The 2008 Joint Meeting of the Society for Range Management and the America Forage and Grassland Council. |
Tuesday, January 29, 2008
15
Simulation of Extreme Fire as A Brush Management Tool in Texas
Emily Dacy and Urs Kreuter. Ecosystem Science and Management, Texas A&M University, MS 2138 TAMU, College Station, TX 77843-2138
We will describe a model that simulates woody plant cover and herbaceous plant production for 3 ecoregions of Texas. The ecoregions studied are traditionally grasslands that have increased in shrub canopy cover during the last century. As a result, habitat quality and production potential has declined as landowners fight a costly battle of shrub encroachment. Traditional income generated from land use is a combination of livestock production and lease hunting for white-tailed deer (Odocoileus virginianus) and bobwhite quail (Colinus virginianus). This model will be used to test management scenarios and resulting habitat will be evaluated for both economic and ecologic benefit. Scenarios will integrate extreme prescribed fire with other socially acceptable management plans. Extreme fire is prescribed fire that occurs with a prescription exceeding those accepted by federal agencies. While other models have been developed for each of these ecoregions individually, no single model has been developed that could be used for multiple ecoregions. The goal of the study is to determine a socially acceptable management plan using the most cost effective combination of tools to achieve greatest habitat improvement for livestock and wildlife. As these regions differ in climate, they also differ in socially acceptable management plans. Therefore, the resulting model will be used as a tool for educating landowners in new and innovative ways to return profit while maintaining safety and ecologic stability as priorities.