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At least 1,117 records · Page 62Linked to original sources

USGS2023

Microgravity as a tool for eruption forecasting

Detection of gravity change over time has been used to better understand magmatic activity at volcanoes for decades, but the technique is not commonly applied to forecasting eruptions. In contrast, other tools, notably seismic, deformation, and gas monitoring have made exceptional strides in the past several decades and form the foundation for eruption forecasting, especially during the final buildup to an eruption. Reasons for this gap include the high cost and fragile nature of gravity instruments, and the ambiguous nature of many results. But this is changing. Instrumentation is becoming more robust and accurate, expenses may soon diminish thanks to technological advances, and the record of success in tracking subsurface mass change (either from magma or hydrothermal fluids) in volcanic areas is growing. Here we review how gravity change can be applied to forecasting volcanic eruptions across a variety of spatial and temporal scales. We argue that microgravity has untapped potential as a forecasting tool in three specific ways: constraining probabilistic assessments, detecting long-term mass change that may occur prior to the onset of vigorous seismicity and deformation, and identifying transient activity that indicates magma ascent or other changes that immediately precede new eruptions or changes in ongoing eruptions. As with any volcano-monitoring method, microgravity has strengths and weaknesses, but the varied forms of data collection—for instance, campaign versus continuous, and relative versus absolute—offer the potential to record a broad range of signals at volcanoes with a diversity of magmatic systems. The technique is currently underutilized; additional attention, investment, and application at more volcanoes could help to realize its promise.

Hawai'i↗

USGS2012

Land change variability and human-environment dynamics in the United States Great Plains

Land use and land cover changes have complex linkages to climate variability and change, biophysical resources, and socioeconomic driving forces. To assess these land change dynamics and their causes in the Great Plains, we compare and contrast contemporary changes across 16 ecoregions using Landsat satellite data and statistical analysis. Large-area change analysis of agricultural regions is often hampered by change detection error and the tendency for land conversions to occur at the local-scale. To facilitate a regional-scale analysis, a statistical sampling design of randomly selected 10 km × 10 km blocks is used to efficiently identify the types and rates of land conversions for four time intervals between 1973 and 2000, stratified by relatively homogenous ecoregions. Nearly 8% of the overall Great Plains region underwent land-use and land-cover change during the study period, with a substantial amount of ecoregion variability that ranged from less than 2% to greater than 13%. Agricultural land cover declined by more than 2% overall, with variability contingent on the differential characteristics of regional human–environment systems. A large part of the Great Plains is in relatively stable land cover. However, other land systems with significant biophysical and climate limitations for agriculture have high rates of land change when pushed by economic, policy, technology, or climate forcing factors. The results indicate the regionally based potential for land cover to persist or fluctuate as land uses are adapted to spatially and temporally variable forcing factors.

Colorado;Iowa;Kansas;Minnesota;Missouri;Montana;Ne↗

USGS2019

Evaluating the role of Farm Bill conservation program participation in conserving America’s grasslands

Grasslands are one of the most imperiled ecosystems in the world and the majority of the grassland ecosystem in the United States is privately owned and used for agriculture. Conversion of grasslands to row crops is expanding, fueled by commodity price increases, technological improvements, and agricultural policy. The U.S. government primarily uses voluntary incentive-based conservation programs to address the environmental impacts of agriculture and encourage conservation on private land. To investigate the utility of these programs to conserve grasslands, we surveyed private landowners in the Plains and Prairie Pothole Ecoregion (PPPE), one of America’s most at-risk grassland areas, about their land use, environmental attitudes and values, and reasons for or against participating in a Farm Bill conservation program. Agricultural landowners with large land holdings, who value hunting, and have positive environmental values, attitudes, and behaviors, were more likely to participate in a program. Financial considerations and a desire for autonomy limited participation. While program participants had less land in grass than nonparticipants and were more likely to convert planted grass to row crops and/or remove wetlands, they were also less likely to convert virgin sod to row crops. These findings signal the need for additional research and tools other than FBCPs to conserve the PPPE grasslands.

Land Use Policy↗

USGS2015

Fine-scale movements of rural free-ranging dogs in conservation areas in the temperate rainforest of the coastal range of southern Chile

Domestic dogs can play a variety of important roles for farmers. However, when in proximity to conservation areas, the presence of rural free-ranging dogs can be problematic due to the potential for predation of, competition with, or transmission of infectious disease to local threatened fauna. We used a frequent location radio tracking technology to study rural free-ranging dog movements and habitat use into sensitive conservation habitats. To achieve a better understanding of foray behaviors in dogs we monitored dogs ( n = 14) in rural households located in an isolated area between the Valdivian Coastal Reserve and the Alerce Costero National Park in southern Chile. Dogs were mostly located near households (<200 m) but exhibited a diurnal pattern of directed excursions (forays) away from their home locations. Dogs spent, on average, 5.3% of their time in forays with average per dog foray distances from the house ranging 0.5–1.9 km (maximum distance detected 4.3 km). Foraying behavior was positively associated with pasture habitat compared to forest habitat including protected lands. Foraying dogs rarely used forest habitat and, when entered, trails and/or roads were selected for movement. Our study provides important information about how dogs interact in a fine-scale with wildlife habitat, and, in particular, protected lands, providing insight into how dog behavior might drive wildlife interactions, and, in turn, how an understanding of dog behavior can be used to manage these interactions.

Alerce Costero National Park; Valdivian Coastal Re↗

USGS2012

Resource and hazard implications of gas hydrates in the Northern Gulf of Mexico: Results of the 2009 Joint Industry Project Leg II Drilling Expedition

In the 1970's, Russian scientists were the first to suggest that gas hydrates, a crystalline solid of water and natural gas, and a historical curiosity to physical chemists, should occur in abundance in the natural environment. Since this early start, the scientific foundation has been built for the realization that gas hydrates are a global phenomenon, occurring in permafrost regions of the arctic and in deep water portions of most continental margins worldwide. Recent field testing programs in the Arctic (Dallimore et al., 2008; Yamamoto and Dallimore, 2008) have indicated that natural gas can be produced from gas hydrate accumulations, particularly when housed in sand-rich sediments, with existing conventional oil and gas production technology (Collett et al., 2008) and preparations are now being made for the first marine field production tests (Masuda et al., 2009). Beyond a future energy resource, gas hydrates in some settings may represent a geohazard. Other studies also indicate that methane released to the atmosphere from destabilized gas hydrates may have contributed to global climate change in the past.

Northern Gulf Of Mexico↗

USGS2015

Preface to the special issue on gas hydrate drilling in the Eastern Nankai Trough

Methane hydrate traps enormous amounts of methane in frozen deposits in continental margin sediments, and these deposits have long been targeted for studies investigating their potential as an energy resource. As a concentrated form of methane that occurs at shallower depths than conventional and most unconventional gas reservoirs, methane hydrates could be a readily accessible source of hydrocarbons for countries hosting deposits within their Exclusive Economic Zones. Japan is one such country, and since 2001 the Research Consortium for Methane Hydrate Resources in Japan (referred to as MH21) has conducted laboratory, modeling, and field-based programs to study methane hydrates as an energy resource. The MH21 consortium is funded by the Japanese Ministry of Trade and Industry (METI) and led by the Japan Oil, Gas and Metals National Oil Corporation (JOGMEC) and the National Institute of Advanced Industrial Science and Technology (AIST).

Marine and Petroleum Geology↗

USGS2019

Permeability variation and anisotropy of gas hydrate-bearing pressure-core sediments recovered from the Krishna–Godavari Basin, offshore India

Permeability measurements were conducted on gas hydrate-bearing pressure-core sediments recovered from the Krishna-Godavari Basin during India's National Gas Hydrate Program Expedition 02. Pressure cores collected in the deep seabed of the Indian Ocean were cut and stored under high pressure and low temperature on the D/V Chikyu using pressure core analyzing tools. A total of 25 1.2-m storage chambers were transferred to Japan from India for pressure core studies using pressure-core analysis tools at the National Institute of Advanced Industrial Science and Technology. The sediment core's pressure and temperature were maintained within the hydrate stability conditions during the entire process of transfer and loading into a triaxial testing apparatus called TACTT, which can simulate the in-situ stress state under triaxial conditions. The hydrate saturation of the samples was in the range of 50¬90%. It was found that the initial effective water permeability was in range of 0.01 mD to tens of mD, depending on the hydrate saturation and the mean particle size of the host sediment. The hydrate pore space morphology is also a critical factor, and results suggest hydrates are forming in the pore centers, but also as a sediment grain coating. In a first for gas hydrate-bearing pressure cores, the permeability anisotropy was established via vertical and horizontal flow tests combined with a pore fluid flow simulation. The horizontal/vertical permeability ratio was found to be 4. Additionally, the effective stress dependency of permeability was investigated by performing flow tests at different effective stresses. Due to decreasing porosity and particle crushing, the permeability dropped by approximately 90% for an effective stress increase of 10 MPa.

Krishna–Godavari Basin↗

USGS2019

India National Gas Hydrate Program Expedition-02: Operational and technical summary

The India National Gas Hydrate Program is being steered by the government of India's Ministry of Petroleum and Natural Gas (MoPNG) with participation of Directorate General of Hydrocarbons (DGH), Oil and Natural Gas Corporation Limited (ONGC), and the National Oil Companies and Research Institutes of India. The India National Gas Hydrate Program Expedition 01 (NGHP-01) established the presence of gas hydrate in the Krishna Godavari (KG) and Mahanadi Basins and in the offshore area of the Andaman Sea Basin. However, the gas hydrates discovered during NGHP-01 were mainly distributed as fracture-filling material in fine-grained clay-rich sediments. The India National Gas Hydrate Program Expedition 02 (NGHP-02) was carried out with an objective to discover gas hydrate in sand-rich sediment along the eastern offshore margin of India. ONGC planned and executed NGHP-02 on the behalf of the MoPNG. NGHP-02 started on March 3, 2015 and was completed on July 28, 2015 (total 147 days) using the Japanese scientific Drilling Vessel Chikyu (D/V Chikyu). During NGHP-02, 42 holes at 25 sites were drilled, cored, and/or surveyed with downhole logging tools. These sites were located in four areas along the eastern margin of India and formally named Area A (Mahanadi Basin, three sites), Area B (northern part of the KG-Basin, twelve sites), Area C (central part of the KG-Basin, six sites), and Area E (southern part to the KG-Basin, four sites). All 25 sites established during NGHP-02 were first drilled and logged with logging-while-drilling (LWD) tools and an additional 17 holes were then drilled and/or cored with conventional coring tools (HPCS/ESCS) or pressure coring tools (PCTB). Wireline logging was conducted in 10 holes and formation tests using a dual packer Modular Formation Dynamics Tester (MDT) tool were carried out in two holes. The onboard science team used the laboratory facilities on the D/V Chikyu to examine and analyse the physical properties, geochemistry, and sedimentology of all the cores collected during the expedition. Core samples were also analysed in additional post-expedition shore-based studies conducted in numerous domestic and international gas hydrate research laboratories. The NGHP-02 sediment cores were archived at the National Gas Hydrate Core Repository in Mumbai (India), which is associated with the ONGC Gas Hydrate Research and Technology Centre (GHRTC). The necessary data for characterizing the occurrence of gas hydrate, such as interstitial water chlorinities, core-derived gas chemistry, physical and sedimentological properties, thermal images of the recovered cores, pressure core and downhole measured logging data (LWD and/or conventional wireline log data), were obtained from most of the drill sites established during NGHP-02. Almost all the drill sites yielded evidence for the occurrence of gas hydrate; however, the inferred in situ concentration of gas hydrate varied substantially from site to site. For the most part, the interpretation of downhole logging data, core thermal images, interstitial water analyses, and pressure core images from the sites established during NGHP-02 indicate that the occurrence of concentrated gas hydrate is mostly associated with coarser grained (sand-rich) sediments. This paper presents the operational and technical summary of NGHP-02. NGHP-02 started on March 3, 2015 and was completed on July 28, 2015 (total 147 days) using the Japanese scientific Drilling Vessel Chikyu (D/V Chikyu). During NGHP-02, 42 holes at 25 sites were drilled, cored, and/or surveyed with downhole logging tools. These sites were located in four areas along the eastern margin of India and formally named Area A (Mahanadi Basin, three sites), Area B (northern part of the KG-Basin, twelve sites), Area C (central part of the KG-Basin, six sites), and Area E (southern part to the KG-Basin, four sites). All 25 sites established during NGHP-02 were first drilled and logged with logging-while-drilling (LWD) to

Journal of Marine and Petroleum Geology↗

USGS2024

Evaluation of streamflow predictions from LSTM models in water- and energy-limited regions in the United States

The application of Long Short-Term Memory (LSTM) models for streamflow predictions has been an area of rapid development, supported by advancements in computing technology, increasing availability of spatiotemporal data, and availability of historical data that allows for training data-driven LSTM models. Several studies have focused on improving the performance of LSTM models; however, few studies have assessed the applicability of these LSTM models across different hydroclimate regions. This study investigated the single-basin trained local (one model for each basin), multi-basin trained regional (one model for one region), and grand (one model for several regions) models for predicting daily streamflow in water-limited Great Basin (18 basins) and energy-limited New England (27 basins) regions in the United States using the CAMELS (Catchment Attributes and Meteorology for Large-sample Studies) data set. The results show a general pattern of higher accuracy in daily streamflow predictions from the regional model when compared to local or grand models for most basins in the New England region. For the Great Basin region, local models provided smaller errors for most basins and substantially lower for those basins with relatively larger errors from the regional and grand models. The evaluation of one-layer and three-layer LSTM network architectures trained with 1-day lag information indicates that the addition of model complexity by increasing the number of layers may not necessarily increase the model skill for improving streamflow predictions. Findings from our study highlight the strengths and limitations of LSTM models across contrasting hydroclimate regions in the United States, which could be useful for local and regional scale decisions using standalone or potential integration of data-driven LSTM models with physics-based hydrological models.

Machine Learning with Applications↗

USGS2008

Role of NSO compounds during primary cracking of a Type II kerogen and a Type III lignite

The aim of this work is to follow the generation of NSO compounds during the artificial maturation of an immature Type II kerogen and a Type III lignite in order to determine the different sources of the petroleum potential during primary cracking. Experiments were carried out in closed system pyrolysis in the temperature range from 225 to 350 ??C. Two types of NSOs were recovered: one is soluble in n-pentane and the second in dichloromethane. A kinetic scheme was optimised including both kerogen and NSO cracking. It was validated by complementary experiments carried out on isolated asphaltenes generated from the Type II kerogen and on the total n-pentane and DCM extracts generated from the Type III lignite. Results show that kerogen and lignite first decompose into DCM NSOs with minor generation of hydrocarbons. Then, the main source of petroleum potential originates from secondary cracking of both DCM and n-pentane NSOs through successive decomposition reactions. These results confirm the model proposed by Tissot [Tissot, B., 1969. Premie??res donne??es sur les me??canismes et la cine??tique de la formation du pe??trole dans les bassins se??dimentaires. Simulation d'un sche??ma re??actionnel sur ordinateur. Oil and Gas Science and Technology 24, 470-501] in which the main source of hydrocarbons is not the insoluble organic matter, but the NSO fraction. As secondary cracking of the NSOs largely overlaps that of the kerogen, it was demonstrated that bulk kinetics in open system is a result of both kerogen and NSO cracking. Thus, another kinetic scheme for primary cracking in open system was built as a combination of kerogen and NSO cracking. This new kinetic scheme accounts for both the rate and amounts of hydrocarbons generated in a closed pyrolysis system. Thus, the concept of successive steps for hydrocarbon generation is valid for the two types of pyrolysis system and, for the first time, a common kinetic scheme is available for extrapolating results to natural case studies. ?? 2007 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Organic Geochemistry↗

USGS2023

Mapping ancient sedimentary organic matter molecular structure at nanoscales using optical photothermal infrared spectroscopy

Elucidating the molecular structure of sedimentary organic matter (SOM) is key to understanding petroleum generation processes, as well as ancient sedimentary environments. SOM structure is primarily controlled by biogenic source material (e.g., marine vs. terrigenous), depositional conditions, and subsurface thermal history. Additional factors, e.g., strain, may also impact the molecular structure of SOM. Multiple spatially resolved approaches exist for in situ evaluation of SOM, including Raman and infrared spectroscopies, as well as mass spectrometric methods. While these methods have enabled increased understanding of the occurrence and distribution of SOM functional groups, they suffer from disadvantages including low spatial resolution (infrared spectroscopy), limited molecular information (Raman spectroscopy), and sample destruction (mass spectrometric methods). Recent technological advances have resulted in infrared spectrometers capable of breaking the Abbe diffraction limit, greatly increasing the spatial resolutions accessible for an infrared measurement. Here we utilize optical photothermal infrared spectroscopy (O-PTIR) to record maps of functional group distributions at 500 nm spatial resolution in Tasmanites (algal microfossils) from the Upper Devonian Ohio Shale. These data allow for discrimination between Tasmanites , adjacent SOM, and fine-grained minerals. Additionally, functional group distributions within Tasmanites were found to be generally homogenous, although slight variations exist between the body and fold apices (zones of greatest deformation) which may indicate strain-induced chemical reactions. The data presented here represent the first application of O-PTIR to study SOM, highlighting the promise of this analytical approach for future studies evaluating the molecular composition of geologic materials at sub-micron scales.

Organic Geochemistry↗

USGS2004

Scientific objectives and selection of targets for the SMART-1 Infrared Spectrometer (SIR)

The European SMART-1 mission to the Moon, primarily a testbed for innovative technologies, was launched in September 2003 and will reach the Moon in 2005. On board are several scientific instruments, including the point-spectrometer SMART-1 Infrared Spectrometer (SIR). Taking into account the capabilities of the SMART-1 mission and the SIR instrument in particular, as well as the open questions in lunar science, a selection of targets for SIR observations has been compiled. SIR can address at least five topics: (1) Surface/regolith processes; (2) Lunar volcanism; (3) Lunar crust structure; (4) Search for spectral signatures of ices at the lunar poles; and (5) Ground truth and study of geometric effects on the spectral shape. For each topic we will discuss specific observation modes, necessary to achieve our scientific goals. The majority of SIR targets will be observed in the nadir-tracking mode. More than 100 targets, which require off-nadir pointing and off-nadir tracking, are planned. It is expected that results of SIR observations will significantly increase our understanding of the Moon. Since the exact arrival date and the orbital parameters of the SMART-1 spacecraft are not known yet, a more detailed planning of the scientific observations will follow in the near future. ?? 2004 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Planetary and Space Science↗

USGS2011

A working environment for digital planetary data processing and mapping using ISIS and GRASS GIS

Since the beginning of planetary exploration, mapping has been fundamental to summarize observations returned by scientific missions. Sensor-based mapping has been used to highlight specific features from the planetary surfaces by means of processing. Interpretative mapping makes use of instrumental observations to produce thematic maps that summarize observations of actual data into a specific theme. Geologic maps, for example, are thematic interpretative maps that focus on the representation of materials and processes and their relative timing. The advancements in technology of the last 30 years have allowed us to develop specialized systems where the mapping process can be made entirely in the digital domain. The spread of networked computers on a global scale allowed the rapid propagation of software and digital data such that every researcher can now access digital mapping facilities on his desktop. The efforts to maintain planetary missions data accessible to the scientific community have led to the creation of standardized digital archives that facilitate the access to different datasets by software capable of processing these data from the raw level to the map projected one. Geographic Information Systems (GIS) have been developed to optimize the storage, the analysis, and the retrieval of spatially referenced Earth based environmental geodata; since the last decade these computer programs have become popular among the planetary science community, and recent mission data start to be distributed in formats compatible with these systems. Among all the systems developed for the analysis of planetary and spatially referenced data, we have created a working environment combining two software suites that have similar characteristics in their modular design, their development history, their policy of distribution and their support system. The first, the Integrated Software for Imagers and Spectrometers (ISIS) developed by the United States Geological Survey, represents the state of the art for processing planetary remote sensing data, from the raw unprocessed state to the map projected product. The second, the Geographic Resources Analysis Support System (GRASS) is a Geographic Information System developed by an international team of developers, and one of the core projects promoted by the Open Source Geospatial Foundation (OSGeo). We have worked on enabling the combined use of these software systems throughout the set-up of a common user interface, the unification of the cartographic reference system nomenclature and the minimization of data conversion. Both software packages are distributed with free open source licenses, as well as the source code, scripts and configuration files hereafter presented. In this paper we describe our work done to merge these working environments into a common one, where the user benefits from functionalities of both systems without the need to switch or transfer data from one software suite to the other one. Thereafter we provide an example of its usage in the handling of planetary data and the crafting of a digital geologic map. ?? 2010 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Conference Paper↗

USGS2018

To reduce the global burden of human schistosomiasis, use ‘old fashioned’ snail control

Control strategies to reduce human schistosomiasis have evolved from ‘snail picking’ campaigns, a century ago, to modern wide-scale human treatment campaigns, or preventive chemotherapy. Unfortunately, despite the rise in preventive chemotherapy campaigns, just as many people suffer from schistosomiasis today as they did 50 years ago. Snail control can complement preventive chemotherapy by reducing the risk of transmission from snails to humans. Here, we present ideas for modernizing and scaling up snail control, including spatiotemporal targeting, environmental diagnostics, better molluscicides, new technologies (e.g., gene drive), and ‘outside the box’ strategies such as natural enemies, traps, and repellants. We conclude that, to achieve the World Health Assembly’s stated goal to eliminate schistosomiasis, it is time to give snail control another look.

Trends in Parasitology↗

USGS2012

Early retreat of the Alaska Peninsula Glacier Complex and the implications for coastal migrations of First Americans

The debate over a coastal migration route for the First Americans revolves around two major points: seafaring technology, and a viable landscape and resource base. Three lake cores from Sanak Island in the western Gulf of Alaska yield the first radiocarbon ages from the continental shelf of the Northeast Pacific and record deglaciation nearly 17 ka BP (thousands of calendar years ago), much earlier than previous estimates based on extrapolated data from other sites outside the coastal corridor in the Gulf of Alaska. Pollen data suggest an arid, terrestrial ecosystem by 16.3 ka BP. Therefore glaciers would not have hindered the movement of humans along the southern edge of the Bering Land Bridge for two millennia before the first well-recognized “New World” archaeological sites were inhabited.

Alaska↗

USGS2022

Adaptive monitoring in support of adaptive management in rangelands

Monitoring supports iterative learning about the effectiveness of management actions, information that can help managers plan future actions, facilitate decision-making, and improve outcomes. Adaptive monitoring is the evolution of a monitoring program in response to new management questions; new or changing environmental or socioeconomic conditions, improved monitoring methods, models, and tools; and experience implementing the monitoring program. Adaptive monitoring is connected to research and management through the exchange of data; analytical, methodological, and technological developments; information; and understanding. We review recent advances in adaptive monitoring and discuss new opportunities for both the research and management communities to improve monitoring in the years ahead.

Rangelands↗

USGS2016

Encounters with Pinyon-Juniper influence riskier movements in Greater Sage-Grouse across the Great Basin

Fine-scale spatiotemporal studies can better identify relationships between individual survival and habitat fragmentation so that mechanistic interpretations can be made at the population level. Recent advances in Global Positioning System (GPS) technology and statistical models capable of deconstructing high-frequency location data have facilitated interpretation of animal movement within a behaviorally mechanistic framework. Habitat fragmentation due to singleleaf pinyon (Pinus monophylla; hereafter pinyon) and Utah juniper (Juniperus osteosperma; hereafter juniper) encroachment into sagebrush (Artemisia spp.) communities is a commonly implicated perturbation that can adversely influence greater sage-grouse (Centrocercus urophasianus; hereafter sage-grouse) demographic rates. Using an extensive GPS data set (233 birds and 282,954 locations) across 12 study sites within the Great Basin, we conducted a behavioral change point analysis and subsequently constructed Brownian bridge movement models from each behaviorally homogenous section. We found a positive relationship between modeled movement rate and probability of encountering pinyon-juniper with significant variation among age classes. The probability of encountering pinyon-juniper among adults was two and three times greater than that of yearlings and juveniles, respectively. However, the movement rate in response to the probability of encountering pinyon-juniper trees was 1.5 times greater for juveniles. We then assessed the risk of mortality associated with an interaction between movement rate and the probability of encountering pinyon-juniper using shared frailty models. During pinyon-juniper encounters, on average, juvenile, yearling, and adult birds experienced a 10.4%, 0.2%, and 0.3% reduction in annual survival probabilities. Populations that used pinyon-juniper habitats with a frequency ≥ 3.8 times the overall mean experienced decreases in annual survival probabilities of 71.1%, 0.9%, and 0.9%. This analytical framework identifies a likely behavioral mechanism behind how pinyon-juniper encroachment decreases habitat suitability for sage-grouse, whereby encountering pinyon-juniper stimulates faster yet riskier movements that may make sage-grouse more vulnerable to visually acute predators.

Rangeland Ecology and Management↗

USGS2018

Weather-centric rangeland revegetation planning

Invasive annual weeds negatively impact ecosystem services and pose a major conservation threat on semiarid rangelands throughout the western United States. Rehabilitation of these rangelands is challenging due to interannual climate and subseasonal weather variability that impacts seed germination, seedling survival and establishment, annual weed dynamics, wildfire frequency, and soil stability. Rehabilitation and restoration outcomes could be improved by adopting a weather-centric approach that uses the full spectrum of available site-specific weather information from historical observations, seasonal climate forecasts, and climate-change projections. Climate data can be used retrospectively to interpret success or failure of past seedings by describing seasonal and longer-term patterns of environmental variability subsequent to planting. A more detailed evaluation of weather impacts on site conditions may yield more flexible adaptive-management strategies for rangeland restoration and rehabilitation, as well as provide estimates of transition probabilities between desirable and undesirable vegetation states. Skillful seasonal climate forecasts could greatly improve the cost efficiency of management treatments by limiting revegetation activities to time periods where forecasts suggest higher probabilities of successful seedling establishment. Climate-change projections are key to the application of current environmental models for development of mitigation and adaptation strategies and for management practices that require a multidecadal planning horizon. Adoption of new weather technology will require collaboration between land managers and revegetation specialists and modifications to the way we currently plan and conduct rangeland rehabilitation and restoration in the Intermountain West.

Rangeland Ecology and Management↗