Two of the primary global change factors that threaten shrublands worldwide are loss of native perennial herbaceous species due to inappropriate livestock grazing and loss of native shrubs due to altered fire regimes.We asked: (1) how do the separate and interacting effects of removal of perennial herbaceous species and burning influence relative abundance of plant functional groups over longer time frames; and (2) how do interactions between perennial herbaceous species removal and burning differ along environmental gradients? We discuss implications of our findings for ecosystem resilience to these disturbances.