Case study: Assessment of long‐term rocky intertidal biodiversity monitoring at Cabrillo National Monument
Abstract Long‐term monitoring programs provide a historical understanding of ecosystems, which allows for well‐informed management decisions. However, designing long‐term monitoring programs requires the consideration of trade‐offs imposed by limited resources, balancing factors such as survey frequ...
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| Format: | Article |
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Wiley
2025-04-01
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| Series: | Ecological Solutions and Evidence |
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| Online Access: | https://doi.org/10.1002/2688-8319.70059 |
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| author | Christine C. Bonadonna Lauren L. M. Pandori Celia C. Symons |
| author_facet | Christine C. Bonadonna Lauren L. M. Pandori Celia C. Symons |
| author_sort | Christine C. Bonadonna |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | Abstract Long‐term monitoring programs provide a historical understanding of ecosystems, which allows for well‐informed management decisions. However, designing long‐term monitoring programs requires the consideration of trade‐offs imposed by limited resources, balancing factors such as survey frequency, taxonomic resolution and spatial scale. Well‐designed long‐term monitoring is especially important for protecting and preserving threatened ecosystems, such as the rocky intertidal zones. We performed a case study to assess and compare if and how three different monitoring program designs meet the program's goals in the rocky intertidal areas of Cabrillo National Monument (CABR) in San Diego, California. The survey designs differ in their taxonomic resolution, time and cost requirements. Specifically, we compared community composition captured by the two simultaneously run protocols: subjective fixed‐plot monitoring (SFM) and random fixed‐plot monitoring (RFM) in order to assess their ability to determine the status and trends in target invertebrate demographic parameters and provide a historical perspective to detect change. We found that CABR's SFM was the only protocol capable of detecting temporal trends in abundances of the six species of interest in smaller areas; however, RFM and full species inventory (FSI) are also needed to meet monitoring objectives at CABR. The ability to detect temporal trends is maintained by SFM even when limited to the same timepoints as RFM. We discuss the trade‐offs among different monitoring program designs to consider when implementing a new program. In this specific case, we conclude that CABR should bolster SFM and implement RFM on a more consistent basis. CABR would also benefit from performing FSI every 5–10 years or when financially possible. Practical implication. Long‐term monitoring programs benefit most from ensuring comparability across years and considering their specific goals during the design process. For CABR, this is best accomplished by focusing on its longest‐running program and including additional periodic monitoring program assessments to ensure they are still achieving their goals. |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj-art-493d72ecb91f49c4ba03ded0b8ddde22 |
| institution | Kabale University |
| issn | 2688-8319 |
| language | English |
| publishDate | 2025-04-01 |
| publisher | Wiley |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Ecological Solutions and Evidence |
| spelling | doaj-art-493d72ecb91f49c4ba03ded0b8ddde222025-08-20T03:28:56ZengWileyEcological Solutions and Evidence2688-83192025-04-0162n/an/a10.1002/2688-8319.70059Case study: Assessment of long‐term rocky intertidal biodiversity monitoring at Cabrillo National MonumentChristine C. Bonadonna0Lauren L. M. Pandori1Celia C. Symons2Department of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology University of California Irvine Irvine California USACabrillo National Monument, National Park Service San Diego California USADepartment of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology University of California Irvine Irvine California USAAbstract Long‐term monitoring programs provide a historical understanding of ecosystems, which allows for well‐informed management decisions. However, designing long‐term monitoring programs requires the consideration of trade‐offs imposed by limited resources, balancing factors such as survey frequency, taxonomic resolution and spatial scale. Well‐designed long‐term monitoring is especially important for protecting and preserving threatened ecosystems, such as the rocky intertidal zones. We performed a case study to assess and compare if and how three different monitoring program designs meet the program's goals in the rocky intertidal areas of Cabrillo National Monument (CABR) in San Diego, California. The survey designs differ in their taxonomic resolution, time and cost requirements. Specifically, we compared community composition captured by the two simultaneously run protocols: subjective fixed‐plot monitoring (SFM) and random fixed‐plot monitoring (RFM) in order to assess their ability to determine the status and trends in target invertebrate demographic parameters and provide a historical perspective to detect change. We found that CABR's SFM was the only protocol capable of detecting temporal trends in abundances of the six species of interest in smaller areas; however, RFM and full species inventory (FSI) are also needed to meet monitoring objectives at CABR. The ability to detect temporal trends is maintained by SFM even when limited to the same timepoints as RFM. We discuss the trade‐offs among different monitoring program designs to consider when implementing a new program. In this specific case, we conclude that CABR should bolster SFM and implement RFM on a more consistent basis. CABR would also benefit from performing FSI every 5–10 years or when financially possible. Practical implication. Long‐term monitoring programs benefit most from ensuring comparability across years and considering their specific goals during the design process. For CABR, this is best accomplished by focusing on its longest‐running program and including additional periodic monitoring program assessments to ensure they are still achieving their goals.https://doi.org/10.1002/2688-8319.70059biodiversitylong‐term monitoringmanagement decisionsNational Parkprotocolsrocky intertidal |
| spellingShingle | Christine C. Bonadonna Lauren L. M. Pandori Celia C. Symons Case study: Assessment of long‐term rocky intertidal biodiversity monitoring at Cabrillo National Monument Ecological Solutions and Evidence biodiversity long‐term monitoring management decisions National Park protocols rocky intertidal |
| title | Case study: Assessment of long‐term rocky intertidal biodiversity monitoring at Cabrillo National Monument |
| title_full | Case study: Assessment of long‐term rocky intertidal biodiversity monitoring at Cabrillo National Monument |
| title_fullStr | Case study: Assessment of long‐term rocky intertidal biodiversity monitoring at Cabrillo National Monument |
| title_full_unstemmed | Case study: Assessment of long‐term rocky intertidal biodiversity monitoring at Cabrillo National Monument |
| title_short | Case study: Assessment of long‐term rocky intertidal biodiversity monitoring at Cabrillo National Monument |
| title_sort | case study assessment of long term rocky intertidal biodiversity monitoring at cabrillo national monument |
| topic | biodiversity long‐term monitoring management decisions National Park protocols rocky intertidal |
| url | https://doi.org/10.1002/2688-8319.70059 |
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