MSGID: 1:317/3 649a65e6   
   PID: hpt/lnx 1.9.0-cur 2019-01-08   
   TID: hpt/lnx 1.9.0-cur 2019-01-08   
    Research questions value of sagebrush control in conserving sage grouse   
      
      
     Date:   
         June 26, 2023   
     Source:   
         University of Wyoming   
     Summary:   
         Sagebrush reduction strategies, including mowing and herbicide   
         application, are often employed to enhance habitat for the greater   
         sage grouse and other sagebrush-dependent species.   
      
      
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   FULL STORY   
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   Efforts to improve sage grouse habitat through conventional management   
   practices may be ineffective -- and even counterproductive -- according   
   to research by University of Wyoming and other scientists.   
      
   Sagebrush reduction strategies, including mowing and herbicide   
   application, are often employed to enhance habitat for the greater sage   
   grouse and other sagebrush-dependent species. The theory is that clearing   
   large sagebrush shrubs improves food sources in sage grouse nesting and   
   brood-rearing habitats by allowing other, more nutritious vegetation to   
   grow with less competition. This, in turn, should increase invertebrate   
   populations, another food source for sage grouse.   
      
   But a new paper published in the journal Wildlife Monographs suggests   
   these methods may be misguided.   
      
   In a nine-year experimental study, researchers examined how sage grouse   
   populations in central Wyoming responded to mowing and applying the   
   herbicide tebuthiuron to Wyoming big sagebrush. According to their data,   
   these treatments did not benefit the birds.   
      
   "Some managers think, 'Treating sagebrush for wildlife is how it's   
   supposed to work, and we'll keep doing it,'" says Jeff Beck, a UW   
   professor of ecosystem science and management and principal investigator   
   for the study. "Hopefully, this will get people to start thinking,   
   'If we're going to spend money to improve habitat, we've got to find   
   some other ideas.'"  Beck's co-authors include Kurt Smith, a former UW   
   Ph.D. student who is now an ecologist with Western EcoSystems Technology;   
   Jason LeVan, a former UW M.S.   
      
   student who is now a range and wildlife conservationist for Pheasants   
   Forever; Anna Chalfoun, a UW associate professor and assistant unit   
   leader of the U.S.   
      
   Geological Survey Wyoming Cooperative Fish and Wildlife Research   
   Unit; Stanley Harter, a wildlife biologist with the Wyoming Game and   
   Fish Department; Thomas Christiansen, a retired Wyoming Game and Fish   
   Department sage grouse program coordinator; and Sue Oberlie, a retired   
   Bureau of Land Management (BLM) wildlife biologist.   
      
   The researchers tracked behaviors and survival rates of more than   
   600 female greater sage grouse in response to mowing and tebuthiuron   
   application. They also monitored effects on invertebrate populations,   
   sagebrush and herbaceous vegetation. Throughout the study, responses were   
   compared to untreated plots near the treated areas as well as off-site   
   control plots.   
      
   Pretreatment data were collected from 2011-13; mowing and tebuthiuron   
   applications were implemented in winter and spring 2014.   
      
   After six years (2014-19) of post-treatment monitoring, Beck and his   
   colleagues determined that sage grouse responses to treatment were   
   neutral at best.   
      
   "Neither mowing nor tebuthiuron treatments influenced nest success,   
   brood success or female survival," they reported.   
      
   Furthermore, treatments used to reduce Wyoming big sagebrush coverage   
   resulted in slight avoidance by sage grouse.   
      
   Invertebrates and herbaceous vegetation also did not respond positively   
   to reduction of Wyoming big sagebrush, indicating treatments did not   
   improve the quantity and quality of sage grouse food sources.   
      
   Instead, reduction of Wyoming big sagebrush cover may negatively impact   
   sage grouse and other species that use sagebrush shrubs to nest and seek   
   refuge from predators, the researchers suggest.   
      
   They predict that expanding experimental treatments to larger areas may   
   reveal greater negative effects of Wyoming big sagebrush reduction on   
   sage grouse populations.   
      
   "Management practices that focus on the maintenance of large, undisturbed   
   tracts of sagebrush will best facilitate the persistence of sage grouse   
   populations and other species reliant on the sagebrush steppe," they   
   wrote.   
      
   Their results are consistent with many other studies suggesting that   
   controlling Wyoming big sagebrush negatively impacts wildlife. However,   
   they caution, their findings should not be generalized to other sagebrush   
   species and subspecies, such as mountain big sagebrush.   
      
   Rather than removing Wyoming big sagebrush, Beck says, conservation   
   strategies should focus on removing encroaching pinyon and juniper and   
   invasive species such as cheatgrass. These types of vegetation alter the   
   sagebrush ecosystem and influence fire cycles, potentially damaging sage   
   grouse habitat.   
      
   Enhancing wet areas in sagebrush habitats is another promising strategy   
   for improving the quality of sage grouse brood-rearing habitat, he notes.   
      
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   Story Source: Materials provided by University_of_Wyoming. Note: Content   
   may be edited for style and length.   
      
      
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   Journal Reference:   
      1. Kurt T. Smith, Jason R. Levan, Anna D. Chalfoun, Thomas   
      J. Christiansen,   
         Stanley R. Harter, Sue Oberlie, Jeffrey L. Beck. Response of greater   
         sage‐grouse to sagebrush reduction treatments in Wyoming big   
         sagebrush. Wildlife Monographs, 2023; 212 (1) DOI: 10.1002/wmon.1075   
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   Link to news story:   
   https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2023/06/230626164153.htm   
      
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