Sagebrush Steppe and Fire in Lava Lake Ranch

Faculty and students in the College of Natural Resources (CNR) are in the midst of a three-year research project studying the rangeland of Lava Lake Ranch located in Hailey, Idaho.

The goal of this project is to investigate the rangeland characteristics, including grass, leaves and thousands of acres of sagebrush steppe. Sagebrush steppe, the most widespread vegetation type in Idaho, is particularly important because it supports many other things in nature such as insects, bird populations, and grazing animals, and it’s the dominant vegetation type on Lava Lake land.

Dry by nature, this rangeland is primed for catastrophic wildfires that may burn across valuable agricultural lands as well as prime habitat. Steve Bunting, CNR professor of rangeland ecology and management, and Eva Strand, assistant professor of rangeland ecology and management, are conducting a study of the impacts of sheep grazing on sagebrush steppe. They are also monitoring the ecosystem’s fuel load variability on Lava Lake Ranch.

“Current fuel models mistakenly assume that fuel is uniformly distributed across an area,” said Bunting. “On-the-ground observations, aerial photography and satellite remote sensing technologies tell us otherwise.”

Impact

Data gathered from this study will be used to describe the area’s fuel amounts by different sizes at a very fine scale and then used as input to a U.S. Forest Service fire behavior model. The fire model will calculate how quickly fire burns, the length of flames and the amount of heat generated.

Through this study, the team is confident they can help range and land managers better prepare for fires and other changes to the land. Specifically, this information can benefit many private landowners who need to assess how grazing may affect fuel loads and fire behavior.

Principal Contributors

Stephen Bunting
Professor
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Eva Strand
Assistant Professor
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Additional Contributors

University of Idaho Faculty Members

Opportunities to Get Involved

We are seeking a graduate student at the Master’s level interested in fire ecology and management beginning January 2009. With 15 faculty members and 30 graduate students conducting research on various aspects of fire ecology and management, the University of Idaho is a great place for graduate study.

Students will work collaboratively with faculty, graduate and undergraduate students, and land management agencies on studies related to the effects of vegetation treatments on fuels and fuel loading in sagebrush steppe and juniper woodland sites throughout the northern Great Basin. The project involves studying the effects of prescribed fire and mechanical land treatments as part of a larger multi-university/multi-agency research effort focusing on the effects of fire on sagebrush steppe ecosystems (www.sagestep.org). For more information please contact Stephen Bunting (sbunting@uidaho.edu, 208-885-7103).