The Southern Plains Network (SOPN) is one of 32 National Park Service Inventory and Monitoring Networks across the country.
Our mission is to track status and trends in the condition of selected park "vital signs" and to communicate the results to park managers, partners, and the public. In this way we work to promote the use of sound science in the preservation of natural and cultural resources held in trust by the National Park Service. Since 2003, the Southern Plains Network has worked with 11 network parks to identify natural resource inventory and monitoring needs, complete basic inventories, and implement long-term ecological monitoring.
SOPN staff include the program manager, a data manager, and a vegetation ecologist. The network also works collaboratively with the Chihuahuan Desert Network and the Sonoran Desert Network as part of the Southwest Network Collaboration. SOPN shares several monitoring protocols and staff with these networks.
Last updated: August 18, 2023