Geodatabase representing the sample design for the North Coast and Cascades Network (NCCN) elk monitoring project at Mount Rainier National Park (MORA) and Olympic National Park (OLYM).

The goal of this project is to monitor trends in raw counts, abundance, composition, and spatial distribution of migratory Roosevelt elk in Mount Rainier National Park and in Olympic National Park summer range, and to monitor elk abundance and distribution in selected low elevation late winter/early spring ranges in Olympic.

The geodatabase is the spatial representation of elk survey polygons used to conduct elk surveys using observers in helicopters. Polygons were originally created in 2007 and slightly modified after initial field sampling to better reflect elk habitat (completed in 2012). The Olympic late winter/early spring survey areas were originally developed in 1983, but were modified (2007-2010) to better reflect elk movements, based on GPS collar data, within river valleys.