Station bulletin

^ Cf ATION BULLETIN 522

June, 1982

Hiker Traffic On and Near the Habitat

of Robbins Cinquefoil,

an Endangered Plant Species

by

R. E. Graber and G. E. Crow

NEW HAMPSHIRE

AGRICULTURAL EXPERIMENT STATION

UNIVERSITY OF NEW HAMPSHIRE

DURHAM, NEW HAMPSHIRE

s„

^ Cf ATION BULLETIN 522 June, 1982

Hiker Traffic On and Near the Habitat

of Robbins Cinquefoil,

an Endangered Plant Species

by

R. E. Graber and G. E. Crow

NEW HAMPSHIRE

AGRICULTURAL EXPERIMENT STATION

UNIVERSITY OF NEW HAMPSHIRE

DURHAM, NEW HAMPSHIRE

..-/rartYl

s

c{, ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS

We wish to thank Dr. Thomas D. Lee, C. Barre Hellquist and
Mark J. McDonnell for their helpful comments on the manuscript.
The cooperation and support of Mr. Richard W. Dyer, Office of
Endangered Species, USFWS and Mr John Lanier, White Mountain
National Forest, USFS is gratefully acknowledged. Special thanks
is due Ms. Sherry Holmes, Mr. Robert Vinton and Mr. Douglas
Ryder, undergraduate students at the University of New Hampshire
who braved many hours of inclement weather to gather data for the
project. Tess Feltes prepared the cover illustration and graphs.

Programs of the New Hampshire Agricultural Experiment Station are open to all
persons without regard to race, color, national origin or sex. The University of New
Hampshire is an Affirmative Action/Equal Opportunity Employer.

INH BRAftt

ABSTRACT

3 MbDD DDt.ia ^si

Outdoor recreationists have a negative impact on the last
surviving colony of Potentilla robbinsiana Oakes. We observed
hikers to determine their numbers, characteristics, time of travel
and motives. Hiker traffic on and adjacent to the plant habitat was
estimated at 7,535 people per year. Ten percent disregarded
warning signs, left the trail, and entered the endangered plant
habitat. Trespass was most common (19%) during June when many
of the alpine plants were in flower. Trespass usually occurred
around noon and again in the evening. Hikers without packs were
more likely than those with packs to walk on the P. robbinsiana
habitat. Approximately one-third of those entering the habitat were
there to see the endangered plant. Most of the remaining two-thirds
were there by chance.

KEY WORDS: Endangered plant species, rare plants, Potentilla robbinsiana, alpine
hiker survey, Mt. Washington, NH

TABLE OF CONTENTS

Page

Introduction 1

Methods 2

Results 2

Discussion 4

Literature Cited 5

Hiker Traffic On and Near the Habitat

of Robbins Cinquefoil,

and Endangered Plant Species

by
R. E. Graber and G. E. Crow1

INTRODUCTION

Robbins cinquefoil (Potentilla robbinsiana Oakes) is one of the
rarest plants of eastern United States. It is a very low, nearly
stemless plant with a dense tuft or rosette of leaves (Fig. 1). Small
yellow flowers open in late May and June. The plant is a long-lived
perennial which grows very slowly and is unlikely to flower before
10 years of age. The oldest plants are estimated to be 40 to 60 years
old.

Robbins cinquefoil grows at a single alpine location in the
White Mountains of New Hampshire occupying about a quarter
acre. It was never common, but small colonies of Robbins cinquefoil
were known at four locations in the 1800's (Crow and Storks, 1980).
All but one of these colonies have died out. They were all located on
or very near trails or a road (Mt. Washington Toll Road). The
impacts of human and horse traffic and the taking of specimens by
plant collectors are believed to be the causes of these losses of
Robbins cinquefoil (Graber, 1980). The sole surviving colony in the
White Mountains has been declining and is now confined to about
one-quarter of the territory it occupied in 1934 (Steele, F. L., personal
communication). Robbins cinquefoil has been classified as a species
in danger of extinction by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (Cook,
1980).

The barren alpine habitat occupied by the Robbins cinquefoil is
bisected by the heavily travelled Appalachian Trail. The trail is well
marked; signs remind hikers to stay on the paths and avoid
trampling fragile plant life. However, many hikers walk on the
cinquefoil habitat resulting in serious consequences for the plant.

RAYMOND E. GRABER is a plant ecologist at the Northeastern Forest
Experiment Station, Forestry Sciences Laboratory, Durham, NH

GARRETT E. CROW is Associate Professor of Botany and Curator of the
Hodgdon Herbarium at the University of New Hampshire, Durham, NH

Graber (1980) found that heavy foot traffic on the Appalachian
Trail represented a major threat to the survival of Robbins
cinquefoil. An unknowing hiker may step on and crush a plant, but
more important, in the long term, is the shifting and dislodging of
the stony surface layer, which occurs when hikers trespass on the
cinquefoil habitat. The abrasion and churning caused by hikers'
footsteps can eliminate the protected spaces between the individual
stones, which often hold fine soil and organic matter. These minute
sheltered spots are the nurseries for newly germinated Robbins
cinquefoil, and it is here that they grow and survive. When the stony
surface is disturbed by hikers, the soil between the stones loosens
and is soon blown or washed away in severe mountain storms. Once
this bit of soil is lost, there is little chance of nurturing a seedling.
The trail-side zone disturbed by the hikers has widened in recent
decades. The cinquefoil has died out completely on one side of the
trail and is largely absent on habitat within 26 feet of the trail on the
other side.

As a first step in reducing the human impact on the Robbins
cinquefoil, we observed the hiker population to determine their
numbers, characteristics, time of travel, and motives.

METHODS

Hiker activity was observed during the summer of 1980. A
student assistant, who was out of sight, noted time, group size,
direction of travel, hiker pack size, age, and especially hiker
behavior on and adjacent to the cinquefoil colony. When hikers left
the trail and walked on the Robbins cinquefoil habitat (trespassed),
the observer determined the purpose of the visit by watching what
the individual did.

To supplement these observations, three electronic pressure
plate counters were placed in the trail. The counters were carefully
calibrated initially and checked for accuracy frequently during the
summer. They provided a total count of all foot traffic on the
Appalachian Trail during the study period. The chi-square test of
independence was used to evaluate the hourly, pack-class, direc-
tional, and age-class data.

RESULTS

From 15 June to 31 August, we made counts during parts of 40
days and observed 1,936 hikers. Of those observed, 194 hikers
(10.02%) walked past the posted signs and trespassed on the Robbins
cinquefoil habitat.

Electronic pressure plate counters were installed from 22 June
to 13 September (83 days). The total count was 5,852 hikers. We
assumed that the percentage of trespassers would be the same as the
observed period — 10.02 percent, and estimated 586 trespassers
during this period. We then estimated traffic for the entire season,
which we determined as 1 May to 30 November (214 days). The
projection for the entire season was 7,535 hikers with 755 trespassers.
We believe this annual figure is conservative, but it is only an
estimate based in part on actual counts and our knowledge of hiker-
use patterns in the May to November period.

The traffic averaged about 55 hikers per day in June, increased
moderately to 57 in July, and then leaped to 95 per day in August.
The count dropped rapidly after Labor Day with an average of 49
hikers per day during the first 2 weeks of September. The rate of
hiker trespass was highest (19.0%) during the 16 days we observed in
June (flowering occurred during this period). In July and August,
trespassing was 7.9 percent and 8.0 percent respectively. Only the
pressure plate counters were used in September, so we have no
measure of trespass during that time.

Hiker traffic varied widely from hour to hour during a typical
day (Fig. 2). Our June observations showed that three travel peaks
occurred at 8 to 9 a.m., 2 to 3 p.m., and 7 to 8 p.m. No trespass was
noted before 10 a.m. or between 4 and 6 p.m. Travel dropped to a very
low level after the first surge in the morning and then climbed
steadily until early afternoon. Trespass, in both total numbers and
as a percentage of all hikers, peaked just before and after noon and
again in the evening at 7 to 8 p.m. These frequencies of trespass were
significant (p< 0.005).

Approximately half of the .hikers were carrying large backpacks
with sleeping bags, mattresses, etc. (Fig. 3). The remainder were
divided almost equally between those carrying day packs or no
packs at all. The presence or abundance of a pack indicates
commitment by the hiker to travel. Those with a heavy pack were
often destination-oriented and reluctant to stop. Those with light or
no packs were traveling leisurely, even aimlessly, with no definite
objective or an easily reached goal. Some possible reasons for hikers
without a pack include: someone else is carrying their gear, they are
staying at the nearby Lakes of the Clouds hut, or they have walked
down from the Auto Road for a brief hike. Those without packs
trespassed 5 times more than those with a heavy backpack. Hikers
equipped only with a day pack trespassed 3 times more than those
with a heavy backpack. The frequency of trespass by the three hiker
pack classes differed significantly (p< 0.005).

Direction of travel was related to frequency of trespass. Travelers
from the south were coming from the direction of Crawford Notch,

3
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13 4
12
1 1

Hourly Hiker Traffic
in June, 1980

All Hikers
Trespassers

8 9 10 11 12:00 1

8

AM

PM

TIME

Figure 2.— Hourly hiker traffic in June, 1980.

Pack Classification of Hikers

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6

and those from the north were coming from Mt. Washington and
nearby Lakes of the Clouds (Fig. 4). More hikers came from the south
on the Appalachian Trail (59.0%) than in any other direction. But,
hikers coming from the north (38.8%) trespassed 4 times more than
those coming from the south. Those from the north seemed to have
more time and interest in wandering about. The classification
"other" was applied to hikers (2.2%) on two closed trial segments,
both of which lead directly into the Robbins cinquefoil habitat. The
rates of trespass among the three classes differed significantly
(p< 0.0005).

Hiker age is an inexact classification. We estimated age by
observing physical activity, facial characteristics, etc. and classi-
fied individuals as children, teenagers, young adults, middle adults,
and older adults. We found that young adults are by far the largest
class of hikers (55.4%), and middle-aged adults were a distant second
(24.0%) (Fig. 5). Children and teenagers were 9.1 percent and 8.2
percent, respectively, and older adults represented only 3.3 percent
of the hiker population. Teenagers had the lowest trespass
percentage (5.1%), and children and older adults had the highest
(13.6% and 13.8%). These differences were significant (p< 0.005).
Trespass by children seemed to be related to an abundance of
energy and less discipline than other hikers. Many older adults
seemed to be plant lovers who were aware of Robbins cinquefoil and
wanted to physically observe, study, or photograph it.

Reasons or motives for hiker trespass varied widely (Fig. 6). The
largest single group was there to see the Robbins cinquefoil (30.4%).
An additional 4.1 percent had a specific interest in the physical
habitat or other plants growing there. Thus, roughly one-third of the
trespassers were there deliberately to view or enjoy Robbins
cinquefoil and other unique aspects of the habitat. However, nearly
two-thirds of all trespassers were present by accident or fate,
because they happened onto the habitat as they walked on the
Appalachian Trail.

DISCUSSION

With this study completed, we now have an estimate of the total
hiker population (7,535) at and trespassing (755) on the Robbins
cinquefoil habitat. We know one-third of the trespassers are plant
lovers and that in June around noon or in the evening they are most
likely to be there.

We have a rough profile of typical trespassers: they travel from
the north without a pack. If it is June and the hiker is an older adult,
there is a 75 percent chance that trespass will occur. In June, 51

percent of all hikers traveling from the north without a pack do
trespass.

A disproportionate number of trespassers came from the north.
Many of these people were staying at the Appalachian Mountain
Club hut at Lakes of the Clouds which is only .3 miles to the north.
Additional day hikers came down from the sumit of Mt. Washington
about 1.7 miles away. These hikers represent a significant part of
the problem; they also allow us to target a very specific group and
one that is readily approachable. This knowledge enables us to
concentrate information and education programs on specific
populations or interest groups.

Because of the serious decline of Robbins cinquefoil, the current
trespass figure of 755 hikers is excessive. We doubt that the plant
can survive this level of visitation. If the long term stability and
survival of Robbins cinquefoil is the objective, the number of
trespassers must be reduced substantially. This could be accom-
plished by actions such as: relocating the trail, posting a nature
interpreter nearby to direct people away from the critical habitat,
and by providing a transplant colony of the plant for those with an
interest in observing it. But even if foot traffic is lowered
dramatically, it will be necessary to closely monitor the cinquefoil
population. If the endangered Robbins cinquefoil colony continues
to decline, more restrictive measures will be required (Crow & Graber,
1981; Crow, in press).

LITERATURE CITED

Cook, R. S. 1980. Determination of Potentilla robbinsiana to an endangered species
with critical habitat. Federal Register 45(182): 61944-61947.

Crow, G. E. in press. New England's Rare, Threatened, and Endangered Plants.
USFWS. U.S. Government Printing Office, Washington, D.C.

Crow, G. E.; Storks, I. M. 1980. Rare and endangered plants of New Hampshire: a
phytogeographic viewpoint. Rhodora 82:173-189.

Crow, G. E.; Graber, R. E. 1980. Survey of hiker activity and mapping of critical
habitat of Potentilla robbinsiana. Unpublished report prepared for the White
Mountain National Forest and the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, Office of
Endangered Species.

Graber, R. E. 1980. The life history and ecology of Potentilla robbinsiana. Rhodora
82:131-140.

8

Direction of Hiker Travel

From From

South North

(On Appalachian Trail)

Other From From Other

South North

(On Appalachian Trail )

Figure 4.— Direction of hiker travel.

percentage of trespassers in each age class

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