2 research outputs found
Potential for Post-Fire Recovery of Greater Sage-Grouse Habitat
In the western United States, fire has become a significant concern in the management of big sagebrush (Artemisia tridentata Nutt.) ecosystems. This is due to largeāscale increases in cover of the fireāprone invasive annual cheatgrass (Bromus tectorum L.) and, concurrently, concerns about declining quantity and quality of habitat for Greater Sageāgrouse (Centrocercus urophasianus). The prevailing paradigm is that fire results in a loss of sageāgrouse habitat on timescales relevant to conservation planning (i.e., 1ā20 yr), since sagebrush cover can take many more years to recover postāfire. However, fire can have effects that improve sageāgrouse habitat, including stimulating perennial grass and forb production. The conditions under which fire results in the permanent loss or enhancement of sageāgrouse habitat are not well understood. We used longāterm data from the Utah Division of Wildlife Resources Range Trend Project to assess shortāterm (1ā4 yr postātreatment) and longāterm (6ā10 yr postātreatment) effects of fire on vegetation cover at 16 sites relative to sageāgrouse habitat vegetation guidelines. Sagebrush cover remained low postāfire at sites considered historically unsuitable for sageāgrouse (10%) preāfire sagebrush cover, sagebrush cover decreased to10% cover. Postāfire sagebrush cover was positively related to elevation. Across all sites, perennial grasses and forbs increased in cover to approximately meet the habitat vegetation guidelines for sageāgrouse. Cheatgrass cover did not change in response to fire, and increased perennial grass cover appears to have played an important role in suppressing cheatgrass. Our results indicate that, while fire poses a potential risk for sageāgrouse habitat loss and degradation, burned sites do not necessarily need to be considered permanently altered, especially if they are located at higher elevation, have high sagebrush cover preāfire, and are reseeded with perennial grasses and forbs postāfire. However, our results confirm that fire at more degraded sites, for example, those wit