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STATEWIDE PRIORITIZATION OF CHEATGRASS INFESTATIONS IN WYOMING
Author
Noseworthy, Cara E.
Mealor, Brian A.
Publisher
Society for Range Management
Publication Year
2014
Body

Cheatgrass (Bromus tectorum L.) is an invasive winter annual grass prevalent enough in the state of Wyoming to warrant concern from public and private land managers. It is one of many detrimental invasive species in the state, which means prioritizing to ensure the most efficient use of time and resources is important. Current distribution models do not provide enough information beyond presence/absence for effective prioritization. This project has two main objectives:1) to synthesize existing datasets from around Wyoming, gather local expert knowledge, and use GIS to analyze data and 2) to develop a spatially-explicit prioritization model based on invasion characteristics, estimated recovery potential, and potential as wildlife habitat. We performed a multi-criteria decision analysis (MCDA) accounting for elevation, land cover type, human disturbance, and a surface of variance using ArcGIS to develop a set of 200 random, spatially balanced points to guide field surveys for summer 2013. We developed a rapid assessment protocol to classify survey points into invasion levels based on measures of cheatgrass and natives and other qualitative measures (disturbance, other invasive grasses, etc.). Over 12,000 sites have been assessed with around 90% of the sites classified as having no cheatgrass. Future surveys will target areas of cheatgrass dominance to increase understanding of invasion and balance the data. This information will assist in developing a distribution prediction model to inform both future surveys and the overall final goal. This model will be used to identify areas of high risk for cheatgrass dominance, and to prioritize areas for management action and increased field data collection subsequent years. These data will be used in conjunction with habitat indicators to develop further prioritization for management actions. The final goal is to provide a tool to land managers that will be the first step in a statewide cooperative approach to managing cheatgrass.

Language
English
Resource Type
Text
Document Type
Conference Proceedings
Conference Name
SRM Orlando, FL
Collection
SRM Annual Meeting Abstracts