Type: report

Article abstract: San Diego’s Multiple Species Conservation Program (MSCP) is a comprehensive Habitat Conservation Plan developed with the goal of conserving native vegetation communities and associated species in a nearly 2,500-square-kilometer area in southwestern San Diego County. A biological monitoring program was proposed in 1996, but was never widely adopted. Over the past 10 years, several attempts have been made to develop a comprehensive monitoring program that is supported by the many jurisdictions and stakeholders. The objective of this NCCP Local Assistance Grant project is to evaluate different sampling designs and field protocols for monitoring coastal sage scrub (CSS) and chaparral vegetation communities. This effort addresses one of the two broad goals of the monitoring program, namely monitoring biodiversity and ecosystem function.