Establishing a GLORIA monitoring program in Idaho - Progress Report

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Submitted files include: GLORIA 2017 Progress Report and Attachment 1 photos, both as PDF documents. <br>

The alpine zone represents an ecosystem at a climate extreme; one that is very temperature dependent and predicted to be a sensitive indicator to climatic changes (Pauli et al. 2015 and references cited within). GLORIA (Global Observation Research Initiative in Alpine Environments) is a program to establish and maintain a worldwide, long-term observation network for comparative study of climate change impacts on mountain vegetation and its biodiversity (Pauli et al. 2015). The GLORIA monitoring program aims to document vegetation changes over time in alpine environments using permanently monumented, multi-summit plots established across a low to high alpine elevational gradient. <br>

The first GLORIA plots were established in Europe in 2001. The program soon expanded to other continents to include locations in Asia, Africa, Australia, South America, and North America. In the United States, GLORIA plots are now established in several western states, including California, Montana, Wyoming, Colorado, and Nevada. None have been established in Idaho. <br>

GLORIA uses a standardized monitoring protocol with sampling and data collection taking place in a series of nested plots. All plot establishment and data collection methods are described in the GLORIA Field Manual (Pauli et al. 2015). Disturbance impacts associated with GLORIA are designed to be minimal, with data collection taking place in an area extending no farther than 10 meters below or 100 meters horizontal distance from each selected summit. Small monument stakes or paint markers are used to mark the plot corners to facilitate future repeat sampling. The protocol also includes installation of a set of small, self-contained soil temperature monitoring sensors buried at a shallow depth at each summit. The temperature data loggers have the capacity to record temperature hourly for up to five years. The multi-summit monitoring arrays are recommended to be resampled every five years, including downloading of the temperature data loggers. <br>

High elevation ecosystems in Idaho are important for watershed, wildlife, aesthetic, and many other values. Monitoring data collected using GLORIA provides a means to discern trends in species diversity and soil temperature needed to document, assess, and predict changes/losses in biodiversity and other threats to alpine ecosystems. The monitoring information can provide land managers and others interested in high elevation ecosystems a better understanding of the relationships linking climate change and to changes in alpine vegetation patterns and associated biodiversity. Monitoring and documenting changes can also serve to inform and guide potential conservation activities in local alpine environments. <br>

Early planning envisioned a two-year, two-phase approach to establish the GLORIA program in Idaho. The first phase in summer 2017 was used to complete some of the preliminary work needed to move the project forward. In 2018, the second phase is scheduled to include plot establishment and the collection of baseline GLORIA data. This progress report summarizes phase-one work completed in 2017. It also summarizes tasks that need to be completed in 2018 to make the establishment of GLORIA in Idaho a reality. The effort to establish a GLORIA monitoring program in Idaho has been, and will continue to be, a collaborative partnership that includes the U.S. Forest Service (USFS), Idaho Bureau of Land Management (BLM), U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (USFWS), Idaho Natural Heritage Program (IDNHP), and Mancuso Botanical Services. Other partners may be added to this list in the future.

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Reference Code: U18MAN03IDUS <br>

Full Citation: Mancuso M. 2018. Establishing a GLORIA monitoring program in Idaho - Progress Report. Mancuso Botanical Services, Boise, Idaho, p.14 pp. <br>

Location: ELECTRONIC FILE - BOTANY: OTHER <br>

Keywords: GLORIA, Global Observation Research Initiative in Alpine Environments, Idaho <br>