• 1st CASE STUDY:
Needle-and-thread grass regeneration after prescribed fire at Dinosaur National Monument, Colorado

• 2nd CASE STUDY:
Prescribed fire in Idaho big sagebrush/bunchgrass
• 3rd CASE STUDY:
Needle-and-thread grass response to spring burning in western South Dakota

1st CASE STUDY:

• REFERENCE
• SEASON/SEVERITY CLASSIFICATION
• STUDY LOCATION
• PREFIRE VEGETATIVE COMMUNITY
• TARGET SPECIES PHENOLOGICAL STATE
• SITE DESCRIPTION
• FIRE DESCRIPTION
• FIRE EFFECTS ON TARGET SPECIES
• FIRE MANAGEMENT IMPLICATIONS

CASE NAME:

Needle-and-thread grass regeneration after prescribed fire at Dinosaur National Monument, Colorado

REFERENCE:

Delafield, H. 1997 [46]

SEASON/SEVERITY CLASSIFICATION:

The fire took place on September 14, 1995. Temperatures were 82 to 84 degrees Fahrenheit (28-29 ^oC), relative humidity was 17%, and winds were 8 to 12 miles/h (13-19 km/h).

STUDY LOCATION:

The burn took place at Iron Springs Bench, Dinosaur National Monument, Dinosaur, Colorado.

PREFIRE VEGETATIVE COMMUNITY:

The study plots represented two prefire communities--a big sagebrush (Artemisia tridentata)/grass community dominated by sagebrush, thickspike wheatgrass (Elymus lanceolatus), needle-and-thread grass (Hesperostipa comata), and Indian ricegrass (Achnatherum hymenoides), and a perennial grassland featuring the same grass species.

TARGET SPECIES PHENOLOGICAL STATE:

Grasses were dormant, mature plants with current year inflorescences.

SITE DESCRIPTION:

No entry

FIRE DESCRIPTION:

Fire behavior on the big sagebrush/grass plots was as follows:

Rate of spread	flame length	flaming front	residence time in sagebrush
1809-2010 m/h	3 m	3-4.5 m	20 sec. or less

 

Fire characteristics were not measured in the perennial grass plot. However, residence time was apparently lower, around 10 seconds, due to lower fuel loading.

FIRE EFFECTS ON TARGET SPECIES:

On the sagebrush/grass plots, 74% of needle-and-thread grass plants regenerated from the caudex in 1996, the year following the burn. In 1996, only 4% of the surviving plants produced seed, but by 1997, 100% produced seed. In 1997, 6 plants that were absent (and presumed killed) in 1996 resprouted and produced seed, and 5 plants present in 1996 were not found in 1997.

On the perennial grass plots, 92% of plants regenerated from the caudex in 1996, 1 year after the burn. By 1997, regeneration was 99%. In 1996, 14% of plants produced seed, but by 1997, 99% did.

FIRE MANAGEMENT IMPLICATIONS:

Needle-and-thread grass regenerates following fire from the surviving underground root system. Plants that fail to regenerate or produce seed in the 1st season following fire may still recover in the 2nd year.

2nd CASE STUDY:

• REFERENCE
• SEASON/SEVERITY CLASSIFICATION
• STUDY LOCATION
• PREFIRE VEGETATIVE COMMUNITY
• TARGET SPECIES PHENOLOGICAL STATE
• SITE DESCRIPTION
• FIRE DESCRIPTION
• FIRE EFFECTS ON TARGET SPECIES
• FIRE MANAGEMENT IMPLICATIONS

CASE NAME:

Prescribed fire in Idaho big sagebrush/bunchgrass

REFERENCE:

Blaisdell, J. P. 1953 [16]

SEASON/SEVERITY CLASSIFICATION:

August 1936/severity not given

STUDY LOCATION:

U.S. Sheep Experiment Station, 11 miles northeast of Dubois, Clark County, Idaho

PREFIRE VEGETATIVE COMMUNITY:

This was a big sagebrush (Artemisia tridentata)/bunchgrass site, with 35% perennial grasses, including thickspike wheatgrass (Elymus lanceolatus), plains reedgrass (Calamagrostis montanesis), sedges (Carex spp.), junegrass (Koeleria macrantha), Sandberg bluegrass (Poa secunda), and needle-and-thread grass (Hesperostipa comata); 5% perennial forbs; 5% annual forbs; 40% big sagebrush; and 15% downy rabbitbrush (Chrysothamnus viscidiflorus var. puberulus), spineless gray horsebrush (Tetradymia canescens var. inermis), and miscellaneous other shrubs.

TARGET SPECIES PHENOLOGICAL STATE:

Seeds had been disseminated and plants were dry or nearly dry. The site had not been grazed the previous growing season in order to have sufficient fuels to carry the fire.

SITE DESCRIPTION:

The study site was at approximately 6,000 feet (1830 m) elevation, with 11 inches (279 mm) annual precipitation, with sandy soils of basaltic origin. Dry southwestern winds during the summer months make this an arid site, with 100 degrees Fahrenheit (38°C) temperatures possible in the summer and -35 degrees Fahrenheit (-37°C) in the winter.

FIRE DESCRIPTION:

The fire burned in a mosaic pattern, with scattered unburned islands. Immediately following the burn, the study plots were classified according to the following definitions: 1) heavily burned—trunk or main stem of big sagebrush consumed, 2) moderately burned—larger branches of sagebrush remaining but smaller ones consumed, 3) lightly burned—only leaves consumed, and 4)unburned—no evidence of fire in brush or understory.

FIRE EFFECTS ON TARGET SPECIES:

Production of needle-and-thread grass following the fires was not significantly different under any treatment.

FIRE MANAGEMENT IMPLICATIONS:

The author concluded that needle-and-thread grass would experience a 1st year set back in production following burning, and then increase production in the following years. Needle-and-thread grass was not reduced by the burn.

3rd CASE STUDY:

• REFERENCE
• SEASON/SEVERITY CLASSIFICATION
• STUDY LOCATION
• PREFIRE VEGETATIVE COMMUNITY
• TARGET SPECIES PHENOLOGICAL STATE
• SITE DESCRIPTION
• FIRE DESCRIPTION
• FIRE EFFECTS ON TARGET SPECIES
• FIRE MANAGEMENT IMPLICATIONS

CASE NAME:

Needle-and-thread grass response to spring burning in western South Dakota

REFERENCE:

Gartner, F. R.; Lindsey, J. R. 1986 [64]

SEASON/SEVERITY CLASSIFICATION:

April 21, 1976/severity not given

STUDY LOCATION:

Wind Cave National Park, Black Hills, South Dakota.

PREFIRE VEGETATIVE COMMUNITY:

This was a ponderosa pine (Pinus ponderosa) and mixed-grass prairie site, featuring a western wheatgrass (Pascopyrum smithii)-needle-and-thread grass plant community. Species present included green needlegrass (Nassella viridula), bluegrasses (Poa spp.), grama grasses (Bouteloua spp.), sedges (Carex spp.), forbs, and shrubs.

TARGET SPECIES PHENOLOGICAL STATE:

Needle-and-thread grass was in early growth.

SITE DESCRIPTION:

The study area was located on a nearly level bench, with average annual precipitation of 16.6 inches (422 mm), mostly in the summer. The soils in the study area were deep silt loams, derived from underlying gypsiferous red shales. Silty clay subsoils layers were calcareous at about 15 inches (38 cm).

FIRE DESCRIPTION:

Conditions at the time of the fire were: winds southeast 8 to 12 mph (19-24 km/h), temperature 70 degrees Fahrenheit (20 °C), and relative humidity 40%. Most of the area was burned with a strip-headfire and a flank fire, due to shifting winds.

FIRE EFFECTS ON TARGET SPECIES:

In 1976, the year of the fire, needle-and-thread grass yield was significantly (p<0.10) higher in the burn than in the unburned control. In the following year, yield was significantly lower. The year following the burn received lower than average annual precipitation, and mean yields of all vegetation measured were lower on both burned and unburned plots. The authors attributed this decrease to droughty conditions.

Flowering was stimulated on the burned needle-and-thread grass plots for the 1st season following the fire (1976).

FIRE MANAGEMENT IMPLICATIONS:

The authors concluded that burning increased the yields of desirable native species, decreased the presence of exotics, and had a net benefit on the health of the study sites.

Related categories for SPECIES: Hesperostipa comata | Needle-And-Thread Grass