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Background: Sagebrush ecosystems are experiencing increases in wildfire extent and severity. Most research on vegetation treatments that reduce fuels and fire risk has been short term (2–3 years) and focused on ecological responses. We review causes…
Author(s): Jeanne C. Chambers, Eva K. Strand, Lisa M. Ellsworth, Claire Tortorelli, Alexandra K. Urza, Michele R. Crist, Richard F. Miller, Matthew C. Reeves, Karen C. Short, Claire Williams
Year Published:

The historical role of fire in sagebrush (Artemisia tridentata) landscapes remains poorly understood, yet is important to inform management and conservation of obligate species such as the threatened Gunnison Sage-grouse (GUSG; Centrocercus minimus…
Author(s): Petar Z. Simic, Jonathan D. Coop, Ellis Q. Margolis, Jessica R. Young, Manuel K. Lopez
Year Published:

Columbian sharp-tailed grouse (Tympanuchus phasianellus columbianus) are endemic to grassland and shrub-steppe ecosystems of western North America, yet their distribution has contracted to <10% of their historical range. Primary threats to…
Author(s): Bryan S. Stevens, Courtney J. Conway, Jeffrey M. Knetter, Shane B. Roberts, Patrick Donnelly
Year Published:

In 2020, the fire season affecting the western United States reached unprecedented levels. The 116 fires active in September consumed nearly 20,822 km2 (https://inciweb.nwcg.gov/accessible-view/ Accessed 2020-09-29) with 80% of this footprint (16,…
Author(s): Cory T. Overton, Austen A. Lorenz, Eric James, Ravan Ahmadov, John M. Eadie, Fiona McDuie, Mark J. Petrie, Chris A. Nicolai, Melanie L. Weaver, Daniel A. Skalos, Daniel A. Skalos, Shannon M. Skalos, Andrea L. Mott, Desmond A. Mackell, Anna Kennedy, Elliott L. Matchett, Michael L. Casazza
Year Published:

Background and objectives: The Great Basin Desert with its critical sage grouse habitat is at a “tipping point” wherein fires that were rare and patchy historically are increasing in frequency, size and severity. Wildfire is now the largest driver…
Author(s): Branda Nowell
Year Published:

Background: Low-severity prescribed fire is an important tool to manage fire-maintained forests across North America. In dry conifer forests of the western USA, prescribed fire is often used to reduce fuel loads in forests characterized historically…
Author(s): Victoria A. Saab, Quresh Latif, William M. Block, Jonathan G. Dudley
Year Published:

Extensive, severe wildfires, and wildfire‐induced smoke occurred across the western and central United States since August 2020. Wildfires resulting in the loss of habitats and emission of particulate matter and volatile organic compounds pose…
Author(s): Di Yang, Anni Yang, Jue Yang, Rongting Xu, Han Qiu
Year Published:

Wildfire-generated snags provide key habitat for wildlife associated with recently disturbed forests, offering nesting and foraging resources for several woodpecker species. Snag harvest through post-fire salvage logging provides economic value but…
Author(s): Todd Cross, Quresh Latif, Jonathan G. Dudley, Victoria A. Saab
Year Published:

Background: Fire suppression and anthropogenic land use have increased severity of wildfire in western U.S. dry conifer forests. Managers use fuels reduction methods (e.g., prescribed fire) to limit high-severity wildfire and restore ecological…
Author(s): Quresh Latif, Victoria A. Saab, Jonathan G. Dudley
Year Published:

Changing climatic conditions prompt concerns about vegetation response to disturbance under future compared to past conditions. In this long‐term study, we examined soil climate and vegetation differences at lower, mid, and upper elevations in two…
Author(s): Bruce A. Roundy, Jeanne C. Chambers
Year Published:

Pyrodiversity – spatiotemporal variation of characteristics within a fire regime – plays an important role in structuring wildlife communities after fire, yet there is a need to better incorporate pyrodiversity into predictive models of animal…
Author(s): Morgan W. Tingley, Andrew N. Stillman, Rodney B. Siegel, Sarah C. Sawyer
Year Published:

Increased demand for timber, the reduction in the available timber resources, and more frequent and severe forest fires under a changing climate have increased the use of salvage logging in North American forests despite concerns regarding impacts…
Author(s): Fidèle Bognounou, Lisa A. Venier, Steven L. Van Wilgenburg, Isabelle Aubin, Jean-Noel Candau, Andre Arsenault, Christian Hebert, Jacques Ibarzabal, Samantha J. Song, Louis De Grandpré
Year Published:

Knowledge of how factors such as climate, plant regeneration traits and fire characteristics influence the rate and pattern of post-fire habitat change is crucial for strategic fire management and biodiversity conservation in fire-affected areas.…
Author(s): Frederick W. Rainsford, Luke T. Kelly, Steven W.J. Leonard, Andrew F. Bennett
Year Published:

Suppression of historic fire regimes in North America has altered successional stages and shifted vegetation communities, negatively impacting wildlife diversity in forests. Prescribed fire is often used to increase habitat for wildlife populations…
Author(s): Dana J. Morin, Laurel Schablein, Nikole Simmons, Jean Lorber, Marek K. Smith
Year Published:

Clark's nutcracker (Nucifraga columbiana) functions as a keystone seed disperser and ecological mobile link for many western conifers. The bird is the primary seed disperser for limber pine (Pinus flexilis), which is an important seed resource for…
Author(s): Tyler J. Williams, Diana F. Tomback, Nels Grevstad, Kristin Broms
Year Published:

Globally accelerating frequency and extent of wildfire threatens the persistence of specialist wildlife species through direct loss of habitat and indirect facilitation of exotic invasive species. Habitat specialists may be especially prone to…
Author(s): Shawn T. O'Neil, Peter S. Coates, Brianne E. Brussee, Mark A. Ricca, Shawn Espinosa, Scott C. Gardner, David J. Delehanty
Year Published:

We used a chronosequence approach to investigate the relationship between existing conditions of forested land that burned at some point between 1984 and 2014 in western Montana and the abundances of various bird species based on 7533 point-counts.…
Author(s): Richard L. Hutto, Russell R. Hutto, Paul L. Hutto
Year Published:

In the Great Basin, changes in climate and associated fire regimes may alter the density and distribution of shrubs, changing the structure and diet quality of plants in burned areas. We evaluated how the structural and phytochemical characteristics…
Author(s): Marcella R. Fremgen-Tarantino, Jacqueline J. Peña, John W. Connelly, Jennifer Sorensen Forbey
Year Published:

Background: A fire management strategy of deliberate patch-mosaic burning (PMB) is postulated to promote biodiversity by providing a range of habitat patches with different fire histories, habitat qualities, and vegetation ages at a given scale. We…
Author(s): Allan J. Wills, Graeme Liddelow, Verna Tunsell
Year Published:

Background: Wildfires affect vegetation structure, functions, and other attributes of forest ecosystems. Among these attributes, bird assemblages may be influenced by the distance from undisturbed to fire-disturbed forests. Information about this…
Author(s): Adriana Marisel Morales, Natalia Politi, Luis Osvaldo Rivera, Constanza Guadalupe Vivanco, Guillermo E. Defosse
Year Published: