Natural Resource Monitoring at Rock Creek Park

Rock Creek Park

NPS

The National Capital Region Inventory & Monitoring Network monitors air quality, amphibians, birds, forest pests, vegetation, invasive plants, stream water, and stream fish and macroinvertebrates at Rock Creek Park. The results of that monitoring provide park managers with scientific information for decision-making.

Rock Creek Park is one of the largest urban natural parks in the world. Mostly forested, it is dominated by mixed beech and oak plant communities and has extensive stream and wetland habitat.

The park’s main natural resource management concerns are surrounding land use, regionally poor air quality, and overpopulation of deer. Stormwater management is a big concern for stream ecosystems. Regional air quality and land use patterns can have strong effects on park resources.

Want to Know More?

Resource Briefs: Air & Climate, Amphibians, Forest Birds, Forest Vegetation, Stream Biota (Fish & Macroinvertebrates), Water and Other Vital Signs 

Reports: Air & Climate, Amphibians, Forest Birds, Forest Vegetation, Geology & Fossils, Small Mammals, Soil Data, Stream Biota (Fish & Macroinvertebrates), Water Quality 

Natural Resource Condition Assessment for Rock Creek
Species Lists for Rock Creek
View a Map of Rock Creek

NCRN Monitoring at Rock Creek Park by the Numbers

*Site numbers as of 2022. These can change over time.

What We Monitor	Sites at Rock Creek*	Monitoring Frequency	Information We Collect
Amphibians	10 known wetland pools 19 known stream transects	Annual sampling on a subset of known wetlands Wetland sites are monitored twice per sampling period	Species occupancy and richness for salamanders, frogs, and toads in vernal pools
Birds – forest only	14 (forest bird)	Forest plots are monitored twice a year	Forest bird species and abundance Bird habitat quality
Forest vegetation	19 (forest vegetation)	Approximately a quarter of plots each year on a four-year cycle	Deer browse Fallen and standing woody debris Targeted diseases and pests Targeted invasive plant species Trees, shrubs, vines, and specific non-woody plants
Stream biota – fish and macroinvertebrates	At streams listed below	Periodic sampling 2007-2014, 2019-2023	Aquatic macroinvertebrates taxa and abundance Fish species and abundance Stream physical habitat including bank stability, stream shading, and distance from developed areas
Stream water quality	11 (stream site) on Battery Kemble Creek, Broad Branch, Dumbarton Oaks Stream, Fenwick Branch, Klingle Valley Creek, Luzon Branch, Normanstone Creek, Pinehurst Branch, Piney Branch, Reservation 360, and Rock Creek	Stream sites are monitored every other month	Acid neutralizing capacity Dissolved oxygen pH Salinity/specific conductance Stream width, depth, flow, and discharge Total nitrate and phosphorus Water temperature