Since European settlement of the Great Basin in the mid to late 1800s, the spatial extent and density of pinyon and juniper have increased considerably (Tausch et al. 1981). Increases in fuel loads have been compounded by invasion of fire-adapted, non-native annual grasses, particularly cheatgrass (Bromus tectorum). Consequently, the frequency, intensity, and size of fires in pinyon-juniper woodlands and adjacent riparian woodlands is increasing (Miller and Rose 1999, Swetnam et al. 1999). Attendant risks include loss of human life and property, declines in native biodiversity, and rising costs of fire management.

Prescribed fire and other fuels treatments have been suggested as mechanisms to manage the risk of wildfire and minimize ecological degradation (Dombeck et al. 2004). Especially at the local level, however, little information exists to predict how alternative fire management strategies will affect native species and communities. Understanding biological responses not only to current fuels treatments but also to longer-term environmental changes is critical to development of practical tools for ecological restoration and maintenance (Chambers and Miller 2004).

Birds and butterflies are appropriate taxonomic groups for evaluating such responses. They are well-known ecologically, relatively easy to study and monitor, and popular with the public. Various measures of the biodiversity of birds and butterflies have been proposed as surrogate measures of the status of other taxonomic groups and ecological processes, and many species of birds have been identified as priorities for management. Moreover, birds and butterflies respond-often at different scales-to many of the changes in vegetation structure and composition that are likely to result from modified fire regimes (e.g., George and Dobkin 2002, Knick et al. 2002). Birds have been selected as a focal group for JFSP-supported research on the effects of fire on wildlife in ponderosa pine forests across the western United States. Our proposed work will leverage existing capacity by linking similar research programs in pinyon­juniper woodlands, riparian woodlands, and ponderosa pine forests.

The success of fuels management depends in part on how those activities interact with climatic variability and other sources of land cover change (McKenzie et al. 2004). Distributions of birds and butterflies are affected by physiological constraints and the spatial arrangement of habitats in addition to habitat quality (e.g., Root et al. 2003). During 1983-1984, data on the distribution and abundance of birds were collected in pinyon-juniper and riparian woodlands in the Toiyabe Range (Dobkin and Wilcox 1986). We plan to resurvey many of those locations. Integration of remote sensing data with different spatial and temporal resolutions (e.g., Landsat, AVHRR, MODIS) and field data will allow us to evaluate whether the distribution of woodlands and woodland-associated birds has changed during the past 20-25 years (e.g., Turner et al. 2001). This information will address management needs by indicating how birds may respond to fuels treatments in diverse woodland types. In addition, our work will identify any ongoing shifts in bird occurrence that may affect objectives and measures of success for fire management.

The purpose of this agreement is to meet the information needs of local land managers by evaluating responses of birds, butterflies, and their habitats to fire and fuels treatments in Great Basin pinyon-juniper woodlands at multiple spatial and temporal scales. In collaboration with land managers, we will develop and implement efficient methods for transferring spatially explicit data, results, and inferences for applied management.

1. Evaluate the response of Great Basin pinyon-juniper woodlands and associated vegetation communities that serve as bird and butterfly habitats to wildfire and prescribed fire from one to six years post-fire at both small and relatively large (watershed) spatial extents.
2. Examine the response of birds and butterflies (communities and individual species) to wildfire and prescribed fire in pinyon-juniper woodlands from one to eight years post-fire. Examine how responses are likely to "scale up" from individuals to populations and from relatively small treatments (<- 400 ha) to relatively large treatments (15,000 ha).
3. Leverage existing capacity of JFSP projects and increase understanding of transferability of results by partnering with Colorado State University scientists to compare the response of birds to fire in pinyon-juniper woodlands and ponderosa pine forests.
4. By integrating remote sensing and field research, evaluate whether the distribution and density of pinyon-juniper woodlands, riparian woodlands, and woodland-associated birds in the central Great Basin has changed during the past 20-25 years.
5. In collaboration with land managers, develop and implement efficient methods for transferring spatially explicit data, analysis summaries, and inferences for applied management