Foothills 12-16 PZ
Scenario model
Current ecosystem state
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Management practices/drivers
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- Transition T1A More details
- Restoration pathway R2A More details
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No transition or restoration pathway between the selected states has been described
Target ecosystem state
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Description
This site is principally a grassland site with scattered shrubs. Trees are not natural to this site. As the site degrades grasses decrease and big sagebrush becomes more dominant. Blue grama will increase as the site degrades, and it, too becomes sparse under prolonged heavy grazing.
Resilience management
The reference state is most resilient to disturbance. Fire is an important disturbance to keep this site a grassland community. The grasses provide production, cover, annual turnover of fibrous roots and healthy soil microbial communities. Healthy microbial communities improve soil health factors such as water infiltration, retention, and nutrient cycling for plants.
Submodel
Mechanism
Over time, with low fuel loads causing a lack of fire in the system, pinon and juniper stands expand from the shallow soils to the deep soils. As trees increase, understory decrease causing erosion and a decrease in ecosystem services. Eventually after a dominant percentage of cover becomes trees a threshold is crossed to the degraded pinon-juniper state.
Mechanism
Important reference conditions of soil and vegetation need to be met to restore the site. This includes setting the trees back through a combination of mechanical treatment and fire. This also includes re-establishing the natural fire regime for long-term maintenance. And last of all, if grazing is implemented, long term management that promotes adequate fuel loads and encourages the colonization of cool season grasses.
Model keys
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Ecological sites
Major Land Resource Areas
The Ecosystem Dynamics Interpretive Tool is an information system framework developed by the USDA-ARS Jornada Experimental Range, USDA Natural Resources Conservation Service, and New Mexico State University.