WYOMING — According to University of Wyoming (UW) Extension, research by state scientists shows efforts to improve sage-grouse habitat through conventional management practices may be ineffective, and even counterproductive.
A UW Extension press release says that sagebrush reduction strategies, including mowing and herbicide application, are often employed to enhance habitat for the sage-grouse and other sagebrush-dependent species.
The theory behind this, UW Extension says, is to improve food sources in sage-grouse nesting and brood-rearing habitats by allowing other, more nutritious vegetation to grow with less competition. This should then increase invertebrate populations, another food source for sage-grouse.
But UW Extension points to a new paper published in the journal Wildlife Monographs where researchers tracked behaviors and survival rates of more than 600 female greater sage-grouse in response to mowing and tebuthiuron application over a nine-year period. They also monitored effects on invertebrate populations, sagebrush and herbaceous vegetation, and compared responses to untreated plots near the treated areas as well as off-site control plots.
The data ultimately proved the treatments to sagebrush did not benefit the birds, and in fact 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.
“The results are consistent with many other studies suggesting that controlling Wyoming big sagebrush negatively impacts wildlife,” the UW Extension press release confirms. “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, UW Professor of Ecosystem Science and Management and Principal Investigator for the study Jeff Beck says conservation strategies should focus on removing encroaching pinyon and juniper and invasive species such as cheatgrass. Additionally, Beck says enhancing wet areas in sagebrush habitats is a promising strategy for improving the quality of sage-grouse brood-rearing habitat.
The paper and study can be accessed here.
A June 1 letter submitted to the Biden Administration states that some of the preliminary alternatives presented in the Bureau of Land Management’s March Greater Sage-Grouse Planning newsletter ignore the science showing what the birds need to survive. Additionally, Governor Mark Gordon is accepting public comment on proposed revisions to the State of Wyoming’s sage-grouse core area protection map.
