Assessing threats to the sagebrush ecosystem

A new paper by Bethany Bradley maps threats to the sagebrush ecosystem from several factors such as climate change and cheatgrass invasion by integrating predictions from different types of models.
The study thus integrates results from several research projects completed by participants in the Nevada Conservation Area Design (NVCAD) workshops. These results, when considered along with new research on population trends and habitat and connectivity needs for sage grouse, suggest that conservation of the sagebrush ecosystem will require broad-scale conservation initiatives in addition to local planning. For example, climate refugia for sagebrush identified in this paper might be high priorities for protection from large-scale disturbance such as wind energy and transmission line projects. Bradley 2010 (Figure 9) does map the areas (sites) of sagebrush with highest conservation value, but to me it appears likely that conservation of broader areas that connect many of these sites will be necessary to preserve ecosystem processes and area-dependent species such as sage grouse. It is encouraging that discussion of such broad-scale conservation issues is at last occurring for the sagebrush sea, following on a similar shift in perspectives for forest and montane ecosystems of the west.
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