Management strategies for mega-disturbances: building climate-resilient rangelands amidst fire, grazing, and ecological invasion in californiaproject dates: 7 1 2024 through 6 30 2026AWARD purpose:…

This $344,113 Cooperative Agreement was awarded by the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) under the National and Regional Climate Adaptation Science Centers (CFDA 15.820) program. The project, titled "Management Strategies for Mega-Disturbances: Building Climate-Resilient Rangelands Amidst Fire, Grazing, and Ecological Invasion in California," will investigate how increased fire frequency, grazing, and invasive species impact rangeland vegetation and soil health. The University of Arizona will serve as the prime recipient and will subaward a portion of the funding to the University of California, Davis to execute the research objectives. Key activities include monitoring changes in plant communities and soil carbon in response to varying fire treatment regimes on existing experimental plots. The project aims to develop new management strategies for restoring climate-resilient rangelands in California, with the goal of informing policies and practices that support sustainable agriculture and healthy ecosystems.

Activities

This study leverages an existing restoration experiment at the UC davis farm. In 2011, mixtures of native perennial grasses were seeded into replicated 25M 44M plots (24 total plots 12 acres). Starting in 2017, the project team implemented a series of treatments to test grazing and fire effects on invasive and native plant communities. Two blocks were annually grazed by sheep and prescribed burning treatments occurred in a set of plots over four years. The proposed research will create treatments that differ in fire frequency over an eight-year period including a control, low (2024), medium (2022, 2024) and high (2017, 2018, 2021, 2024) fire frequency. The recipient will assess changes in plant community composition and soil carbon fractions, and use generalized linear mixed effects models to determine how vegetation and soil metrics vary with fire, grazing, and invasion. Researchers will tag individuals of seven native perennial bunchgrass species commonly used in restoration efforts and monitor survival and growth in response to fire treatments.deliverables and expected outcomes: this project will develop a new management framework for restoring climate-resilient rangelands, focusing on california and investigate how altered fire regimes interact with weed invasion and grazing. Three specific objectives guide the project: a) determining how increased fire frequency affects forage and soil health, b) understanding the interactions between fire, grazing, and invasion, and c) identifying suitable species for restoration under altered fire regimes. The most significant outcomes will include vital insights into the best ways to maintain and restore rangelands.intended beneficiary(IES): the results of this research will contribute directly to climate resilience by uncovering methods that counteract the negative impacts of climate change on rangelands. IT aligns with california s climate goals and will inform policies for nature-based solutions on working landscapes. In turn, this will promote healthier rangelands that can better withstand environmental pressures, support sustainable agriculture, and foster the well-being of human communities. Economically, IT will provide insights that support ranchers and have broader implications for society by protecting these vital landscapes.

Subrecipient activities

The university of arizona will subaward to the university of california davis to execute the research objectives of this project.