Webinar Series: Pinyon-Juniper Woodlands and Management

Photos courtesy of Connor White and USGS.

Join us April 15 and May 27 for a Pinyon-Juniper Woodland Management Webinar Series. These communications represents a joint effort of the Great Basin Fire Science Exchange, Intermountain West Joint Venture, and the Society for Ecological Restoration, Great Basin Chapter. Find summaries of these talks below as well as links to register to participate.

New tools for pinyon-juniper management: Balancing needs of sagebrush and woodland obligate birds

When: May 27th, 10am-11am PT/11am-12pm MT

Speakers: Jason Tack, USFWS Habitat and Population Evaluation Team; Jeremy Maestas, USDA-NRCS West National Technology Support Center

Management of expanding pinyon-juniper woodlands in sagebrush habitats has become a prominent strategy for sagebrush conservation, with spatially targeted tree removal efforts designed to benefit sage-grouse increasing over the past decade. This webinar will highlight recent literature on wildlife response to pinyon-juniper management across the West, and new science and tools for considering sagebrush- and woodland-obligate songbirds, like pinyon jay, in conifer management. Knowledge gained from wildlife studies will be put into context of emerging remote sensing analyses that provide a comprehensive picture of continued woodland change.

The ecology, history, ecohydrology, and management of pinyon-juniper woodlands in the Great Basin

When: April 15th, 11am-12pm PT/12pm-1pm MT

Speaker: Rick Miller, Professor Emeritus, Oregon State University

This presentation by Rick Miller will discuss the intent and goals of his latest publication, “The Ecology, History, Ecohydrology, and Management of Pinyon and Juniper Woodlands in the Great Basin and Northern Colorado Plateau” in the western United States. This will include:

1) Describing the the woodlands and the vast variation across the Great Basin and Colorado Plateau;

2) Telling the story of their history and variables influencing woodland expansion and contraction; and,

3) Interpretation of the wide variation in responses and the variables influencing ecosystem response to restoration.

Photos courtesy of Scott Somershoe, Hannah Nikonow, and USFWS.