The Southwest Fire Science Consortium has recognized the growing need for science on how to protect the sensitive ecology of the Sonoran Desert from the dual, and related, threats of invasive grass spread and wildfire. We have worked diligently on collaborative efforts aimed at meeting the need of land managers in the Desert. Read the …
Recent research shows that fuel treatments can benefit the understory in southwestern forests. Grasses, wildflowers, and shrubs contribute to the overall health of a forest. What happens to these plants after thinning and prescribed fire? Read our fact sheet to find out!
In a nutshell: In a landscape with increasingly frequent severe wildfires, freshwater ecosystems are emerging as an important part of wildfire management. This presentation will touch on the role of beaver dams and their analogs in creating wetlands, the nexus between freshwater systems and fire, and how this information can be utilized to enact policy …
Read more “Pre- and Post-Fire Impacts of Beaver Dams and Beaver Dam Analogs”
In a nutshell: Dr. Connor Crouch presents on three threats facing quaking aspen in the Southwest – climate, pests and disease, and livestock browse – and three management objectives and strategies that can be implemented to improve aspen resilience and adaptive capacity, leaving attendees with actionable suggestions for resource management. Recorded on: Wednesday, January 22, …
This is the story of the Santa Clara Creek Watershed that serves as the primary water source, cultural identity, and spiritual sanctuary to the Pueblo of Santa Clara. Since 1998, three large wildfires impacted Santa Clara Creek, resulting in largely denuded slopes, exposed soils gave way, and leading to large-scale catastrophic flooding. In the wake …
In a nutshell: Following a severe wildfire, recovery efforts can benefit from using “Engineering With Nature” principles to utilize existing materials on the landscape for slope stabilization, erosion control, and stream restoration. Learn about the successes and lessons learned with these techniques in Santa Clara Canyon, NM after the destructive Las Conchas Fire. Recorded on: …
Read more “Post-Wildfire Recovery Through The Principles of Engineering with Nature”
In a nutshell: Tips for planting trees after severe fire in the Southwest, we learn how microclimates, nurse plants, and biochar impact survival of seedlings. We also learn how these techniques can be scaled-up to improve replanting efforts across an entire landscape. Description: Across the southwestern United States, high-severity wildfire is resulting in increasingly large …
Read more “Increasing Post-Wildfire Planted Seedling Survival”
Presenter: Camille Stevens-Rumann, Assistant Professor of Forest and Rangeland Stewardship at Colorado State University Date: August 31, 2022 at 12:00pm AZ / 1:00pm MDT Following a wildfire, successful tree regeneration is mediated by multiple factors, from the microsite to landscape scale. This presentation demonstrates the importance of microsite conditions such as soil moisture and temperature …
Date: March 23, 2022 11am AZ/12pm Mountain DaylightPresenters: Stephen D. Fillmore, PhD Student, University of Idaho, Dr. Sarah McCaffrey To improve understanding of the managed wildfire decision-making process on federal lands (USA), we conducted a mixed methods review of the existing literature. The review was published in September, 2021 in the journal Fire. The review …
Presenters: Mike Stoddard, Ecological Restoration Institute and Matt Tuten, USDA Forest ServiceDate: Thursday April 15, 2021 11am AZ/12pm MDT This webinar will share research on forest structure and understory vegetation responses to three restoration treatments (thin/burn, burn, and control) over 10 years on a mixed-conifer site in southwestern Colorado. Forest density, canopy cover, and crown …
Read more “Restoration Treatments: Reducing Fuels and Increasing Understory Diversity”