February 25, 2016 | 8:30 AM
This session will explore, through presentations and discussion, how we look at the hydrology of sagebrush ecosystems. We will aim to explore many aspects of the system, from riparian and mesic areas to considering the hydrologic relevance of drier areas, and the part they play in how we think about water in sagebrush ecosystems. Topics will include wildlife dependence on surface waters, uncertainties concerning our understanding of water availability and flow permanence in the Great Basin, the influence of snow, restoration using beavers, and the linkages between land management practices and hydrologic resources.
Session Leads: Jason Dunham and Lorien Belton
Jason Dunham, Supervisory Aquatic Ecologist, U.S. Geological Survey, Forest and Rangeland Ecosystem Science Center, Corvallis, OR 97331; jdunham@usgs.gov
Lorien Belton, Utah State University, Wildland Resources Dept., 5230 Old Main Hill, Logan, UT 84322-5230; Phone: 435-770-2413; lorien.belton@usu.edu
Speaker Information:
Surface water availability in the Great Basin - what we don't know and how to know it
Jason Dunham, Supervisory Aquatic Ecologist, U.S. Geological Survey, Forest and Rangeland Ecosystem Science Center, Corvallis, OR 97331; jdunham@usgs.gov
Jason is an aquatic ecologist with the US Geological Survey, Forest and Rangeland Ecosystem Science Center. He conducts his work from Corvallis Oregon, where he also holds a courtesy faculty appointment in the Department of Fisheries and Wildlife at Oregon State University. His research interests include landscape processes, climate change, and influences on native and nonnative species tied to stream ecosystems in across the western US.
Beaver as restoration agents in sagebrush ecosystems
Konrad Hafen, Graduate Research Assistant, Watershed Sciences, Utah State University, Logan, UT 84321;
Konrad is pursuing a master's degree at Utah State University in the Watershed Sciences Department under the direction of Joe Wheaton. His research interests focus on spatial modeling of surface and ecological systems, and his current work is centered on quantifying the hydrologic effects of beaver dams at large spatial scales.
Public lands and private waters: scarce mesic resources structure land tenure and sage-grouse distributions
Patrick Donnelly, Landscape Ecologist, Intermountain West Joint Venture, U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service - R6 Division of Migratory Birds, University of Montana, 32 Campus Drive - Office: FOR302, Missoula, MT 59812; patrick_donnelly@fws.gov
Patrick is a landscape ecologist with the Intermountain West Joint Venture and US Fish and Wildlife Service. He conducts his work from the University of Montana as a research affiliate in the Wildlife Program. His research interest include examination of broad scale wetland processes and their spatio-temporal patterns that structure wildlife populations and changing land use across western North America.
Getting drifts: Why snowdrifts are so important to water supply and ecology in the Great Basin
Charles Luce, Research Hydrologist, U.S. Forest Service, Research and Development, Rocky Mountain Research Station, 322 E Front St, Boise, ID 83712;
Charles is a Research Hydrologist with the US Forest Service, Rocky Mountain Research Station in Boise, Idaho. He researches hydrologic changes associated with land management, changes in forest cover, drought, and shifting climate in topics like snow hydrology, stream temperature, hyporheic flow, and erosion.
Grazing management and hydrology in sagebrush ecosystems: communication is the key
Sandy Wyman, Rangeland Management Specialist, National Riparian Service Team, 3050 NE 3rd St. Prineville, OR 97754; swyman@blm.gov
Sandy is a Rangeland Management Specialist on the National Riparian Service Team for the Bureau of Land Management, where she has been for 13 years. Prior to that Sandy worked for the Natural Resources Conservation Service for 15 years, in South Dakota, Montana, Wyoming, and Colorado, and throughout many of the western states assisting the NRST. She started her riparian career in Brookings, SD in 1992 and has specialized in riparian grazing management and assessing riparian area condition. Sandy works throughout the west, providing coaching, training, and providing assistance to private and public land managers along with team members and a network of people around the west. Sandy has a B.S. in Rangeland Management from the University of Wyoming.