Project Number: 5409-22610-001-04
Project Type: Specific Cooperative Agreement

Start Date: Sep 30, 2004
End Date: Sep 29, 2009

Objective:
More fully characterize the ability of state-and-transition models to classify and predict vegetation change, and learn how grazing (intensity and season of use) and plant resources (N and water) influence vegetation change in shortgrass steppe; and utilize very large-scale aerial and ground photography methods to accurately monitor bare ground, plant cover and plant communities in shortgrass steppe.

Approach:
Ordination techniques will be used to determine if vegetation and soil attributes differ with respect to light, moderate or heavy stocking rates, which have been imposed for 65 years. Observations on vegetation composition will be compared to predicted vegetation composition from the NRCS-developed state-and-transition models. In addition, ancillary data (soil C and N, soil water, weed invasions, etc.) will be used to broaden descriptions of vegetation states. Additionally, a new study that began in 2004 will address the role of very heavy spring and summer grazing on vegetation change and associated changes in soils, weed invasion potential and bare ground. This study will address the role of livestock grazing in intentionally creating habitat that is conducive for the mountain plover (Charadrium montanus), a potentially threatened bird species. Very large-scale aerial and ground photography will be utilized to characterize the bare ground and plant cover components, as well as to showcase changes to individual plants.