Inventory & Monitoring

The San Francisco Bay Area Network (SFAN), is one of 32 inventory and monitoring networks that conduct natural resource inventories and vital signs monitoring for the National Park Service. A searchable database of all inventory and monitoring protocols is available on the National Park Service's IRMA Portal.

SFAN encompasses nine parks that are home to some of the most recognizable icons of the San Francisco Bay Area including Muir Woods, Alcatraz, Aquatic Park, Crissy Field, and the Presidio. But beyond these well-known landmarks lies a wealth of natural and cultural resources including unique geologic features, a marine conservation area, a wilderness area, grasslands, forests, beaches, and a vast array of other unique and important ecosystems. Significant cultural and historical resources include still-operational historic ranches, numerous artifacts and architecture from Spanish, Mexican, and American military history, and the homes of Eugene O’Neill and John Muir. These parks also support a number of threatened or endangered species including coho salmon, northern spotted owls, California Condors, California red-legged frogs, San Francisco garter snakes, tiger salamanders, and mission blue butterflies.

The goals of the Inventory & Monitoring Program are to:

• inventory the natural resources under National Park Service stewardship to determine their nature and status;
• monitor park ecosystems to better understand their dynamic nature and condition and to provide reference points for comparisons with other, altered environments;
• establish natural resource inventory and monitoring as a standard practice throughout the National Park system that transcends traditional program, activity, and funding boundaries;
• integrate natural resource inventory and monitoring information into National Park Service planning, management, and decision making;
• share National Park Service accomplishments and information with other natural resource organizations and form partnerships for attaining common goals and objectives.

The Inventory & Monitoring Program works closely with the Pacific Coast Science and Learning Center and individual park natural resources programs to use sound science to manage and preserve park resources.

For more information see the SFAN Inventory & Monitoring Program website or contact the Program Manager Daniel George.