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SAGE-GROUSE GROCERIES: FORB RESPONSE TO PIÑON-JUNIPER TREATMENTS.
Author
Bates, Jonathan
Davies, Kirk W.
Hulet, April
Miller, Richard F.
Roundy, Bruce
Publisher
Society for Range Management
Publication Year
2017
Body

Juniper and pi�on woodlands have increased 2 to 10-fold in nine ecoregions spanning the Intermountain area of the western United States the past 150 years.� Control of these woodlands by mechanical treatments and prescribed fire has been applied since the 1950�s.� The Sage Grouse Initiative has made conifer removal a major part of its efforts to reestablish sagebrush habitat for sage-grouse and other shrub steppe species.� We analyzed data sets from previous and ongoing studies characterizing cover response of perennial and annual forbs, consumed by sage-grouse, to mechanical, prescribed fire and fuel reduction treatments.� There were 11 sites in western juniper woodlands, three sites in singleleaf pi�on and Utah juniper, two sites in Utah juniper, and two sites in Utah juniper and Colorado pi�on.� Western juniper sites were in NW California, eastern Oregon, and SW Idaho and were located in mountain big sagebrush steppe associations.� Sites for the other woodlands were in eastern Nevada and western Utah and were located in Wyoming big sagebrush associations.� Site potential was a major determinant for increasing perennial forbs utilized by sage-grouse following conifer control.� The cover response of perennial forbs, whether increasing or exhibiting no change, was similar regardless of conifer treatment. For sage-grouse habitat, mechanical and low disturbance-fuel reduction conifer treatments produce similar perennial forb responses compared to fire while maintaining the habitat characteristics of sagebrush steppe. Annual forbs favored by sage-grouse benefitted most from prescribed fire treatments with smaller increases following mechanical and fuel reduction treatments.� Where large scale use of fire is not a management option in sage-grouse habitat, small-patchy fires to control conifers might offer opportunities to increase annual forbs and create more diverse habitat mosaic.

Language
English
Resource Type
Text
Document Type
Conference Proceedings
Conference Name
SRM St. George, UT
Collection
SRM Annual Meeting Abstracts