The Sagebrush-Grass Region: A Review of the Ecological Literature

The bulletin provides an overview of literature on the vegetation of the sagebrush region of North America, emphasizing the characteristics of sagebrush-grass vegetation and its major component species

Canyon Grasslands and Associated Shrublands of West-central Idaho and Adjacent Areas

Grasslands dominated by perennial bunchgrasses occupy the canyon-like valleys of the Snake and Salmon Rivers and their tributaries in west-central Idaho. The grassland areas differ in elevation from 215 to 2400 m. (710-7800 feet) with slopes commonly of 45 to 70 percent and ranging to over 100 percent. Soils, mainly Xerolls, derived from volcanic materials are permeable and relatively stable. Vertical zonation of climate, vegetation and soils prevails, modified mainly by differences in aspect. Plant communities (series) characterized by Agropyron spicatum, Festuca idahoensis and Carex hoodii respectively, occupy most of the grassland area and form five habitat types. Minor types of less certain seral status occur at low elevations and are dominated by Sporobolus cryptandrus and Aristida longiseta. Small inclusions of shrub grass types are dominated by Artemisia rigida, Symphoricarpos albus, Rhus glabra, Cercocarpus ledifolius and Celtis reticulata. Vegetation altered by the effects of livestock grazing in the century of white settlement shows extensive loss of native species and replacement by aliens, mainly of Mediterranean origin. Principal invaders were Bromus tectorum and other annual bromes, but others, including several species of Centaurea, are increasing on depleted sites

The Idaho Forester - 1965 (Vol. 47)

Dedication 3 Idaho Forester Staff 4 Keeping Up in Wildland Management, by E. W. Tisdale 6 Forest-Wildlife Management Research: A Challenge, by William H. Lawrence 8 Fifty Years of Lumberman's Forestry, by Dean W. Huber 11 Roughneck Foresters, by Ed Wood 13 Cedar Poles-A North Idaho Specialty, by Howard Wallace 14 Associated Foresters, by President Carl Pence 19 Steak Fry, by Dean W. Huber 21 Xi Sigma Pi, by Jess Daniels 22 Summer Camp, by Howard Wallace 25 Student Officers 27 The Forester's Ball, by Keith Johnson 29 A.W.F.C. Conclave, by Dean W. Huber 30 Foresterettes, by Anne Glover 32 Forestry Week, by Bill Pickell 36 Senior Class 38 Junior Class 46 Sophomore Class 47 Freshman Class 49 Secretaries 49 Honors and Awards 51 Graduate Students, by Jim Gosz 52 Dean's Honor List 55 Faculty 5

Disentangling the Effects of Multiple Fires on Spatially Interspersed Sagebrush (\u3ci\u3eArtemisia\u3c/i\u3e spp.) Communities

Questions: Relative to a landscape with a mosaic of two sagebrush community types and increasing fire frequency, we asked (a) do vegetation characteristics very significantly with number of times burned for each sagebrush community; (b) how do vegetation responses to different fire frequencies compare between the two sagebrush communities? Location: Columbia Plateau Ecoregion, Washington, USA. Methods: We sampled vegetation across a landscape that burned three times over a 10-year period in two sagebrush community types that are interspersed on unique landforms: big sagebrush (Artemisia tridentata) communities that occur on small “mounds” and scabland sagebrush (A. rigida) communities that occur on surrounding “flats.” Spatially overlapping fires permitted a balanced sampling design to assess unburned and once-, twice-, and thrice-burned locations for each land form/community type. We utilized a suite of statistical analyses to determine differences among plant functional groups and biomass among unburned/burned strata by land form and compared results between land forms. Results: Big sagebrush and scabland sagebrush communities responded uniquely to multiple fires, due to different fuel loadings, fire severities, succession and invasion dynamics. Big sagebrush experienced nearly complete shrub loss and conversion from exotic-invaded shrubland to exotic annual grassland after only one fire. In contrast, scabland sagebrush retained a minor shrub component and higher relative cover of native herbaceous species, even after three fires. Both communities retained cover of native perennial grasses, including shallow- and deep-rooted species, likely reflecting decreasing fire intensity with number of times burned. Conclusions: Despite different community-level responses, increasing fire frequency is transforming the entire landscape to a non-native/native grassland mix. Quantifying unique ecosystem responses to altered wildfire regimes is critical to understanding the relative resilience of communities to disturbance and their resistance to exotic species invasion (and community type conversion). Management actions may help to maintain spatial heterogeneity of ecosystems and fire-tolerant native species