Resistance & Resilience
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In this study, exotic annual grass cover and density were greatly reduced in all treatments where perennial seedlings were planted compared with the control (no seedlings planted). Treatments including crested wheatgrass (Agropyron desertorum) generally limited annual grasses more than other treatments. Most notably, forage kochia (Bassia prostata) reduced exotic annual grasses less than crested wheatgrass and crested wheatgrass planted with forage kochia. This suggests that if forage kochia will be planted, it should be used in conjunction with perennial bunchgrasses in efforts to revegetate exotic annual grass − invaded sagebrush steppe. Established native vegetation also greatly reduced exotic annual grass reinvasion. Though some differences existed among established vegetation treatments, our study highlights that established perennial vegetation prevents redomination by invasives after exotic annual grass control.
View Chapter 10 of the book, Exotic brome-grasses in arid and semiarid ecosystems of the western US: Causes, consequences, and management implications.
The factors that determine plant community resistance to exotic annual Bromus species are diverse and context specific. They are influenced by the environmental characteristics and attributes of the community, the traits of Bromus species, and the direct and indirect interactions of Bromus with the plant community. Environmental factors, in particular ambient and soil temperatures, have significant effects on the ability of Bromus to establish and spread.
View Chapter 2 of the book, Exotic brome-grasses in arid and semiarid ecosystems of the western US: causes, consequences, and management implications.
Exotic annual Bromus species are widely recognized for their potential to invade, dominate, and alter the structure and function of ecosystems. In this chapter, we summarize the invasion potential, ecosystem threats, and management strategies for different Bromus species within each of five ecoregions of the western United States. We characterize invasion potential and threats in terms of ecosystem resistance to Bromus invasion and ecosystem resilience to disturbance with an emphasis on the importance of fire regimes.
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Grazing exacerbates Bromus tectorum dominance in one of North America’s most endangered ecosystems by adversely impacting key mechanisms mediating resistance to invasion. If the goal is to conserve and restore resistance of these systems, managers should consider maintaining or restoring: (i) high bunchgrass cover and structure characterized by spatially dispersed bunchgrasses and small gaps between them; (ii) a diverse assemblage of bunchgrass species to maximize competitive interactions with B. tectorum in time and space; and (iii) biological soil crusts to limit B. tectorum establishment. Passive restoration by reducing cumulative cattle grazing may be one of the most effective means of achieving these three goals.
View fact sheet.
Land managers are increasingly interested in improving resilience to disturbances,such as wildfire, and resistance to invasive species,such as cheatgrass and medusahead. This fact sheet is designed to assist land managers in resilience and resistance concepts to assess risks, prioritize management activities, and select treatments.
This is the first of many topics reviewed in the Great Basin Fact Sheet series.
Individual fact sheets comprising the Information and tools to conserve and restore Great Basin ecosystems – Factsheet Series are available below.
No. 1- Putting resilience and resistance into practice
No. 2- Limiting medusahead invasion and impacts in the Great Basin
No. 4- Conifer removal in the sagebrush steppe: The why, when, where, and how
No. 6- Wind erosion following wildfire in Great Basin ecosystems
No. 7- Post-fire grazing management in the Great Basin
No. 8- Establishing big sagebrush and other shrubs from planting stock
No. 9- Assessing fuel loads in sagebrush steppe and PJ woodlands
No. 10- Seeding big sagebrush successfully on Intermountain rangelands
No. 11- Assessing impacts of fire and post-fire mitigation on runoff and erosion from rangelands
No. 12- Management of aspen in a changing environment
No. 13- Woody fuels reduction in Wyoming big sagebrush communities
No. 14- Seeding techniques for sagebrush community restoration after fire
The book, Exotic brome-grasses in arid and semiarid ecosystems of the western US: causes, consequences, and management implications, is presented in several chapters.
Access is provided for the following chapters -
Chapter 1 - Introduction: Exotic annual Bromus in the western USA
Chapter 2 - Exotic annual Bromus invasions: comparisons among species and ecoregions in the western US
Chapter 3 - Ecosystem impacts of exotic annual invaders in the genus Bromus
Chapter 7 - Community ecology of fungal pathogens on Bromus tectorum
Chapter 8 - Soil moisture and biogeochemical factors influence the distribution of annual Bromus species
Chapter 9 - Bromus response to climate and projected changes with climate change
Chapter 10 - Plant community resistance to invasion by Bromus species: The roles of community attributes, Bromus interactions with plant communities, and Bromus traits
Chapter 11 - Land uses, fire, and invasion: Exotic annual Bromus and human dimensions
Chapter 12 - Assessing restoration and management needs for ecosystems invaded by exotic annual Bromus species
Bruce Roundy, Brigham Young University, discusses indicators of resilience and resistance of sagebrush steppe communities associated with soil temperature and water availability as learned from SageSTEP.
Learn more from the overview webinar.
Access training modules.
This learning series responds to Section 7.b.iii, Action Item #5 within the Fuels section of the 2015 Integrated Rangeland Fire Management Strategy, which calls for a comprehensive knowledge transfer program to enhance the fuels management program’s role in sagebrush-steppe management. The Strategy is intended to improve the efficiency and efficacy of actions to address rangeland fire, to better prevent and suppress rangeland fire, and improve efforts to restore fire-impacted landscapes.
The learning modules synthesize the state of the science for six management topics:
- Background and origins of the conservation problems facing the sagebrush steppe and greater sage-grouse
- Understanding and applying the concepts of resistance and resilience
- Management of sagebrush ecosystems experiencing conifer encroachment
- Management of sagebrush ecosystems at risk of or invaded by invasive annual grasses
- Restoration of sagebrush steppe ecosystems
- Issues specific to the eastern range of greater sage-grouse
In this webinar, Jeanne Chambers, USDA Forest Service Rocky Mountain Research Station, discusses the importance of resistance to invasion and resilience to disturbance in restoration and management of Great Basin rangelands.