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Response of a remnant marmot population to habitat enhancement yields insights into marmot ecology

Publications Posted on: January 04, 2021
We evaluated the response of a remnant population of yellow-bellied marmots (Marmota flaviventris) to targeted habitat enhancement in an ecological system that had been degraded during ~100 years of intensive livestock management, including marmot eradication. We used capture-recapture data and a novel use of a multistate framework to evaluate geographic expansion of the marmot population pre- and post-habitat enhancement.

Fire Lab tree list: A tree-level model of the conterminous United States landscape circa 2014

Datasets Posted on: December 30, 2020
Observations of the forests of the conterminous United States at the level of individual trees would be of utility for any number of applications, ranging from modelling the effect of wildland fire on terrestrial carbon resources to estimation of timber volume. While such observations do exist at selected spots such as established forest plots, most forests have not been mapped with this level of specificity.

In the hot seat: Mexican Spotted Owl habitat could dry up in the face of climate change

Publications Posted on: December 14, 2020
Global climate change represents a growing conservation threat, but our understanding of the effects of climate change remains limited for most species. Understanding these effects may be particularly important for species that are already threatened by other factors, because climate change may interact synergistically with those factors. One such species is the threatened Mexican Spotted Owl (Strix occidentalis lucida).

Predictive habitat suitability models for nesting woodpeckers following wildfire in the Sierra Nevada and Southern Cascades of California

Publications Posted on: December 11, 2020
Woodpeckers are often focal species for informing management of recently burned forests. Snags generated by wildfire provide key nesting and foraging resources for woodpeckers, and nest cavities excavated by woodpeckers are subsequently used by many other species. Habitat suitability models applicable in newly burned forest are important management tools for identifying areas likely to be used by nesting woodpeckers.

Fire and biodiversity in the Anthropocene

Publications Posted on: November 20, 2020
Fire has been a source of global biodiversity for millions of years. However, interactions with anthropogenic drivers such as climate change, land use, and invasive species are changing the nature of fire activity and its impacts. We review how such changes are threatening species with extinction and transforming terrestrial ecosystems.

Proactive limber pine conservation strategy for the Greater Rocky Mountain National Park Area - an overview

Publications Posted on: October 01, 2020
Ecological condition and context determine the likelihood of success of management interventions to mitigate impacts of white pine blister rust (WPBR) (Schoettle et al. 2019a). In populations heavily impacted by WPBR, the remaining seed trees may be too few to support natural regeneration even with management intervention.

Using ecological resilience to manage ecosystems and species at risk

Science Spotlights Posted on: August 28, 2020
In this era of rapid global change, managing for ecological resilience can significantly increase our ability to maintain high value resources and ecosystem services. New information on how to apply ecological resilience concepts to natural resources management has recently been complied by USDA Forest Service scientists and their colleagues in an e-book published by Frontiers in Ecology and Evolution. Examples are provided for variety of different ecosystems at the scales relevant to managers. 

Editorial: Operationalizing the concepts of resilience and resistance for managing ecosystems and species at risk

Publications Posted on: August 13, 2020
Ecological resilience is essential for maintaining ecosystem services in an era of rapid global change, but successful attempts to operationalize it for managing ecosystems at risk have been limited.

Fire and land cover change in the Palouse Prairie-forest ecotone, Washington and Idaho, USA

Publications Posted on: August 10, 2020
Prairie-forest ecotones are ecologically important for biodiversity and ecological processes. While these ecotones cover small areas, their sharp gradients in land cover promote rich ecological interaction and high conservation value. Our objective was to understand how historical and current fire occurrences and human development influenced the Palouse Prairie-forest ecotone.

A framework for sagebrush

Publications Posted on: July 29, 2020
An unprecedented conservation effort is underway across 11 western states to address risks to sagebrush ecosystems and the species that depend on them. The sagebrush biome - the largest biome in the Lower 48 states - provides a large diversity of habitats and supports more than 350 species of conservation concern.

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