Vegetation and soils monitoring data for Montezuma Castle National Monument, Arizona: 2010-2021 - internal

This dataset contains long-term monitoring data for terrestrial vegetation and soils for Montezuma Castle National Monument (2010-2021). Monitoring of terrestrial vegetation and soils provides information on several high-priority vital signs in parks of the National Park Service’s Chihuahuan Desert Network (CHDN) and Sonoran Desert Network (SODN) parks, including vegetation dynamics, plant lifeform abundance, status and trends of established invasive exotic plants, soil compaction, soil aggregate stability, soil cover (including bare ground), and biological soil crusts (biocrusts). Because vegetation and soils are closely interrelated, it is necessary to monitor them in conjunction with each other in order to achieve a more complete picture of ecological function. The overall goal of SODN/CHDN terrestrial vegetation and soils monitoring is to ascertain broad-scale changes in vegetation and dynamic soils properties in the context of changes in other ecological drivers, stressors, and processes, as well as focal resources of interest.

本数据集包含2010年至2021年期间蒙特祖马城堡国家纪念地（Montezuma Castle National Monument）的陆地植被与土壤长期监测数据。对陆地植被与土壤的监测，可获取美国国家公园管理局奇瓦瓦荒漠网络（Chihuahuan Desert Network, CHDN）与索诺拉荒漠网络（Sonoran Desert Network, SODN）下属公园内多项高优先级关键生态指标信息，涵盖植被动态、植物生活型丰度、已定植外来入侵植物的现状与趋势、土壤紧实度、土壤团粒稳定性、土壤覆盖度（含裸地）以及生物土壤结皮（biological soil crusts, biocrusts）。鉴于植被与土壤联系紧密，需对二者开展协同监测，以更全面地解析生态系统功能。索诺拉荒漠网络与奇瓦瓦荒漠网络的陆地植被与土壤监测的总体目标，是在其他生态驱动因子、胁迫因子与生态过程发生变化的背景下，探明植被与动态土壤属性的大范围变化情况，并聚焦目标关注资源。