Invasion, fire, and the future of NW wildlands: Ventenata dubia in the Blue Mtns Ecoregion

Webinar recording.

In this deep dive webinar, Dr. Becky Kerns and collaborating scientists will present and synthesize results from a Joint Fire Science funded project aimed at understanding the current and future Ventenata dubia (ventenata) invasion in the Blue Mountains Ecoregion. Wildfires in 2014 and 2015 in the ecoregion reportedly spread in an unusual fashion owing to this invasive annual grass. Concern was raised that ventenata might be a “game-changer” for wildfire. Results from our studies show that ventenata has ecosystem transformation potential and influences landscape-scale fire across the ecoregion. In this webinar we report these findings and the management implications, as well as place our results in the context of other plant invasion research. The webinar includes 90 minutes of scientific presentations with short Q&A, and ends with a 30-minute wrap up and panel discussion. Talks will adhere to the following agenda to allow attendees to join and leave the meeting for specific talks, if desired.