Agate Fossil Beds National Monument Spatial Vegetation Data: Cover Type/Association Level of the National Vegetation Classification System

The National Park Service (NPS), in conjunction with the Biological Resources
Division (BRD) of the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS), has implemented a program
to "develop a uniform hierarchical vegetation methodology" at a national level.
The program will also create a geographic information system (GIS) database for
the parks under its management. The purpose of the data is to document the
state of vegetation within the NPS service area during the 1990's, thereby
providing a baseline study for further analysis at the Regional or Service-wide
level. The vegetation units of this map were determined through stereoscopic
interpretation of aerial photographs supported by field sampling and ecological
analysis. The vegetation boundaries were identified on the photographs by means
of the photographic signatures and collateral information on slope, hydrology,
geography, and vegetation in accordance with the Standardized National
Vegetation Classification System (October 1995). The mapped vegetation reflects
conditions that existed during the specific year and season that the aerial
photographs were taken (July, 1995). There is an inherent margin of error in
the use of aerial photography for vegetation delineation and classification.

The purpose of this spatial data is to provide the National Park Service the
necessary tools to manage the natural resources within this park system.
Several parks, representing different regions, environmental conditions, and
vegetation types, were chosen by BRD to be part of the prototype phase of the
program. The initial goal of the prototype phase is to "develop, test, refine,
and finalize the standards and protocols" to be used during the production
phase of the project. This includes the development of a standardized
vegetation classification system for each park and the establishment of
photointerpretation, field, and accuracy assessment procedures. Agate Fossil
Beds National Monument was designated as one of the prototype parks. The
monument is located in the high Great Plains. It contains prairie, hill, and
riverine environments, with vegetation types that include prairie grassland,
riverine woodland, and wetlands. The vegetation units were photointerpreted
from stereo-paired, natural color photography.

Agate Fossil Beds National Monument was created by the National Park Service on
June 5, 1965. The park occupies 4.5 square miles of land straddling the
Niobrara River in the middle of the Nebraska Panhandle. The park is noted for
its history, prehistoric fossils, and scenic quality. Historically, the park
was a part of the Agate Springs Ranch, owned by Captain James H. Cook. The park
has a collection of ranching and Native American artifacts and memorabilia as a
result of its donation from the Ranch. Paleontologically, the park contains a
number of Miocene fossil quarries that were excavated through the late 19th
century and early 20th century. From a scenic aspect, the park has views of
rolling hills, bluffs, and the Niobrara River floodplain. Ranching is also an
active part of the landscape. The park is located in the grassy rolling hills
of Western Nebraska. The park landscape consists of the east-west trending
cap-rocked northern and southern hills, with the treeless Niobrara River
floodplain running down the middle of the valley. The city of Harrison is
located 23 miles to the north, Mitchell is 34 miles to the south. State Highway
29 runs north-south through the western part of the park.

The Vegetation mapping was conducted in Agate Fossil Beds National Moument,
Nebraska with a 400 meter buffer.

A total of 39 plots were obtained from July 10 through August 15, 1995. These
plots were used by TNC to describe the vegetation associations found within the
park. These descriptions are in the companion report by TNC. Map Validation A
field trip was conducted in August of 1997 to assess the initial mapping effort
and to refine map class.

Information for this metadata was taken from
"http://biology.usgs.gov/npsveg/agfo/metaagfospatial.html" and converted to the
NASA Directory Interchange Format.

Another site to obtain the data is located at
Online_Resource: "ftp://ftp.cbi.usgs.gov/pub/vegmapping/agfo/agfo.exe".