Sagebrush
This special issue of Rangeland Ecology and Management is dedicated to applying the Sagebrush Conservation Design (SCD) to improve conservation outcomes across the sagebrush biome in the face of pervasive ecosystem threats.
Articles included:
State of the sagebrush: Implementing the Sagebrush Conservation Design to save a biome
Closing the conservation gap: Spatial targeting and coordination are needed for to keep pace with sagebrush losses
Climate change amplifies declines in sagebrush ecological integrity
Well-connected core areas retain ecological integrity of sagebrush ecosystems amidst overall declines 2001–2021
Spatial prioritization of conifer management to defend and grow sagebrush cores
A strategic and science-based framework for management of invasive annual grasses in the sagebrush biome
Modeling cropland conversion risk to scale-up averted loss of core sagebrush rangelands
Characterizing wildfire risk for the Sagebrush Conservation Design
An assessment of conservation opportunities within sagebrush ecosystems of US National Parks and Wildlife Refuges
Tool to promote stepping down the Sagebrush Conservation Design to local conservation planning
Exploring the sage grouse initiative’s role in defending and growing sagebrush core areas
Satellite remote sensing to assess shrubland vegetation responses to large-scale juniper removal in the northern Great Basin
Cooperative conservation actions improve sage-grouse population performance within the bi-state distinct population segment
Evaluating the Sagebrush Conservation Design Strategy through the performance of a sagebrush indicator species
How a Sagebrush Conservation Strategy benefits rangeland birds
Carbon Security Index: Novel approach to assessing how secure carbon is in sagebrush ecosystems within the Great Basin
Using technical transfer to bridge science production and management action
Assessing conservation readiness: The where, who, and how of strategic conservation in the sagebrush biome
Where do we go from here with sagebrush conservation: A long-term perspective?
There is no hope without change: A perspective on how we conserve the sagebrush biome
Meeting website.
Save the date for the 2025 SRM Annual Meeting in Spokane, WA.
February 9-13, 2025
View article.
We developed a framework for identifying which biotic traits would provide the best initial indication of longer-term target restoration goals and applied the framework to restoration drill-seedings of deep-rooted perennial bunchgrasses (DRPBGs) used to rehabilitate and restore semiarid rangelands threatened by exotic annual grasses (EAGs, e.g. cheatgrass) and the recurrent wildfire that EAGs cause. Initial traits measured included cover, basal diameter, height, and density (#plants/area) of DRPBGs and cover of EAGs and Sandberg bluegrass (Poa secunda, POSE, a disturbance-adapted perennial). The longer-term target objective was ≥25 % DRPBG cover and ≤13 % EAG cover by the 5th year following drill-seedings. Measurements were made on 112 plots spanning 113,000 ha in sagebrush steppe on the Soda wildfire scar, in the Northern Great Basin, USA. Traits of DRPBGs tended to be uncorrelated with one another, thus each was informative in describing vegetation condition. Where DRPBG cover was initially >17 %, it tended to become >25 % by the 5th-year post-seeding. In plots that overcame an initial risk of not meeting the target objective (i.e. <17 % initial DRPBG cover), DRPBG tended be large DRPBGs (>22.8 cm height) and plots also had >7 % cover of POSE. Additional “sets” of initial vegetation traits were also predictive of longer-term restoration success or failure. Restoration drill-seeding of DRPBGs is a key but varied-outcome tool for breaking the exotic grass-fire cycle, and, contrary to a conventional tendency to rely on a limited number of mean traits such as % cover, a suite of biotic traits appears necessary to monitor to reliably know if trials are likely to yield success.
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Our pinyon jay abundance model allowed abundance relationships with pinyon pine and juniper to vary by ecoregion, thereby accounting for potential regional differences in habitat associations. We found pinyon jay abundance was generally positively associated with pinyon pine and juniper cover; however, habitat relationships varied by ecoregion. Additionally, we found positive associations between jay abundance and grass cover, sagebrush cover, and percent bare ground. Our results agree with prior research suggesting mechanical removal of pinyon pine and juniper trees for sagebrush restoration or fuel treatments may negatively affect pinyon jay. Managers wishing to reduce pinyon and juniper tree cover without negatively affecting pinyon jay may benefit from targeting sites where both large-scale distribution models and our local habitat relationships suggest pinyon jay are likely to occur in low numbers. Additionally, our modeled relationships indicate restoration that increases grass cover, sagebrush cover, and bare ground, while maintaining pinyon and (or) juniper cover, may lead to increased local densities of pinyon jay.
View factsheet.
In the United States, more than 1,400 native plant nurseries produce more than a billion seedlings for reforestation and restoration projects every year. Many years of monitoring and research have shown that seedling survival of native plants can be greater when the plants are grown in nurseries and outplanted compared to direct seeding or natural regeneration. Production of high-quality seedlings reduces costs and improves seedling survival and growth after outplanting.
Event website.
The PNW Section Summer Meeting and Tour will be May 29-31 in Chewelah, WA.
- Forest grazing, cover crop grazing, silvopasture, hay production, seedstock beef production, water quality, apex predators, tribal history and issues
- Headquarters: Mistequa Casino Hotel (pronounced Mist-a-quah), 2545 Smith Rd, Chewelah, WA 99109
Workshop flyer.
The first day will cover a variety of topics such as soil ecology, plant identification, invasive annual grass and juniper management, and the foundations behind applying remotely sensed data. The second day will focus on taking the foundations from day 1 and learning how to ensure that planning and management meaningfully influences landscape scale dynamics. Topics will include defending and growing core rangelands, identifying threats, prioritizing areas of ecological importance, synthesizing remotely sensed data, and applying different types of knowledge to address threats at multiple scales on the ground knowledge to manage at meaningful scales. For those of you familiar, this will be similar to the college science in the sagebrush steppe field training we do for universities but targeted for natural resource professionals.
The training is $100 and will include all meals. Registration will open in March.
View article.
Predicted fire-moderation benefits over the first 4 years of fuel break implementation were modest and variable, but, generally, increases in exotic annual grasses and their associated fire risks were not observed. Nonetheless, ancillary evidence from shrublands would suggest that treatment-induced shifts from shrub to herbaceous fuel dominance are expected to improve conditions for active fire suppression in ways not readily represented in available fire models.
The SageSTEP research team invites you to join us for a tour of the Onaqui research site near Tooele, Utah on May 21, 2024. We will tour the SageSTEP (https://sagestep.org/) shrubland network, SageSTEP woodland network and NEON sites (https://www.neonscience.org/field-sites/onaq), hear results from the past 15 years of data collection, and discuss management needs and research priorities for the next decade. We are particularly interested in hearing management perspectives on areas of greatest future need. 2024 field tour flyer
Logistics
Tooele is less than an hour from SLC. Lodging options include the Holiday Inn and Best Western. We recommend SUV/Trucks, particularly if there is rain prior to the tour.
Meet at 8am on Tuesday, May 21 at the Holiday Inn in Tooele (Address: 1531 N Main St, Tooele, UT 84074) to carpool/caravan to the Onaqui site. We plan to return to Tooele by 5pm. Please bring adequate food/water and be prepared to be outside all day.
There will be a no-host dinner on Monday, May 20 at 6 pm for any who can join.
Please RSVP to Lisa Ellsworth at: lisa.ellsworth@oregonstate.edu
View article.
We tested how sagebrush transplant survival and size (canopy volume) are affected by age at the time of planting (10 classes, 6−24 wk), planting season (fall versus spring), and invasive annual grass competition (low/high) with a randomized factorial design over 2 yr. Survival was lower for age classes under 10 or 12 wk (in yr 1 and 2, respectively) but relatively similar from 12 to 24 wk. Fall-planted transplants had lower survival but increased canopy volume compared with spring-planted transplants. Survival and canopy volume decreased with competition with annual grasses. Our results suggest that land managers should consider planting younger transplants than previously thought and controlling invasive annual grasses before planting sagebrush transplants to increase long-term survival and canopy volume.