Project
https://www.sciencebase.gov/catalogMaps/mapping/ows/551ad102e4b03238427837ba?service=wms&request=getcapabilities&version=1.3.0
Project Summary
Affiliation(s): NCCWSC
Principal Investigator(s):
- Seth Munson (USGS Southwest Biological Science Center)
In the western U.S., rising temperatures and pronounced drought conditions pose significant challenges to public land managers. Widespread declines of multiple plant species have already been observed, providing insight into what the future could look like for vegetation in the region, as conditions are projected to become warmer and drier. To understand how vulnerable western ecosystems are to drought, managers need to know which climatic and soil conditions cause habitats to change, and at what rate these changes may occur – important topics on which there is little available data.
This project seeks to identify the vulnerability of habitats in the western U.S. to drought. Researchers will compare changes in plant abundance (i.e. population increases and decreases) to changes in climate and soil moisture, to determine how resistant different habitats are to drought. Researchers will also look at historical and future climate and soil conditions to identify which habitat types are most vulnerable to drought. These results will then be used to project how habitats in drought-impacted areas can be expected to change based on future conditions, and which management techniques could best mitigate the effects of drought.
This project seeks to identify the vulnerability of habitats in the western U.S. to drought. Researchers will compare changes in plant abundance (i.e. population increases and decreases) to changes in climate and soil moisture, to determine how resistant different habitats are to drought. Researchers will also look at historical and future climate and soil conditions to identify which habitat types are most vulnerable to drought. These results will then be used to project how habitats in drought-impacted areas can be expected to change based on future conditions, and which management techniques could best mitigate the effects of drought.
Project Information
Affiliation(s): NCCWSC
Principal Investigator(s):
- Seth Munson (USGS Southwest Biological Science Center)
Co-Investigator(s):
- Miguel Villarreal (Pacific Geographic Science Team)
- George Xian (Earth Resources Observation and Science)
- Collin Homer (Geographic Science Team, EROS)
- Robert Webb (University of Arizona)
- Christopher Soulard (Pacific Geographic Science Team)
- Benjamin Sleeter (Pacific Geographic Science Team)
- John Bradford (Colorado Plateau Field Station, SBSC)
Start Date: August 2015
End Date: July 2017
Project Status: In Progress
Tags: climate and land-use change scenarios, Landsat satellite imagery, vegetation monitoring and state-and-transitions, CSC, NCCWSC, 2015
Fiscal Year: FY 2015 Projects
Project Products
Publications & Other
Climate drives shifts in grass reproductive phenology across the western USA
- Climate drives shifts in grass reproductive phenology across the western USA (External URL)
Climate legacy and lag effects on dryland plant communities in the southwestern U.S.
- Bunting et al. 2017; Ecological Indicators (External URL)
Decadal shifts in grass and woody plant cover are driven by prolonged drying and modified by topo-edaphic properties
- Decadal shifts in grass and woody plant cover are driven by prolonged drying and modified by topo-edaphic properties (External URL)
Semi-arid vegetation response to antecedent climate and water balance windows
- Publications Warehouse Index Page (External URL)
Data
Data for Climate drives shifts in grass reproductive phenology across the western U.S. (1895-2013)
- Download all Data for Climate drives shifts in grass reproductive phenology across the western U.S. (1895-2013) files listed below.
- Climate_drives_shifts_in_grass_reproductive_phenology_across_the_western_U_S_1895_2013.xml (Download)
- Grass_reproductive_phenology.csv (Download)
Data for Decadal shifts in grass and woody plant cover are driven by prolonged drying and modified by topo-edaphic properties
- Shifts_in_grass_and_woody_plant_cover_in_southern_Arizona_1989_2009.xml (Download)
- Shifts in Creosote bush in southern Arizona, 1989 - 2009
- Raster Digital Data Set (External URL)
- Download all Shifts in Creosote bush in southern Arizona, 1989 - 2009 files listed below.
- Shifts in Creosote bush data in southern Arizona 1989-2009 (2).xml (Download)
- usgs_az_1989larrea_052114 (4).img (Download)
- usgs_az_1995larrea_052114 (1).img (Download)
- usgs_az_1999larrea_052114 (1).img (Download)
- usgs_az_2005larrea_052114 (1).img (Download)
- usgs_az_2009larrea_052114 (1).img (Download)
- Shifts in Leguminous tree in southern Arizona, 1989 - 2009
- Raster Digital Data Set (External URL)
- Download all Shifts in Leguminous tree in southern Arizona, 1989 - 2009 files listed below.
- Shifts in Leguminous tree data in southern Arizona 1989-2009 (1).xml (Download)
- usgs_az_1989prosopis_052114.img (Download)
- usgs_az_1995prosopis_052114 (1).img (Download)
- usgs_az_1999prosopis_052114 (1).img (Download)
- usgs_az_2005prosopis_052114 (1).img (Download)
- usgs_az_2009prosopis_052114 (1).img (Download)
- Shifts in Perennial grass in southern Arizona, 1989 - 2009
- Raster Digital Data Set (External URL)
- Download all Shifts in Perennial grass in southern Arizona, 1989 - 2009 files listed below.
- Shifts in Perennial grass data in southern Arizona 1989-2009 (1).xml (Download)
- usgs_az_1989grass_052114.img (Download)
- usgs_az_1995grass_052114 (1).img (Download)
- usgs_az_1999grass_052114 (1).img (Download)
- usgs_az_2005grass_052114 (1).img (Download)
- usgs_az_2009grass_052114 (1).img (Download)