewes. Since 1975, the Service 

has directly supported domestlc and mtemational workshops related to develop. 

ment and scientllic use of the MAB Biosphere Reserve network, and lo various 

joint NPS-MAB publtcatlons. In FY 1981, the NPS supported both Secretariatadmimstered projects and the Consortium. Funds from MAB’s three pnncipal supporters, plus .some addItIonal funds. gave U.S:MAB a total operating budget of 

about $930,000, enough lo conduct stgnlficant work but hardly sunicient to make 

MAB a major influence m today’s major resource management decisions. 

NEW OPPORTUNITIES 

In 1979, the Forest Service entered a partnership with MAB by establishing a 

consortium linking theagencywlth several MAB project directorates. The purpose 

IS to award relatively long-term grants for the kinds of research not easily carried 

out by the agency Itself. Particular emphasis IS placed on multidisciplinary, problem-oriented research dealing with the interplay behveen human actiwties and 

natural ecosystems and oHen mvolving collaboratton behveen mvesiigatots lntwo 

or mote countries. (The Consortium, in these cases, pays for the U.S. side of the 

project.) 

The intent is to focus scientific attention on problems of interest to the Forest 

Salvice and thereby to develop new approaches to complex forest management 

problems of regional, natIonal, and international importance. The Consortium 

thus provides a new avenue for research fundlng, and for the Forest Service an 

opporlunity to m~prove the coverage and impact of its research program. By pro- 
I 

~ 

vldlng peer review of submitted proposals, 

search and maximum problem.solwng effect. 

MAE helps assure high quality reIn March 1979 Office of Management and Budget (OMB) and the Offtce of 

Science and Technology P&y issued aloint memorandum supporting the MAE 

concept and assigned responslbllity for International coordlnatlon to the Departmentof Siateandfordomesticcoordination totheDeparimentsof Agricultureand 

the Iniet~or. The memo directed variws Federal agencres to work together on a 

plan lor developing and using MAB‘s capablllty. To Implement the memorandum 

at lnterlor, the Secretary awgned lead responsibility to the Assl. Sec. for Fish 8 

WIldlIfe & Parks and he encouraged and provided overstght for MAB development. 

In 1980, NPS, Hertlage Conservation and Recreation Service (HCRS) and the 

L!.S., Fish and Wildlife Service (USFWS) strengthened theu suppolt of MAB by 

slgnlng the Consodium Charter, which conlams a provision that signatories WIII 

provide fundlng to the extent of IheIr ability The three bureaus together matched 

the contribution of the Forest Setwe I” FY 1980 and planned todosoagain in FY 

1981, although USFWS wthdrew support at theeleventh hour because01 budget 

cutbacks. 

In the pasttwo years, 26prqects totallingatnut $1 milllon have been funded by 

!he Consortium. The malority of projects &-rest mote than one agency, enhancIng the overall cost effectiveness. In FY 1981, 7 of the 10 funded projects were 

relevant to the NPS miwon, and 4 are being carried out wholly or parLIly I” NPS 

Biosphere Reserves. Since NPS provtdes only 21 percent 01 the funding, the 

Serwe mvestment IS expected to be highly cost effective. 

A good probability is that State’s Agency for International Development (AID) 

WIII join the Consortium, substantially increasing funding and providing additIonal 

suppofl for bllaleral projects. Some 01 these will likely be cooperawe projects involvlng NPS biosphere reserves. Atlhlswntlng,although lndlvldualagencycontributlons fluctuate. the trend seems to be toward progresswely lncreaslng agency 

support. 

THE GRANT PROGRAM 

All natural and social scientists, I” and out of Government, are eligible to compete for Consortturn research funds. However, in FY 1982, Federal employees 

WIII be required to develop proposals cooperatwely with one or more scientists in 

prwate institutions; the Consorilum will make no awards to Federal agencies. 

Grants wll be for periods of up to three years in amounts not to exceed $60.000 

total. The grants WIII be for problem-oriented research, for resource inventowes 

and monitoringundertakenaspartofsuchresearch,aswellasfor~nnovat~vesyntheses of scientific Information focused on major current resource management 

p&y issues. Preparation of plans. guidelines, handbooks, and slmllar nonresearch proposals will not be considered. 

FY 1982 guidelines for grant applications are available from the Regional 

Chief Scientists. The deadline for submission of proposals to the MAB 

Secretariat is January 29. Awards will be made in June 1982. 

THE MAB ARGUMENT 

The MAB Program, as typlfled by the Consortium. IS dedicated to effective use 

of nattonal and international swntific and resource management capabillttes to 

address problems of interest to domestlc Federal agenaes. It IS not a foreign asslstance program; it IS not in any way controlled by mlemational organizations. It 

does not require contributing agencies to lose control of their funds. 

On the contrary, MAB provides a way for agencies to buy into a cost effective 

approach IO solving problems through cooperation. It provides a means to develop new methods and perspecwes with lmporiant bearing on future policies and 

operations. It providesa reasonablecountweighttotheoverwhelming tendency 

~ to focus scientlilc and management ati~wbes on immediale or short-term problems-o~enwhenit~seithertoolatetosolvetheproblemortoocostlytoanordthe 

solution. Through a small investment, MAB can focus the collective wdom of 

government, resourcemanagers and scientists inways thatcan bolsterourconfldence and help us face up to the immense problems immediately ahead. 

BIOSPHERE RESERVES 

The benefits of science in supporling wise stewardship depend increasingly on 

how well we are able to understand complex cycles and trends, to comparethese 

cycles and trends in selected locations, and to predict the effects of alternative 

land management and development policies. Because of the rapid pace of landscape alterations, our options are fast being foreclosed. Dec~stons on where we 

intend to collect baselme ecological data to support such scientifically based 

stewardship must be made quckly. 

Btosphere Reserves and other protected research sites will play lncreasingiy 

Important roles as focal points lorscientlficsiudies. The 193 Reserves designated 

la date by UNESCO in 50 counlries constitute the only intematlonally recognized 

system of conservation areas that have a common mIssion to carry out long-term 

research on the mterrelationshlps between human actlvitlesand theworld’s major 

ecosystems. 

The Ideal Biosphere Reserve consists of a large conservation area (or core 

zone) for long-term baseline monitoring and one or more adjoining buffer zones 

where experimental manipulations may be scientifically studled and compared 

with thecoe In the U.S.,thlscond~tion has beendifflculttoachieve. and the U S 

n~tworkconsequentlycons~stsof Reservesmanagedprimarllyforonepurposeor 

the olher Most of the nation’s major biomes have at least one Reserve of each 

type. but they are far from adequate!o represent the dlverslty work site requirements within major biomes 

MAB has begun a system&c effori to evaluate potential sites m each blame 

and complete the U.S. network by 1984. no small task. Most of the 36 exwng 

U.S. Biosphere Reserves are managed by the NPS (15) and the Forest Setwe 

(14). Quallfytng Federal sites do not exist for many of the still unrepresented ecosystem types, and future expansion will have to focus more on sites under state, 

local, and private admimstration. Biosphere Reserves consisting of multiple sites 

under the same or different administrators are likely to become the rule A precedent for this type of reserve was set recently by the nomInalIon of Ihe 12.unit Big 

Thicket Nattonal Preserve. 

The NPS’s Biosphere Reserves ate large, natural areas, most of which have 

long hlstorles of momioring and research, In-house scientists and resource management speclallsts. and some sclentificsuppo~tacil~tles. Allarebesel bythreats 

-an average of 35 per Reserve, according to the 1980 State of the Parks Report. 

They represent exceptional sites for long-term baseline studies, for research and 

development projects I” ecosystem mod&g, resource wenlory, monitoring. 

research and data management: for professlonal tralnlng and public education 

relating to major enwonmental Issues, and for cooperative actlvitles with other 

agencies and bilateral projects with other nations. 

In the last few years we have begun Ihe groundwork for these kinds of actions 

by sollclting the broadest possible involvemenl from the sclentifc community and 

other agencies to develop programs lor the Reserves. 

PROTOTYPE STUDY 

In August 1980. a prototype study was begun in Greal Smoky Mountains NP 

Biosphere Reserve to develop a comprehenwe assessment of available data 

bases, facilities. existing and planning research, and opportunities for Intertnstitutlonal cooperation to detect and deal wth ecosystem management problems. The 

Setwe contracted wth Southern Appalachian Research and Resources Management Cooperative, a linkage of Federal agencies and southeastern uwersittes. to prepare a four-phase assessment, completed I” October 1981. An 

annotated blbllography for the park and its Immediate vicln~iy was developed; a 

prellmmary summary of the coverage, methods, and importance of avaIlable litetature ?n parl~cular subjects was prepared and the package was sent to leadmg 

authomesfot revjew and recommendations. 

The overall effort mvolved more than 90 scientists and provided a comprehensive, updatable reference on sclentlflc activity in the park, as well as a framework 

for developing a phased, balanced wance program. Similar assessments are 

planned in FY 1982 for Isle Royale. Glacier. Channel Islands, and Organ Pope 

Cactus Biosphere Reserves. lnltlal asswmenis are bung funded by the NPS 

Washmgton office. in cooperation wth reglonal and park staffs and wll be used 

with resources management plans to support programming of work from both 

WAS0 and field sources. 

Progress on other fronts includes elaborate pollutant monitortng in the Great 

Smoky Mountain and Olympic Biosphere Reserves, and ecosystem modelmg as 

a management tool. Major bilateral protects are underway or planned with Canada, Mexico, and the Sowet Union. Cooperative programs are operating between 

the Olympic and Cascade Head Bwsphere Reserves I” pollutant monitoring and 

between the Great Smoky Mountains and Coweeta Reserves in nutwent cycling 

and wild boar ecology. Public communication was the sublect of a MAB workshop 

in July 1981, and recommendations to improve the use of the Reserves in prwding mformatlon will be avaIlable soon. 

GENETIC DIVERSITY 

Two major MAB-sponsored conferences being convened to address thegrowIng problems relating lo ConseNatlon of genetlc resources are discussed in detail 

elsewhere in this ISSUB. 

The workshops bring together for the flrst time al the natmnal level swntds 

and managers to develop the basis for dealing with what may be the most slgn& 

cant problem facing the world for the remalnderofihts century. Theall but certatn 

need for more active management of genetic resources and environments 10 prevent extlncilons, to remtroduce exilrpated species, and to ma&m the vigor of 

plant and animal species will have profound lmpllcatlons for NPS polnes and 

management techniques, not to mention the impacts on our relatlonshlps with the 

publlc. 

MAB is facilitating caoperatlon between the NPS and other institubons, both 

domesttcally and mternatlonally, by using wence to address problems of common interest. By providmg access to vast mterdlwplinary sclenilfic resourcas. 

MAB can substantially augment NPS p&y-making and problem-solving capabllity. Biosphere Reserve status WIII increasingly draw sclentilic attention to our 

finest park units, encourage their evolul~on into world centers forlmprovmg knowledgeof naturalecosystems, and assurathelrsustainedconservatlonfortheoverall advancement of human CIVIIIZB~IO~. 

Gregg IS MAB Program Coordaaxandth;s art;& IS backgroundto MAB Notesa sometime feature of Park Science. 

I7 
I 

Gene Preservation Occasions 

Pair Of Conferences 

Two related meetings on biological dwslty have 

beenscheduled lOmonthsap%~n Washmgton. D C., 

begInnIng with the U S. Strategy Conference on biological diversity Nov. 16-18, 1981, co-sponsored by 

the Department of State and AID, and continuing Aug. 

9-13, 1982, wth a5-day lnlemat!cnal Symposiumand 

Wcrkshoo on the accl~cal~cn of aenetics to the management of wild pIa& and animal populations 

The Strategy Conference WIII seek to prowde gw 

dance to the U.S. qcvemment on how to proceed domestically and through mtemational channels to promote the maintenance of blcloglcal dlverslty 

Vernon C GIlbert, who IS coordlnaling conference 

proceedings. described the a~mns: 

-to reww the scope. magnitude and sources of 

worldwde plant and animal species losses: 

-1cassesstheeconomlc. social. ecological, p&Cal 

and strategic lmplicatlcns to the U.S. and other ccun. 

tries of a conlinulng decline in species dwrslty, palttcularly as it may relate to world food supply, energy demand, and industrial output; 

40 Identify and evaluate technologies, institutions 

and sclenliflc knowledge avatlable for consewlng blological dwerslty: 

-to reww the nature and eHectlveness of U.S. government domestic and lntematlcnal policies and programs; and 

-to recommend ~n~tlatlves the U.S. should undertake lo stimulate and awst an expanded worldwtde 

efiorl in this area. 

The rapid dwlndllng ol genetic rescu~ces, world. 

wide, could reach r”,nc”s proport~cns I” the short 

spaceof afew human generations. Gilberi said. Anmportant means of wrrectlng this sltuatlcn would be to 

mcrease the numbers of nat~cnal parks, reserves and 

pm&ted areas and to ~mprcve the management 01 

the blologlcal rescurces mtheseareas. This WIII belhe 

subject of the second conlerence. in 1982. 

ChrIstIne M Schonewald.Cox, blcloglst I” the 

WAS0 natural wence dlvwor and Sympcwm 

Chairman. says: “The purpose of the second conference 1s to transfer new knowledge and technology to 

the field of blologlcal resources management in order 

to ~mprcve the long term success and fiscal etflctency 

cl b~cloglcal rescurces managemenl programs. An 

addlticnal am 1s to shoti-cu1 the decades it normally 

takes for such lnformatvx to loller from academic clrcles to the remote field locations where blolcglcal resources management actually takes place. 

‘The importance of genetIc data m promoting the 

health and adaptability of populatlcns has been virtually unrecognized except I” crop and livestock production. where management goals are less complex and 

more lkmlted in scope,~ SchonewaldCox pomts cut. 

Recent developments, she mantalns, have made it 

easier to genetIcally characterize populations so that 

managers can consldergenetlcfactors along with other data in maklng management decwons. 

The symposium and workshop WIII provide perspecwe on the potential for managing the genetics cl biological rescu~ces. It WIII address specifIcally the problems associated with the management of wild animal 

andplantpopulations, prlmarllyinthetemperatezcne. 

The mcreasing isolation cl the protected areas where 

these populatlcns sIIII exist WIII be considered as such 

~sclat~cn mterleres with histcrlcal patterns of movements and mlgrallcns between pcpulat~cns. 

Other topics to be dwussed Include species declines, extinctions. the founding of new populat~cns, 

the mergmg of separaled pcpulatlons, and the malntenance cl natural diversity among populatlcns and taxcncmlc”nlts. 

owe expect the sympcwm to ldentlfy gaps I” cur 

knowledge. and to develop recommendatlcns for I”- 

ter~m management pracl~ces that could be implemented ~mmedtaleiy.” Schonewald-Cox said. ‘The shape 01 

future studies also should emerae as we tdentlfv adverse condltlcns and trends knoi;n lo be occurring 01 

anticipated I” protected areas.‘ 

Each of the five conference days will feature acnetopic sectton. where advances I” knowledge and lechniques will be presented from the perttnent academic 

and applied fields. These presentatlcns will be fcllowed by explcratlcn of the relevance and feasibility of 

this mformatlcn for rescurce managers. Llmltatlcns 

and advantagesof diagnostlcmethodslorreccgn~zlng 

problems and subjects for additional research will be 

discussed and summarized, mcludlng the testing of 

hypotheses m the field 

The conference wind-up wll consist cl formulatmg 

rascurcas management Inlliallves. policy lnitlatlvesfor 

state and federal governments. and recommendattcns for additlcnal research. 

Sect~cn topics for days one to five will be: the isolatlcn of populat~cns, the extlncticn of populations. Ihe 

foundlog of new populatlcns, the merging of naturally 

disconnected pcpulat@ns, and presew,ng the natural 

diversity cl populat~cns and taxcncmlc units. 

Speakers WI! Include botanists. zoologists. genetlcists, blcgeographers, systemalists. field rascurce 

managers, w~ldllle blcloglsts. and lndwtdualsengaged 

m genew research and application from the lields of 

agnculture. holllculture and silv~culture. 

The audwce WIII be Individuals who hold field management and policy formulating pos~ttcns in state. federal and mtematicnal agencies or organizations that 

have an wrest in n&al resources management. 

Editors Nole: /is hard to arouse public enthusfasm for 

saving questfan marks. The, whole question of what 

might exrst I” vanehmng habitats - whatmight be d!sappeanng forever before we can explore its possrble 

future uses - IS a d6licult concern to se/l. It can therefore be newed as serendipAx6 that the object 01 the 

Squibb lnstitutej woridmde search tor a substance 

that will battle penulkn-resistant infections seems to 

have fumedup!” theSqurbb/abSown backyard- the 

Jersey P~nne Barrens 

In a sorl sample from the moist forest land that 

covers 1 1 million acres of southern New Jersey. 

sc~enbsts at/&t founda bactwum thatgave them the 

structural clue they needed to produce a new kmd of 

monobactam - one whose srngular molecular structure is resulting I” a new c/ass of antfbrotrcs that IS not 

easrly neutralized by bacteria able to deacbvate penrnilrn and other groups of anhbrohcs. 

(Monobactam is shorthand for morxxyckc beta-iactam. which doffers markedly tram the brcyckc beta-lactam structure 01 pemnik” - a compound frrst recogwed n fungr.) 

Squibb scwv~sts spent hvo years screenrng more 

than a m!bn soil samples from all over the world, 

looking for the chemical configuratIons m nature they 

could work with to produce ettecbve synthebcpharmaceutica/s. The designation by Congress 01 the Pinelands Natfonai Reserve was see” by Richard B. 

Sykes, chelmrcrobrologist at!heSqurbb Institute, asa 

large factor in the presewabo” ot the reqwedpattern 

for combatt!ngpremature human death. 

“Our drscover;es have always come from soli samples taken tram places such as the Puxlands and the 

Great Swamp @so m New Jersey and also protected) 

where there IS Bttie or no @iution. ” he said. addmg 

that a relahvely unsporied envionmenf permrts a tremendous variety of life forms to flourish. whereas the 

“umber of specres 1” a polluted ecosystem narrows 

consrderably. 

Extinctions 

Editors Note: Harvard Magaztne in its January 

February ISSUB. 1980, asked “What is the most rmportant problem facing this n&on or the world at lhe sfarl 

01 the decade and what resolubns should we be makmo to deal rnth~t?’ The foilowmo reolvcame lrom E.O. 

&on. author ofSonob~oiogy~“ddthermonumental 

works ofsc~enhtfc research: 

“Permit me to rephrase the question as follows: 

What event llkelv to ccc”, ,n the 1980s will cur descendants most iegrel, even those living a thousand 

years lrcm now? My opinlcn IS not convent~cn, although I wish it were. The worstthlngihat can happen 

- WIII happen -IS not energy depletlcn, economic ccllacse. l~m~tednuciearwar,crconouest bvatotalitarian 

g&ernment. As terrible as these’catasirophes would 

be for us they can be repalred wlthln a lew genera. 

t~cns. The one process cnqclnq in the 1980s that will 

take mlllkcns of years to c&reci IS the loss cl genetic 

andspecmsdwersity by thedestruct~onofnatural habitats This isthefollycurdescendants are lea-4 llkelyto 

forgIve us. 

“Spews extinctlcn IS now accelerating and will 

reach ruinous proporl~cnsdurmglhe next20ye.w No 

one IS sure of the number of loving species of plants 

and animals, inciudlng such smallerformsasmcsses, 

insects, and minnows. but esilmates range between 

five and ten million. Aconser~attveestlma(eof thecurrent ext~nct~cn rate IS one thousand species a year. 

mostly due to the accelerating destrucllcn of tropical 

forests and other key habltals By the late 1980s the 

figure could easily we to 10,000 spwes a year (one 

species per hour) and it is expected to accelerate fur18 

ther through the 1990s. Duilng the next30 years. fully 

1 millIon species could be erased. The currenl rate IS 

already by la the greatest I” recent geologIcal hatory 

it IS vastly higher than the rate of production of new 

spews by natural evolution. Furthermore. many 

unique forms that emerged slowly ever mIllions of 

years wtll disappear. In cur own liletlme humanity WIII 

suffer an locomparable loss in aesthetic value. practlcal benefltfrcm blologtcal research. and worldwtdeenvlrcnmenial stabllIty. Deep mmes of blolcglcal dwew 

ty wtll have beendug out andd~scardedcarelessly and 

mcldeniallyln theco”rsecfenv~ionmenial explcitatlcn 

without cur even knowing fully what they contalned 

“This impoverishmenl cannot be halted during the 

198Os, but it can be slowed. We need to shift the emphases of ccnservat~cn from the temperate zcne to the 

Ircpics, from the preservation of Isolated star speaes. 

such as the harpy eagle and Indian white rhinoceros. 

to the entre ecosystems m which they live A mere 

powerful, global conservalion ethic should be culttvated. The endemic plants and animals of each n&x 

should be treated bv tts cltlzens as cad of their henlage. as precious asihelr art and hlstbry When national leaders such as former president Daniel Obuder 

Qu~rcs of Costa Rica have the courage to advance the 

preservat~cn of ecosystems wlthln Ihe~rdoma~ns. they 

should be accorded mtematlcnal honors up to and I”- 

cludlng the Nobel Peace Prize. in recogmtlon of the 

very great contributions they make, not just to their 

own generatlcn buttc generallonsaslar~ntoIheluture 

as it IS powble to Imagine: 
Information Crossfile 

The July 1981 issue of Courrer, NPS Newsletter, 

came5 a piece by Park Technlclan John Ape1 on prescribed burning as a method of clearing a Gulf States 

Ultl~t~es right--of-way in the Big Thicket National Preserve The fwe plan. successlully camed out I” March 

1981, was wrltlen toobtaln a hot, slowgroundfirethat 

would kill loblollypmesapl~ngs and woody shrubs, and 

would reduce ground litter. It would not kill most of the 

larger long-leaf pine growing under the powrimes. 

These seed trees will be cut oul individually as they 

grow to within 15 feet of the lines. Success of Ihe first 

burn indicates that prescribed fire will be an Imp&n1 

management practice for all pipeline and power line 

rights-of-way that crisscross the 12 widely scattered 

““Its 01 Big Thicket, according to Apel. 

*=a 

I” Foresfry Research West, June 1981, an arbcle 

on ‘Using blologlc organisms to test waterquality”de- 

!ails the methodology by which these organisms can 

mdlcate lake and stream water quality 8111 Fowler. 

principal meteorologlst for the Pacific Norihwest 

Forest 8 Range Experiment Stallon’s Wenatchee 

(WA) lab, dewbesthe newopporlunities this system 

opens up to managers of forested areas. Detailed 

lnformatlon aboul the research can be had from WI& 

llam B. Fowler, Forestry Sciences Lab. 1133 N. Wesiem Ave., Wenatchee, WA 98801. FTS 390.0315, 

(509) 662.4315. 

*%* 

“Federal Funding of Basic Research: The Red 

TapeMill” byH.S. GutowskyintheMay8.1981 lssueof 

Snence discusses the “admlnrstratlve burden assoelated with federal support of researchat universilles,’ 

much of which % viewed as unnecessary and countetproductlve by thescientists and admlmstrators who 

must bear the lo& Topics covered Include oro~ecl 

w?rsus programmatic support, Ihe indirect &g&e. 

accountability, federal regulations, and the bureaucraw syndrome. 

*** 

Forecologists~nterested~n patternsofspeciesdistrlbutton and the “deterministic vs. the stochastic approach’ (the assembly of species into commun~bes as 

a lunctlon of interspeciflc competition vs. a random 

process): the Bullftin of the EcologIcal Society of 

Americas Spring issue (March 1981) contains a 

tongue in cheek piece by Peter Feinsmger, Robert J. 

Whelan and Richard A. K~lt~e. (University 01 Flonda) 

tilled Some Notes on Community Composition: Assembly by Rules or by Dartboards?” Using J.S. Bach’s 

Prelude to the ilrst Suite for Unaccompanied V~oloncello (Malkin 1918) the authors attempt to determine 

whether the 12 lows distrlbutad over an archipelago 

of 42 insular measures were distributed by a struttured act of wmposltion or by some such random process as Bach’s blindfolded children throwing darts at a 

board full of musical notes. Usmg the simplest null hypotheslsandthechi-squaretestfor~ndepeodence,,he 

authors conclude that ‘Yhe effects of cornposItion are 

not demonstratedforthe Prelude atthisstage. Frankly 

wa suspect that musecologlsls have been overeager 

to lmpllcate cornpositIon lor other such data sets. We 

recommend re-examlnabon of spaws lists for larger 

archlpalagos such as Beethoven’s Fifth Symphony 

’ They concede however that ‘There is alternative 

evidence that cornposItIon does I” fact afieci mu& 

and pose a fInal question: “Does our result tell us more 

about an absenceof organizmgforces, orabouithe m. 

approprtateness of cerialn null hypotheses? 

A new Forest Service research and development 

program, ‘Old-growth Forest Wildlife Habitats.” was 

approved by the Pacific Northwest Region and recruiiment of a wildlife biologist to manage tiie program was 

authorized. The m~swn IS to provide answers about 

old-growth forest ecosystems, especially their role as 

wlldllfe habitat wesl of the Cascade Range in Oregon, 

Washington and Callfornla. The objective is to develop 

an lnformatlon base and mtegrate mformatlon mto 

gu~del~nesformanag~ngoldgrowth~naccordw~thw~ldIIfe h&tat reqwaments 

-* 

The Center for Information and Library Serwces, 

Office 01 InformatIon Resources Management, 

(OIRM), Depadmenl oflhe Interfor, hasaccess toover 

150 automated literature retrieval data bases. A summary of each of these systems IS available from Reed 

Phtlllps. Jr., Dlrector of OIRM, Dept. of the Interior, 

Washmgton, D.C. 20240. The charge to DI 1s for the 

time the terminal in the Library IS connected to the 

computer doing a search of the automated files. Connect time Ior most files IS $65 per hour. An average 

search takesabout 15mlnute~andcostsaboutS25.A 

38.page IIst of Ihe data bases to which the DI Library 

hasaccesscan be had from Ellen J. Cook, Chief; 01 LIbrary InformatIon Serwces. 

-=* 

A 97.page handbook, Agate Fossil Beds, published in May 1981 and wallable through Supertntendent of Documents, U.S. Government Printing Office, Washington, D.C. 20402 for $3 95, explores the 

history and slgniflcance of the rich natural archwe that 

IS now a national monument near the town of Agate, 

Neb. Fossils dating back 21 mlllion years and discowed accidentally I” 1878, indlcafe the area once 

hosted rhinoceros and camel-like creatures, threetoed horses and beavers that lived I” corkscrewshaped burrows. GPO stock number 6 024-005. 

00785.7. 

An article on ‘7he Saltnity of Rivers’ by Atthur F 

Pillsburym the July 1981 Sc~ent~~ccAmer~cananalyzes 

15 major river systems in the U.S. to see how the 

quantity of salts camed by a war at a given point IS related to the quantity of water that had entered the we, 

above that point. The 15 wars analyzed for a lo-year 

period carry the bulk of precfpitation that falls on the 11 

westernmost states and mcludes theColorado jaboul 

which Roy Johnson writes inthis issueon p, ??). Pillsbury considers various measures bemg taken to deliberately impede the flow of salts (0 the sea and finds 

that ‘lhe measures being planned and effectuated to 

accomplish this ideal are dangerous for the fulure.~ In 

this Ilndmg, he admits running counter to “the law 01 

the land, reflecting the demands of both enwronmentalists and water users.’ 

f 

Publication of a new journal Ior a wide, interdlsaplenary audience to deal exclusively with the conservatlon of natural areas disturbed by human activltles has 

beenannounced bytheUn~versttyofWisco”stn-MadIson Arboretum. 

The 40.page glossy journal, entltled Restoration 

and Management Notes 1s designed to encourage 

communlcatlon among people 1” areas ranging from 

mine reclamation and wIldlIfe ecology to lorestry and 

landscape architecture. Present plans are four issues 

annually lor $8. Those interested I” contributing or 

subscribing should contact Edltor WIlllam Jordan at 

the Arboretum. 1207 Seminole HIghway, Madison, WI 

53711. Phone (608) 263.7888. 

**, 

The Amencan Institute of B&jcal Sciences hour- 

“al. LX-Sc;ence, carries I” its October 1981 issue an 

artlck by Cowlmg and Llnlhurst on ‘7he Acid 

Precipltattoo Phenomenon and Its EcologIcal Consequences.” 

superintendents’ corner 

Editor’s note: The foliowmg hvopeces otconespondence came to us from Jim Thomson. Fort Vancouver 

NHS superintendenl, wth a cover note that ended 

“The important thmg is that the mformabon was made 

poss;bie by the pub/Won NI the news/.&r. so chalk 

one up for you!’ 

To James Thomson. Fort Vancouver NHS, Vancouver, WA, from Willlam N. Jackson, Superintendent, 

Fort Stanwix NM, Rome, NY 

~Dear Mr. Thomson: I justlinlshed readlng an article 

in PPS (Fall ‘80 issue) concerning decay of wood at 

Fort Vancouver. I amparl~cularly interesled I” learning 

more about the volatile fungicide prescribed by Prof. 

Robert Graham 01 Oregon State University to control 

11. Here at Fort Stanw we have perhaps the same 

kind 01 problem wth our wood and earihen tort. Fort 

Stanwix NM IS a completely reconstructed wood over 

concrete fort with earthen glacls. fra~se and pickets 

madeof yellow pine. Originally thlsfortwas built bythe 

French in 1758, and later rebuilt by American lorces I” 

1776 as a fronlier outpost, and it served as a very slg 

niflcant stronghold during the Revolution. This site 

was set aslde because of the role It played I” repulsing 

the slaga of Gen. Barry S1. Lager I” August 01 1777, 

and the outcome of this repulse led to the eventual 

capture of Gen. Burgoyne al Saratoga I” October of 

that same year. 

“ForiStanwixis knownas thefori that would “otsw 

19 

render. However, it may fall pray and surrender to the 

forcesof nature iftheeroslonanddecayproblem isnot 

stopped. The severity of the winters in this parl of the 

country (annual snowfall over 100 inches) has been 

delrlmental to this wooden fort, causing the pickets to 

decay much more rapidly than antiapated. I would ap 

preclate any inform&on you have on remedying or 

controlling this decay, or perhaps you can direct ma to 

someone that can help me.’ 

,“,,, ““,,,“” ,. 

“We appreciated very much hearing from you and 

knowing of the problems you have lhat are slmllar to 

what we have here I” the Pacillc Northwest. By now, 

we XQ~ Ime fhaf Prof. Graham has contacted you and 

hopefully given you some good advice abouithe potential for arresilng the spread of decay. 

owe havenot yet awardedlhecontract fortreatment 

of ourpallsade. but the bid opening IS this week. Work 

will be done after Labor Day, since It IS necessary to 

close the fori for a brief period to avold any powble 

contamination of humans from the gasses that might 

exude from the posts. We’ll let you know how il goes 

with fh- “..“,,.“,,. wn& and what results we observe after It has 

been done. We wish you well in overcommg the ero- 

$10” and decay so that Fort Stanw will not have to 

give up its distlnctlon of being the lori that never surrendered.”