JFSP Fire Science Exchange Network
Supported by the Clark County (Nevada) Desert Conservation Program and the California Fire Science Consortium, we completed a status of knowledge synthesis of restoration practices aimed at enhancing recovery of damaged habitats in the Mojave and western Sonoran Desert, some of the driest locations in North America.
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Read MoreIt is not well understood whether desert plantings can facilitate recruitment of other natives (or mainly just non-natives), or whether facilitation changes through time as a restoration site matures. To address these uncertainties, we partnered with the National Park Service to study plant community change below planted perennials and in interspaces (areas between perennials) during 12 years (2009-2020) in Joshua Tree National Park, California, in the southern Mojave Desert.
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Read MoreAbella, S.R., K.H. Berry, and S. Ferrazzano. 2023. Techniques for restoring damaged Mojave and western Sonoran habitats, including those for threatened desert tortoises and Joshua trees. Desert Plants 38:4-52.
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This brief compares the restoration treatments of outplanting and two abiotic treatments on disturbed sites in the Sonoran Desert of southeastern California. Overall results suggest that multiple treatment types, including abiotic treatments, can be implemented as a bet-hedging approach to achieve restoration benefits even if some treatments may fail.
Read MoreThe objective of this study was to assess feasibility of developing regression equations using a fast, non-destructive measure (cover) to estimate aboveground biomass for red brome, a widespread non-native annual grass in the Mojave Desert.
Read MoreOn a burned site in the northeastern Mojave Desert that is conservation-priority habitat for federally listed desert tortoises, a field experiment was conducted to test different treatments for outplanting greenhouse-propagated seedlings of the native perennial brittlebush (Encelia virginensis).
Read MoreAuthors studied the recovery of plant communities, soil properties, soil biocrusts and grass as plant fuel on 31 wildfires in the eastern Mojave Desert that had between 1980 and 2007.
Read MoreNon-native annual grasses, such as red brome (Bromus rubens), have increased the amount and continuity of fine fuels in drylands of the southwestern U.S. Where herbicide is not allowed or may have undesirable non-target effects, one of the alternative treatments that has been proposed and used in more mesic habitats is carbon addition.
Read MoreAssisted natural regeneration (ANR) is an alternative aimed at encouraging site conditions favorable for natural regeneration through actions such as alleviating limitations on viable seed production, germination, and seedling survival. Two ANR approaches were tested on the Mojave Desert foundation species, the creosote bush.
Read MoreA recent study in press with Ecological Monographs collected and analyzed a long-term data set of fluctuations in perennial plant communities in the eastern Mojave Desert. During the 37-year period, most measures of the native perennial plant community changed temporally.
Read MoreNational guidance is provided for new and updated invasive plant management plans that meet federal standards
Read MoreTo revegetate disturbed desert lands, practitioners often reestablish fertile islands as a first step in restoring native plants and associated fauna on disturbed desert sites. This research brief discusses the pros and cons of this approach considering native and non-native species.
Read MoreLand managers, researchers, and conservationists gathered to share the latest in invasive plant biology and management at the California Invasive Plant Council (CAL IPC). 2017 Symposium presentations are now online.
Read MoreFor desert shrubland species that have evolved without fire, the introduction of a grass-fire, positive feedback cycle is particularly problematic. This brief discusses work done by researchers who modeled the grass-fire cycle for non-fire-adapted desert shrublands under three sets of climate conditions.
Read MoreStudy results from arid regions in Southern California show how fire trends differ based on unique sets of circumstances. This brief discuses how combinations of direct drivers (like powerline and roadside ignitions), indirect drivers (like invasive grasses, air pollution, and landscape fragmentation terrestrial intactness) and unknown factors cause diversity in fire trends.
Read MoreIn a collaborative project funded by the non-profit Desert Tortoise Council with Natural Resource Conservation LLC, the authors synthesized published literature and practitioner’s experiences to develop best-management practices for habitats of desert tortoises.
Read MoreCollaboratively with the National Park Service, the authors performed a study along Northshore Road in Lake Mead National Recreation Area (eastern Mojave Desert, Nevada) to develop biocrust restoration strategies. Results and management recommendations for the most effective restoration methods are discussed.
Read MoreThis presentation was given at the Desert Symposium 2014.
Presenter: Nussear et al.
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This brief discusses how to improve forage for the threatened desert tortoise through increasing abundance of native plant forage species.
Read MoreAgenda for the Mojave Desert Fire Science and Management Workshop. Barstow, CA 2014.
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The California Fire Science Consortium is divided into 4 geographic regions and 1 wildland-urban interface (WUI) team. Statewide coordination of this program is based at UC Berkeley.
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This regional Fire Science Exchange is one of 15 regional fire science exchanges sponsored by Joint Fire Science Program (JFSP).
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