Historical and 21st century soil temperature and moisture data for drylands of western U.S. and Canada

These data represent simulated soil temperature and moisture conditions for current climate, and for future climate represented by all available climate models at two time periods during the 21st century. These data were used to: 1) quantify the direction and magnitude of expected changes in several measures of soil temperature and soil moisture, including the key variables used to distinguish the regimes used in the R and R categories; 2) assess how these changes will impact the geographic distribution of soil temperature and moisture regimes; and 3) explore the implications for using R and R categories for estimating future ecosystem resilience and resistance.

Tags: Alberta, Arizona, British Columbia, California, Canada, All tags... Climatology, Colorado, Ecology, Geography, Idaho, Information Sciences, Kansas, Manitoba, Minnesota, Montana, Nebraska, Nevada, New Mexico, North Dakota, Oklahoma, Oregon, Saskatchewan, Soil Sciences, South Dakota, Texas, USGS Science Data Catalog (SDC), United States, Utah, Washington, Wyoming, aridification, aridity, big sagebrush ecosystems, biota, cheatgrass, clay loam, climate, climate change, climate models, concentration pathways, drought resistance, droughts, ecological model, ecological transformation, ecosystem resilience, future time periods, historical conditions, resilience, sandy loam, silt loam, soil temperature, soil types, vulnerability, Fewer tags

Early Estimates of Exotic Annual Grass (EAG) in the Sagebrush Biome, USA, May 2021, v1

This dataset provides early estimates of 2021 exotic annual grasses (EAG) fractional cover predicted on May 3rd. We develop and release EAG fractional cover map with an emphasis on cheatgrass (Bromus tectrorum) but it also includes number of other species, i.e., Bromus arvensis L., Bromus briziformis, Bromus catharticus Vahl, Bromus commutatus, Bromus diandrus, Bromus hordeaceus L., Bromus japonicus, Bromus madritensis L., Bromus racemosus, Bromus rubens L., Bromus secalinus L., Bromus texensis (Shear) Hitchc., and medusahead (Taeniatherum caput-medusae. The dataset was generated leveraging field observations from Bureau of Land Management (BLM) Assessment, Inventory, and Monitoring data (AIM) plots; Harmonized...

Categories: Data; Types: Downloadable, GeoTIFF, Map Service, Raster; Tags: Arizona, California, Colorado, Great Basin, Harmonized Landsat Sentinel, All tags... Idaho, Kansas, Land Use Change, Montana, NDVI, Nebraska, Nevada, New Mexico, North Dakota, Oklahoma, Oregon, South Dakota, Texas, Texas brome, USGS Science Data Catalog (SDC), United States, Utah, Washington, Wyoming, annual grass, annual herbaceous, cheatgrass, exotic, invasive species, medusahead, nonindigenous species, noxious, red brome, remote sensing, rye brome, sagebrush, soft brome, western United States, Fewer tags

Cheatgrass probability of occurrence in the Wyoming Basins Ecoregional Assessment area

Probability map of Cheatgrass occurrence in relation to vegetation, abiotic, and anthropogenic features. These data were released prior to the October 1, 2016 effective date for the USGS’s policy dictating the review, approval, and release of scientific data as referenced in USGS Survey Manual Chapter 502.8 Fundamental Science Practices: Review and Approval of Scientific Data for Release.

Categories: pre-SM502.8; Tags: Botany, Cheatgrass, Colorado, Ecology, Ecology, All tags... Great Basin, Idaho, Land Use Change, Land Use Change, Montana, Probability of occurrence, USGS Science Data Catalog (SDC), Utah, Wyoming, biota, environment, geoscientificInformation, geospatial datasets, modeling, scientific interpretation, shrubland ecosystems, Fewer tags

5. Early Estimates of Exotic Annual Grass (EAG) in the Sagebrush Biome, USA, 2022 (ver 6.0, July 1st, 2022)

These datasets provide early estimates of 2022 fractional cover for exotic annual grass (EAG) species and one native perennial grass species on a bi-weekly basis from May to early July. The EAG estimates are developed within one week of the latest satellite observation used for that version. Each bi-weekly release contains four fractional cover maps along with their corresponding confidence maps for: 1) a group of 16 species of EAGs, 2) cheatgrass (Bromus tectorum); 3) medusahead (Taeniatherum caput-medusae); and 4) Sandberg bluegrass (Poa secunda). These datasets were generated leveraging field observations from Bureau of Land Management (BLM) Assessment, Inventory, and Monitoring (AIM) data plots; Harmonized Landsat...

Categories: Data; Types: Downloadable, GeoTIFF, Map Service, Raster; Tags: Arizona, California, Colorado, Great Basin, Harmonized Landsat Sentinel, All tags... Idaho, Kansas, Montana, NDVI, Nebraska, Nevada, New Mexico, North Dakota, Oklahoma, Oregon, Poa secunda, South Dakota, Texas, Texas brome, United States, Utah, Washington, Wyoming, annual grass, annual herbaceous, cheatgrass, exotic, invasive species, medusahead, nonindigenous species, noxious, perennial grass, red brome, remote sensing, rye brome, sagebrush, soft brome, western United States, Fewer tags

Early Estimates of Exotic Annual Grass (EAG) in the Sagebrush Biome, USA, 2024

These datasets provide early estimates of 2024 fractional cover for exotic annual grass (EAG) species and one native perennial grass species on a weekly basis from April to late June. Typically, the EAG estimates are publicly released within 7-13 days of the latest satellite observation used for that version. Each weekly release contains five fractional cover maps along with their corresponding confidence maps for: 1) a group of 16 species of EAGs, 2) cheatgrass (Bromus tectorum); 3) Field Brome (Bromus arvensis); 4) medusahead (Taeniatherum caput-medusae); and 5) Sandberg bluegrass (Poa secunda). These datasets were generated leveraging field observations from Bureau of Land Management (BLM) Assessment, Inventory,...

Tags: Arizona, California, Colorado, Field Brome, Great Basin, All tags... Harmonized Landsat Sentinel, Idaho, Kansas, Land Use Change, Montana, NDVI, Nebraska, Nevada, New Mexico, North Dakota, Oklahoma, Oregon, Poa secunda, Remote Sensing, South Dakota, Texas, Texas brome, USGS Science Data Catalog (SDC), United States, Utah, Washington, Wyoming, annual grass, annual herbaceous, cheatgrass, exotic, invasive species, medusahead, nonindigenous species, noxious, perennial grass, red brome, remote sensing, rye brome, sagebrush, soft brome, western United States, Fewer tags

Head smut infections on cheatgrass cover in the first four years after the 2015 Soda Wildfire

Data includes head smut infection level (caused by the fungal pathogen, Ustilago bullata) on cheatgrass (Bromus tectorum) and cheatgrass cover for plots measured annually during the first four years after the 2015 Soda wildfire. Additional landscape and weather covariates that are hypothesized to influence infection and host density are included.

Categories: Data; Tags: Botany, Ecology, Idaho, Land Use Change, Oregon, All tags... Owyhee, Soda Wildfire, USGS Science Data Catalog (SDC), United States, biota, cheatgrass, environment, fungal pathogens, invasive species, pathology, sagebrush steppe, Fewer tags

High-resolution maps of historical and 21st century soil temperature and moisture data using multivariate matching algorithms for drylands of western U.S. and Canada

These data were compiled as a supplement to a previously published journal article (Bradford et al., 2019), that employed a ecosystem water balance model to characterize current and future patterns in soil temperature and moisture conditions in dryland areas of western North America. Also, these data are associated with a published USGS data release (Bradford and Schlaepfer, 2019). The objectives of our study were to (1) characterize current and future patterns in soil temperature and moisture conditions in dryland areas of western North America, (2) evaluate the impact of these changes on estimation of resilience and resistance among a representative set of climate scenarios. These data represent geographic patterns...

Tags: Alberta, Arizona, Botany, British Columbia, California, All tags... Climatology, Cnada, Colorado, Ecology, Geography, Idaho, Information Sciences, Iowa, Kansas, Manitoba, Minnesota, Montana, Nebraska, Nevada, New Mexico, North Dakota, Oklahoma, Oregon, RCP4.5, RCP8.5, SOILWAT2, Saskatchewan, Texas, USGS Science Data Catalog (SDC), United States, Utah, Washington, Wyoming, aridification, aridity, big sagebrush ecosystems, biota, cheatgrass, clay loam, climate, climate change, climate models, climatologyMeteorologyAtmosphere, concentration pathways, data release, droughts, ecological model, ecological transformation, future time periods, global circulation models, historical conditions, resilience, sandy loam, silt loam, soil temperature, soil types, western North America, Fewer tags

Database of invasive annual grass spatial products for the western United States January 2010 to February 2021

Invasive annual grasses (IAGs) present a persistent challenge for the ecological management of rangelands, particularly the imperiled sagebrush biome in western North America. Cheatgrass (Bromus tectorum), medusahead (Taeniatherum caput-medusae), and Ventenata spp. are spreading across sagebrush rangelands and already occupy at least 200,000 kilometers squared (km sq.) of the intermountain west. The loss and degradation of native plant communities caused by IAGs threatens the persistence of sagebrush obligate species such as the Greater Sage-grouse (Centrocercus urophasianus) and pygmy rabbit (Brachylagus idahoensis). IAGs convert sagebrush landscapes to monocultures of non-native grasslands that substantially increase...

Categories: Data; Tags: Bromus tectorum, Ecology, Information Sciences, Taeniatherum caput-medusae, USGS Science Data Catalog (SDC), All tags... USGS-EMA-LOW Invasive Species, USGS-EMA-LOW-IS Cheatgrass, Ventenata, cheatgrass, medusahead, research-implementation gap, Fewer tags

Vegetation and soil cover data for long-term monitoring plots within Browns Park National Wildlife Refuge, Colorado, USA

Sixty-eight monitoring plots within the Browns Park National Wildlife refuge in Northwest Colorado were surveyed in the Summer of 2007 and 2021 for vegetation-community changes after grazing cessation in 1986. Surveys consisted of line-point intercept measurements at 0.5m intervals along three 15-m transects arranged in a spoke around plot center at each plot location.

Categories: Data; Tags: Artemesia tridentata, Botany, Bromus tectorum, Colorado, Ecology, All tags... Great Basin, Land Use Change, USGS Science Data Catalog (SDC), biota, cheatgrass, community ecology, ecology, environment, land use and land cover, lichens, mosses, sagebrush, vegetation, Fewer tags

Early Estimates of Exotic Annual Grass (EAG) in the Sagebrush Biome, USA, 2023 (ver. 1.0, May 2023)

These datasets provide early estimates of 2023 fractional cover for exotic annual grass (EAG) species and one native perennial grass species on a weekly basis from May to early July. The EAG estimates are developed typically within 7-13 days of the latest satellite observation used for that version. Each weekly release contains four fractional cover maps along with their corresponding confidence maps for: 1) a group of 16 species of EAGs, 2) cheatgrass (Bromus tectorum); 3) medusahead (Taeniatherum caput-medusae); and 4) Sandberg bluegrass (Poa secunda). These datasets were generated leveraging field observations from Bureau of Land Management (BLM) Assessment, Inventory, and Monitoring (AIM) data plots; Harmonized...

Categories: Data; Types: Downloadable, GeoTIFF, Map Service, Raster; Tags: Arizona, California, Colorado, Great Basin, Harmonized Landsat Sentinel, All tags... Idaho, Kansas, Montana, NDVI, Nebraska, Nevada, New Mexico, North Dakota, Oklahoma, Oregon, Poa secunda, South Dakota, Texas, Texas brome, United States, Utah, Washington, Wyoming, annual grass, annual herbaceous, cheatgrass, exotic, invasive species, medusahead, nonindigenous species, noxious, perennial grass, red brome, remote sensing, rye brome, sagebrush, soft brome, western United States, Fewer tags

Fractional estimates of exotic annual grass cover in dryland ecosystems of western United States (2016 – 2019)

The dryland ecosystems of the western United States have been invaded by exotic annual grasses, such as cheatgrass (Bromus tectorum L.), that has promoted increased fire activity and reduced biodiversity detrimental to socio-environmental systems. The use of remote sensing tools to monitor exotic annual grass cover and dynamics over large areas can support early detection and rapid response initiatives. This dataset was generated using in situ observations from Bureau of Land Management's (BLM) Assessment, Inventory, and Monitoring data (AIM) plots, weekly composites of harmonized Landsat and Sentinel-2 (HLS) data, relevant environmental, vegetation, remotely sensed, and geophysical factors and machine learning...

Tags: California, Colorado, Idaho, Land Use Change, Montana, All tags... Nevada, Oregon, Remote Sensing, USGS Science Data Catalog (SDC), Utah, Washington, Western United States, Wyoming, annual grass, annual herbaceous, biota, biota, cheatgrass, exotic, imageryBaseMapsEarthCover, invasive species, rangeland ecosystems, Fewer tags

Near-real-time Herbaceous Annual Cover in the Sagebrush Ecosystem, USA, July 2018

This dataset provides a near-real-time estimate of 2018 herbaceous annual cover with an emphasis on annual grass (Boyte and Wylie. 2016. Near-real-time cheatgrass percent cover in the Northern Great Basin, USA, 2015. Rangelands 38:278-284.) This estimate was based on remotely sensed enhanced Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (eMODIS) Normalized Difference Vegetation Index (NDVI) data gathered through July 1, 2018. This is the second iteration of an early estimate of herbaceous annual cover for 2018 over the same geographic area. The previous dataset used eMODIS NDVI data gathered through May 1 (https://doi.org/10.5066/P9KSR9Z4). The pixel values for this most recent estimate ranged from 0 to100% with...

Tags: Bromus rubens, Bromus tectorum, California, Colorado, Desert, All tags... Ecology, Geography, Great Basin, Idaho, Land Use Change, Montana, NDVI, Nevada, Oregon, Remote Sensing, Snake River Plain, Taeniatherum caput-medusae, USGS Science Data Catalog (SDC), United States, Utah, Ventenata, Wyoming, annual grass, annual herbaceous, cheatgrass, fire, geoscientificInformation, habitat, invasive, medusahead, red brome, sagebrush, satellite, ventenata dubia, western U.S., Fewer tags

USGS Rangeland Exotic Plant Monitoring System

The introduction of exotic plant species into the western United States has caused substantial changes to rangeland disturbance regimes and ecosystem structure and function. For example, exotic annual grass (EAG) invasion in western rangelands has increased wildfire frequency, which greatly reduces rangeland ecosystem diversity and leads to single-species dominance in many areas. Rangeland monocultures do not provide optimal carbon sequestration and other environmental processes necessary to sustain historically normal ecosystem structure, including the ecological diversity needed to support sagebrush obligates like Greater Sagegrouse, pygmy rabbit, and pronghorn. These obligates, as well as others, require contiguous,...

Categories: Data; Tags: Bromus japonicus, Bromus tectorum, California (CA), Cheatgrass, Colorado (CO), All tags... Deserts, Great Basin, Idaho (ID), Montana (MT), Nevada (NV), Oregon (OR), Sagebrush ecosystem, Snake River, Taeniatherum caput-medusae, Utah (UT), Washington (WA), Wyoming (WY), annual grass, exotic species, invasive species; information management, noxious weeds, red brome, rye brome, sagebrush, satellite, soft brome, western United States, Fewer tags

Early Estimates of Exotic Annual Grass (EAG) in the Sagebrush Biome, USA, July 2021, (ver 2.0, January 2022)

These datasets provide early estimates of 2021 fractional cover for exotic annual grass (EAG) species and a native perennial grass predicted on July 1 using satellite observation data available no later than June 28th. Four fractional cover maps comprise this release, along with the corresponding confidence maps, for: 1) a group of 17 species of EAGs (i.e., Bromus arvensis L., Bromus briziformis, Bromus catharticus Vahl, Bromus commutatus, Bromus diandrus, Bromus hordeaceus L., Bromus hordeaceus spp. hordeaceus, Bromus japonicus, Bromus madritensis L., Bromus madritensis L. ssp. rubens (L.) Duvin, Bromus L., Bromus racemosus, Bromus rubens L., Bromus secalinus L., Bromus tectorum L., Bromus texensis (Shear) Hitchc.,...

Categories: Data; Types: Downloadable, GeoTIFF, Map Service, Raster; Tags: Arizona, California, Colorado, Great Basin, Harmonized Landsat Sentinel, All tags... Idaho, Kansas, Montana, NDVI, Nebraska, Nevada, New Mexico, North Dakota, Oklahoma, Oregon, Poa secunda, South Dakota, Texas, Texas brome, USGS Science Data Catalog (SDC), United States, Utah, Washington, Wyoming, annual grass, annual herbaceous, cheatgrass, exotic, invasive species, medusahead, nonindigenous species, noxious, perennial grass, red brome, remote sensing, rye brome, sagebrush, soft brome, western United States, Fewer tags

3. Early Estimates of Exotic Annual Grass (EAG) in the Sagebrush Biome, USA, 2022 (ver 4.0, June 3rd, 2022)

These datasets provide early estimates of 2022 fractional cover for exotic annual grass (EAG) species and one native perennial grass species on a bi-weekly basis from May to early July. The EAG estimates are developed within one week of the latest satellite observation used for that version. Each bi-weekly release contains four fractional cover maps along with their corresponding confidence maps for: 1) a group of 16 species of EAGs, 2) cheatgrass (Bromus tectorum); 3) medusahead (Taeniatherum caput-medusae); and 4) Sandberg bluegrass (Poa secunda). These datasets were generated leveraging field observations from Bureau of Land Management (BLM) Assessment, Inventory, and Monitoring (AIM) data plots; Harmonized Landsat...

Categories: Data; Types: Downloadable, GeoTIFF, Map Service, Raster; Tags: Arizona, California, Colorado, Great Basin, Harmonized Landsat Sentinel, All tags... Idaho, Kansas, Montana, NDVI, Nebraska, Nevada, New Mexico, North Dakota, Oklahoma, Oregon, Poa secunda, South Dakota, Texas, Texas brome, United States, Utah, Washington, Wyoming, annual grass, annual herbaceous, cheatgrass, exotic, invasive species, medusahead, nonindigenous species, noxious, perennial grass, red brome, remote sensing, rye brome, sagebrush, soft brome, western United States, Fewer tags

Near real time estimation of annual exotic herbaceous fractional cover in the sagebrush ecosystem 30m, USA, July 2020

The dataset provides a near real time estimation of 2020 herbaceous mostly annual fractional cover predicted on July 1st with an emphasis on annual exotic grasses Historically, similar maps were produced at a spatial resolution of 250m (Boyte et al. 2019 https://doi.org/10.5066/P96PVZIF., Boyte et al. 2018 https://doi.org/10.5066/P9RIV03D.), but starting this year we are mapping at a 30m resolution (Pastick et al. 2020 doi:10.3390/rs12040725). This dataset was generated using in situ observations from Bureau of Land Management’s (BLM) Assessment, Inventory, and Monitoring data (AIM) plots; weekly composites of harmonized Landsat and Sentinel-2 (HLS) data (https://hls.gsfc.nasa.gov/); relevant environmental, vegetation,...

Categories: Data; Types: Downloadable, GeoTIFF, Map Service, Raster; Tags: California, Colorado, Great Basin, Harmonized Landsat Sentinel, Idaho, All tags... Information Sciences, Land Use Change, Montana, NDVI, Nevada, Oregon, Texas brome, USGS Science Data Catalog (SDC), United States, Utah, Washington, Wyoming, annual grass, annual herbaceous, cheatgrass, exotic, geoscientificInformation, invasive, medusahead, noxious, red brome, rye brome, sagebrush, satellite, soft brome, western United States, Fewer tags

Early Estimates of Exotic Annual Grass (EAG) in the Sagebrush Biome, USA, 2023 (ver. 2.0, May 2023)

These datasets provide early estimates of 2023 fractional cover for exotic annual grass (EAG) species and one native perennial grass species on a weekly basis from May to early July. The EAG estimates are developed typically within 7-13 days of the latest satellite observation used for that version. Each weekly release contains four fractional cover maps along with their corresponding confidence maps for: 1) a group of 16 species of EAGs, 2) cheatgrass (Bromus tectorum); 3) medusahead (Taeniatherum caput-medusae); and 4) Sandberg bluegrass (Poa secunda). These datasets were generated leveraging field observations from Bureau of Land Management (BLM) Assessment, Inventory, and Monitoring (AIM) data plots; Harmonized...

Categories: Data; Types: Downloadable, GeoTIFF, Map Service, Raster; Tags: Arizona, California, Colorado, Great Basin, Harmonized Landsat Sentinel, All tags... Idaho, Kansas, Montana, NDVI, Nebraska, Nevada, New Mexico, North Dakota, Oklahoma, Oregon, Poa secunda, South Dakota, Texas, Texas brome, United States, Utah, Washington, Wyoming, annual grass, annual herbaceous, cheatgrass, exotic, invasive species, medusahead, nonindigenous species, noxious, perennial grass, red brome, remote sensing, rye brome, sagebrush, soft brome, western United States, Fewer tags

Early Season Invasives Mapping 2001 - 2010, Washington County, Utah, USA

Invasive annual plants such as red brome (Bromus rubens), cheatgrass (B. tectorum), and African mustard (Malcomia africana) can have profound impacts on dryland ecosystems. Potential impacts include the alteration of fuel loads and fire regimes, as well as the competitive displacement of native plant populations. Both of these impacts can significantly degrade habitat quality for wildlife and can have important socioeconomic consequences for human society. To design science-based strategies for mitigating these impacts, managers need information on the relative abundance of invasive plant populations over time and across complex landscapes characterized by multiple management jurisdictions, a range of urban and...

Tags: African Mustard, Cheatgrass, Early Season Invasives, Invasive Annual Plants, North America, All tags... Red Brome, Southwest United States, USGS Science Data Catalog (SDC), United States, Utah, Washington County, Fewer tags

Long-term precipitation reduction experiment in the Colorado Plateau - Survival and mortality data from 2010 to 2018

From 2011-2018 USGS biologists recorded vegetation and biological soil crust (BSC) cover by species and tracked survival of tagged individual plants (388 in total) across 40 locations where paired experimental plots had been installed in 2010. Plant cover was visually estimated using four 75 x 100 cm survey frames. Each site contained a two plots measuring 1.5 by 2.0 meteres: a control plot and a plot covered by a shelter that excluded 35% of incoming precipitation. Plots were selected to represent shallow vs. deep soils, sandstone vs. shale parent material, and dominant plant species on the Colorado Plateau around Moab, Utah. We used an information theoretic approach using generalized linear models to determine...

Tags: Botany, Canyonlands, Colorado Plateau, Ecology, Geography, All tags... Grand County, Indian Creek, Information Sciences, Moab, Salsola, San Juan County, Soil Sciences, USGS Science Data Catalog (SDC), Utah, biogeography, biological soil crust, biota, bromus, cheatgrass, climate change, control plot, deep soils, experimental plot data, geology, graminoids, grass, grassland ecosystem, parent material, perennial, plant populations, plant species, plot sampling, sandstone, shale, shallow soils, shelter plots, shrubland ecosystem, shrubs, shrubs, soil sciences, species cover, vegetation, Fewer tags

Cheatgrass probability of occurrence in the Wyoming Basins Ecoregional Assessment area

Probability map of cheatgrass (Bromus tectorum) occurrence in relation to vegetation, abiotic and anthropogenic features.

Tags: Botany, Bromus tectorum, Cheatgrass, Colorado, Ecology, All tags... Idaho, Land Use Change, Montana, Probability of occurrence, SageDAT-data, USGS Science Data Catalog (SDC), United States, Utah, Western Basins Ecological Assessment, Wyoming, biota, environment, vegetation, Fewer tags