Long-term effects of wildfire on greater sage-grouse - integrating population and ecosystem concepts for management in the Great Basin
Dates
Publication Date
2015-09-01
Start Date
2009-01-01
End Date
2014-12-01
Citation
Coates, P.S., Ricca, M.A., Prochazka, B.G., Doherty, K.E., Brooks, M.L., and Casazza, M.L., 2015, Long-term effects of wildfire on greater sage-grouse—Integrating population and ecosystem concepts for management in the Great Basin: U.S. Geological Survey data release, http://dx.doi.org/10.5066/F7K35RRS.
Summary
Greater sage-grouse ( Centrocercus urophasianus; hereinafter, sage-grouse) are a sagebrush obligate species that has declined concomitantly with the loss and fragmentation of sagebrush ecosystems across most of its geographical range. The species has been considered for listing under the federal Endangered Species Act multiple times, and was most recently ruled to not warrant protection as of September 2015. Nevertheless, the species faces threats from increasing wildfire frequency and changing climate, which are identified frequently as two environmental drivers contributing to declines of sage-grouse populations. To help inform a threat assessment within the Great Basin for listing sage-grouse in 2015 under the ESA, we conducted [...]
Summary
Greater sage-grouse ( Centrocercus urophasianus; hereinafter, sage-grouse) are a sagebrush obligate species that has declined concomitantly with the loss and fragmentation of sagebrush ecosystems across most of its geographical range. The species has been considered for listing under the federal Endangered Species Act multiple times, and was most recently ruled to not warrant protection as of September 2015. Nevertheless, the species faces threats from increasing wildfire frequency and changing climate, which are identified frequently as two environmental drivers contributing to declines of sage-grouse populations. To help inform a threat assessment within the Great Basin for listing sage-grouse in 2015 under the ESA, we conducted an extensive analysis of wildfire and climatic effects on sage-grouse population growth derived from 30 years of lek-count data collected across the hydrographic Great Basin of Western North America. Annual (1984–2013) patterns of wildfire were derived from an extensive dataset of remotely sensed 30-meter imagery and precipitation derived from locally downscaled spatially explicit data. In the sagebrush ecosystem, underlying soil conditions also contribute strongly to variation in resilience to disturbance and resistance to plant community changes (R&R). Thus, we developed predictions from models of post-wildfire recovery and chronic effects of wildfire based on three spatially explicit R&R classes derived from soil moisture and temperature regimes. We found evidence of an interaction between the effects of wildfire (chronically affected burned area within 5 kilometers of a lek) and climatic conditions (spring through fall precipitation) after accounting for a consistent density-dependent effect. Specifically, burned areas near leks nullifies population growth that normally follows years with relatively high precipitation. In models, this effect results in long-term population declines for sage-grouse despite cyclic periods of high precipitation. Based on 30-year projections of burn and recovery rates, our population model predicted steady and substantial long-term declines in population size across the Great Basin. Further, example management scenarios that may help offset adverse wildfire effects are provided by models of varying levels of fire suppression and post-wildfire restoration that focus on areas especially important to sage-grouse populations. These models illustrate how sage-grouse population persistence likely will be compromised as sagebrush ecosystems and sage-grouse habitat are degraded by wildfire, especially in a warmer and drier climate, and by invasion of annual grasses that can increase wildfire frequency and size in the Great Basin.
These data support the following:
Coates, P.S., Ricca, M.A., Prochazka, B.G., Doherty, K.E., Brooks, M.L., and Casazza, M.L., 2015, Long-term effects of wildfire on greater sage-grouse-Integrating population and ecosystem concepts for management in the Great Basin: U.S. Geological Survey Open-File Report 2015-1165, 42 p., https://doi.org/10.3133/ofr20151165.
This dataset identifies sage-grouse concentration areas in the Great Basin, which comprise areas of both high habitat suitability and high population abundance, and can be used to help guide fire suppression and restoration efforts.
Rights
The authors of these data require that data users contact them regarding intended use and to assist with understanding limitations and interpretation. Unless otherwise stated, all data, metadata and related materials are considered to satisfy the quality standards relative to the purpose for which the data were collected. Although these data and associated metadata have been reviewed for accuracy and completeness and approved for release by the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS), no warranty expressed or implied is made regarding the display or utility of the data on any other system or for general or scientific purposes, nor shall the act of distribution constitute any such warranty. Any use of trade, firm, or product names is for descriptive purposes only and does not imply endorsement by the U.S. Government
