Sagebrush Ecosystem Decline

Iowa became a state in 1846 and by 1860 almost the entire state was settled and farmed by Euro-Americans. The settling led to the devastation of prairie in Iowa. The beautiful lush grasses, forbes, and sedges were being cultivated and planted with crops along with severe overgrazing and much more. Prairie is a habitat type that gets a lot of focus in Iowa today. It gets so much focus because it is such a huge part of Iowa’s ecological history. “Before the advent of white man, prairie covered approximately 84 percent of the area of Iowa”. (Aikman, 1959) “Tallgrass prairie is one of the most endangered ecosystems in North America (Sampson and Knoppf, 1996), with less less than one percent of its original extent remaining.” (Rowe, Fargione, Holland,

For as long as mankind can conceive, fire has been a remarkable tool to conquer. When controlled, it provides necessary heat, energy, and fuel for a consumer to use; however, when fire goes unattended, it has the potential to become a wholly destructive element. The more western states of America, such as Utah and Colorado, have repeatedly experienced this concept in its most devastating form: wildfires. A wildfire is generally considered to be difficult to control and fast moving, swallowing anything that lay in its path, including forest or human habitat. As human incursion reaches more remote areas in wooded mountains, wildfires pose a serious threat to high-end homes and secluded cabins. The untamed nature of these fires also allows them to creep into subdivisions and endanger more

The purpose of this experiment is to observe secondary succession at Umass Dartmouth and test the prediction that diversity increases through ecological succession. Students went outside to the lawn underneath the wind mill on campus. 3 transect sites were located by the instructor. Students predicted the species and percent cover of each species on each trail site. Bar charts were made to compare the number of species in each transect. Pi-charts were made to compare the percent coverage of species in each transect.

Anstey Hill Recreation Park proves an interesting area to study the effects of bushfire on native ecosystems as a path winding up the hill provides a fire break. This break is what allows the two differing burn areas to be studied. The 2012 fire was a prescribed burn as the area had previously been unburnt since Ash Wednesday in 1983. Prescribed burns are conducted to reduce the fire danger associated with the fuel that builds up over time in the

1 The U.S. Bureau of Land Management has stepped in to provide restorative practices upon 500,000 acres of heavily degraded public grasslands. This land is suffering from severe soil erosion as well as degradation due to overgrazing. The suppression of natural fires has caused shrubs and invasive weeds to encroach upon the grasslands. A full scale assessment will take place on this land before restoration efforts begin. The first thing that would need to be assessed is the soil, for it is eroding and holding little nutrient value. Samples would be taken of this soil from various parts of the grasslands including the eroded gullies. Each soil sample would be taken from at least 1 foot below the surface, to test for carbon richness below the topsoil. These would then be tested for texture, density, water retention, and chemical composition. Typically, powerful, healthy soil will contain amounts of both Nitrogen and Phosphorous, which are essential nutrients in sustainable plant growth. These samples would also be tested for any build-up of salts, something known as soil salinization. Unhealthy, salinized soil is created over years of over-hydrating and deep plowing. Excess water will suffocate root systems of once-healthy crops, and salinized soils will reduce crop output up to 20% (Withgott &Brennan, 2011). The next assessment would be in the shrubs and invasive weed species on the land. Knowing the volume and location of these plants gives way to a better understanding of

Brooks (EPA), J. Heinrichs (UW), S. McMillin (California Department of Fish and Wildlife) and C. Wilsey (UW). Landuse change scenarios were developed by Jim Thorne and the Information Center for the Environment at UC Davis. The information in this document has been funded in part by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency. It has been subjected to review by the National Health and Environmental Effects Research Laboratory’s Western Ecology Division and approved for publication. Approval does not signify that the contents reflect the views of the Agency, nor does mention of trade names or commercial products constitute endorsement or recommendation for

The Appalachians span over a distance of 1,600 miles, ranging across 14 states, from Newfoundland in the North, to Alabama in the South. The Appalachians are the oldest chain of mountains on the North American continent. With forest, comes forest fires, some natural and some prescribed by humans. In order to reduce the calamitous damage caused by natural wildfires, the technique of prescribed fires is used. This is done by diminishing the amounts of trees, shrubs, and brush in the intended area. By doing this, new native plant growth is encouraged and it helps maintain some plant and animal species that depend on the periodic fires. With this man made force comes numerous effects on vegetation, wildlife, and the human impact.

The Rim Fire of 2013 ravaged the slopes of the Stanislaus National Forest leaving many areas severely burned and unable to recover. Restoration efforts have been made and 56,000 saplings were planted in 2016 in the most severely burned areas; but the forest still has a long way to recovery. Fires are a naturally occurring hazard in the Stanislaus National Forest, and have contributed to the replenishment, control, and sustainability of the forest; but fires of the Rim Fire's intensity are very rare. The Rim Fire destroyed over 277,314 acres of habitat, harmed many mature trees, and ruined the layers of topsoil, and increased erosion and runoff. The devastation of the Rim Fire would not be have been so intense if it weren’t for past fire

After attending the “Traditional Ecological Knowledge in Ecosystem Sustainability Conference,” I learned about the ecological issues that Native Americans faced when individuals outside of their community appropriated land towards other means of production. Similarly, the speaker Delphine Jackson had discussed how her community was being disturbed by the construction of dams and highways, which destroyed the environment where animals lived and thrived. Additionally, the speaker Valeria A. Small explained the issues of their culture being impeded by an invasive plant that was established by non-native people. Getting their voices heard was not an easy task, for many of the people who created the newly developed roads and embedded the invasive plant species were seeing reality differently than the natives in the sense that the land was meant to be used

The rising number of high severity wildfires in California has significant ecological, economic, and health impacts. Many western American forests are adapted to frequent low severity fires. However, the majority of these forests, and particularly the mixed conifer forests of California, are not adapted to high intensity fires and do not possess fire resistance adaptations such as serotinous cones to protect seeds. Consequently, high severity fires have significant negative impacts on California forests, and the absence of low severity fires has considerably altered many fundamental ecosystem processes (Miller et al. 2008). Prior to 1900, low severity fires would burn every 6-15 years. Low severity fires are generally non-lethal, have minimal change to the overstory, and kill mainly small trees. In the past, these fires were started naturally by lightning, or by Native Americans who used low severity fires to manage the forests.

Before the drastic events of the dust bowl, white settlers, lured in by extremely inexpensive land, arrived to have lives as farmers. However, to obtain this land Native Americans were forced off of their own land, leaving millions of acres with thick prairie grass. This seemingly indestructible grass could survive lightning strikes, harsh winters, blazing summers, and the most anhydrous droughts. Sadly, when the settlers arrived, the destruction and removal of the grass from the vast plains began. To accomplish such a feat, farmers used axes, sharp blade plows, and some farmers even used their bare hands. In only two decades, millions of acres of prairie grass was completely obliterated, just for wheat to replace it. Thankfully for the farmers, the wheat was fruitful, for plentiful rain ensued the planting of the wheat. At this time, humans destroyed the prairie grass.

Also known as salt cedar, the Tamarisk plant was imported in the 1850’s as an ornamental plant and also used as a method to control erosion. There are a few pros to this invasive species but they do pose a concern. Tamarisk not only crowds out natural riparian vegetation, but also consumes an alarming amount of water. To effectively save as much water in the river as possible, putting an end to this invasive species may be necessary. Since the Tamarisk roots run deep, it helps out a lot with erosion, however it consumes a significant amount of water. Tamarisk covers about 50,000 acres of the Colorado basin area and consumes more water annually than the rivers native vegetation. Not only do these plants deplete the water but the animals living in areas where the tamarisk grows, are usually fewer in number and type, and are less healthy then animals in areas where Tamarisk does not grow. Although the issue with the Tamarisk plant is very small compared to the other issues involving the river, it is still important that the plant be removed to improve and conserve the Colorado River (Nijhuis).

Influence on ecosystems range from human causes like the bulldozing of a forest to natural causes like a fire or a flood.  In recent times, the introduction and spread of invasive species has transformed native communities rapidly and, in some cases, created irreversible damages.  In the Earth’s history, changes have often occurred in the ecosystems.  For example, glaciers and the retreat of glaciers cause wide-spread changes.  However, although change is a constant in ecosystems, animals and habitats often cannot adapt to the rapid alterations of non-natural stresses.  Harm to the environment from the introduction of invasive species occurs through changes in the habitat and declines in the native species.  Invasive species

Humans have been changing the Western forests' fire system since the settlement by the Europeans and now we are experiencing the consequences of those changes. During the summer of 2002, 6.9 million acres of forests was burnt up in the West (Wildland Fires, 1). This figure is two times the ten year annual average, and it does not look like next summer will be any better (Wildfire Season, 1).

Forests have covered the earth for millions of years, providing habitat and food for animals and humans. These forests have stabilized different ecosystems and have continued the natural cycle that keeps plants and animals in check. The discovery of fire changed all of this. It was the beginning of deforestation, a process that has continued and increased over the last 200,000 years. Humans are the responsible party for the deforestation that has occurred. Humans discovered that animals could be driven with fire. This led to accelerated forest loss due to uncontrolled burning for hunting use (Miller & Tangley 1991: 28). Agriculture was the next problem