Rangelands are natural ecosystems where the native vegetation consists predominantly of grasses, grass-like plants, forbs, or shrubs. Rangelands include natural grasslands, savannas, shrublands, oak and pinyon-juniper woodlands, many deserts, tundra, alpine communities, marshes, and wet meadows.
It is important for land managers and technical assistance specialists to be able to assess the status of rangeland ecosystems in order to know where to focus management efforts. The term “Rangeland Health” has become a publicly accepted term that relates to status of rangelands. It is defined as “the degree to which the integrity of the soil, vegetation, water, and air, as well as the ecological processes of the rangeland ecosystem, are balanced and sustained.” Integrity in this context means the “maintenance of the functional attributes characteristic of a locale, including normal variability.”
In a collaborative effort, the ARS, BLM, NRCS, USFS, and USGS have jointly developed a system in which 17 indicators are used to gauge three attributes of rangeland health: soil and site stability, hydrologic function, and biotic integrity. The Interpreting Indicators of Rangeland Health (IIRH) protocol is designed for assessing ecosystem function on rangelands and woodlands and has been in use by for two decades. Version 5 of IIRH is the third published edition of this protocol and reflects changes learned through 13 years of teaching and applying previous versions. These changes should improve the consistency of the application and interpretations made using this protocol. Future revisions are anticipated as science and experience provide additional information on indicators and assessments of rangeland health. The evaluation is used widely by the BLM, the Natural Resources Conservation Service, and many private rangeland consultants.
Pellant, M., Shaver, P.L., Pyke, D.A., Herrick, J.E., Lepak, N., Riegel, G., Kachergis, E.J., Newingham, B.A., Toledo, D.P., Busby, F.E., 2020, Interpreting Indicators of Rangeland Health, Version 5: Bureau of Land Management Technical Reference 1734-6, p. 187, https://pubs.er.usgs.gov/publication/70215720
Below are other science projects associated with this project.
Restoration and Ecology of Arid Lands Team (FRESC)
Below are data or web applications associated with this project.
Nitrogen cycling rates from sagebrush and cheatgrass-invaded soils in the Northern Great Basin (2008)
Below are publications associated with this project.
Interpreting Indicators of Rangeland Health, Version 5: Bureau of Land Management Technical Reference 1734-6
A strategy for defining the reference for land health and degradation assessments
Fire and grazing influence site resistance to Bromus tectorum through their effects on shrub, bunchgrass and biocrust communities in the Great Basin (USA)
Climate change-induced vegetation shifts lead to more ecological droughts despite projected rainfall increases in many global temperate drylands
Patterns in Greater Sage-grouse population dynamics correspond with public grazing records at broad scales
Monitoring protocols: Options, approaches, implementation, benefits
Climate change reduces extent of temperate drylands and intensifies drought in deep soils
A holistic strategy for adaptive land management
Assessing transportation infrastructure impacts on rangelands: test of a standard rangeland assessment protocol
National ecosystem assessments supported by scientific and local knowledge
Is Rangeland Health Relevant to Mongolia?
Integrated monitoring of hydrogeomorphic, vegetative, and edaphic conditions in riparian ecosystems of Great Basin National Park, Nevada
Monitoring temporal change in riparian vegetation of Great Basin National Park
- Overview
Rangelands are natural ecosystems where the native vegetation consists predominantly of grasses, grass-like plants, forbs, or shrubs. Rangelands include natural grasslands, savannas, shrublands, oak and pinyon-juniper woodlands, many deserts, tundra, alpine communities, marshes, and wet meadows.
It is important for land managers and technical assistance specialists to be able to assess the status of rangeland ecosystems in order to know where to focus management efforts. The term “Rangeland Health” has become a publicly accepted term that relates to status of rangelands. It is defined as “the degree to which the integrity of the soil, vegetation, water, and air, as well as the ecological processes of the rangeland ecosystem, are balanced and sustained.” Integrity in this context means the “maintenance of the functional attributes characteristic of a locale, including normal variability.”
In a collaborative effort, the ARS, BLM, NRCS, USFS, and USGS have jointly developed a system in which 17 indicators are used to gauge three attributes of rangeland health: soil and site stability, hydrologic function, and biotic integrity. The Interpreting Indicators of Rangeland Health (IIRH) protocol is designed for assessing ecosystem function on rangelands and woodlands and has been in use by for two decades. Version 5 of IIRH is the third published edition of this protocol and reflects changes learned through 13 years of teaching and applying previous versions. These changes should improve the consistency of the application and interpretations made using this protocol. Future revisions are anticipated as science and experience provide additional information on indicators and assessments of rangeland health. The evaluation is used widely by the BLM, the Natural Resources Conservation Service, and many private rangeland consultants.
Pellant, M., Shaver, P.L., Pyke, D.A., Herrick, J.E., Lepak, N., Riegel, G., Kachergis, E.J., Newingham, B.A., Toledo, D.P., Busby, F.E., 2020, Interpreting Indicators of Rangeland Health, Version 5: Bureau of Land Management Technical Reference 1734-6, p. 187, https://pubs.er.usgs.gov/publication/70215720
- Science
Below are other science projects associated with this project.
Restoration and Ecology of Arid Lands Team (FRESC)
The focus of our research is on the restoration and monitoring of the plants and soils of the Intermountain West. Our lab is part of the Snake River Field Station, but is located in Corvallis, Oregon. Research topics include fire rehabilitation effects and effectiveness, indicators of rangeland health, invasive species ecology, and restoration of shrub steppe ecosystems. - Data
Below are data or web applications associated with this project.
Nitrogen cycling rates from sagebrush and cheatgrass-invaded soils in the Northern Great Basin (2008)
This dataset contains data supporting the paper: DeCrappeo, N.M., DeLorenze, E.J., Giguere, A.T., Pyke, D.A., and Bottomley, P.J. Fungal and bacterial contributions to nitrogen cycling in cheatgrass-invaded and uninvaded native sagebrush soils of the western USA (accepted at the journal Plant and Soil). The purpose of the study was to evaluate the relative contributions of soil bacteria and fungi - Publications
Below are publications associated with this project.
Interpreting Indicators of Rangeland Health, Version 5: Bureau of Land Management Technical Reference 1734-6
The Interpreting Indicators of Rangeland Health (IIRH) protocol is designed for assessing ecosystem function on rangelands and woodlands. The protocol was developed by an interagency cadre of technical experts and has been in use by for two decades. The protocol is well accepted and is a valuable tool for communicating rangeland conditions with stakeholders. Technical Reference 1734-6 Version 4,Filter Total Items: 17A strategy for defining the reference for land health and degradation assessments
Much of the confusion about the definition of reference conditions for land health and degradation assessments is due to differences in policy and management objectives. Selection of a historic reference where it is not necessary, such as in the definition of future land degradation neutrality, can add significant cost and uncertainty to land management projects that require some knowledge of theFire and grazing influence site resistance to Bromus tectorum through their effects on shrub, bunchgrass and biocrust communities in the Great Basin (USA)
Shrubs, bunchgrasses and biological soil crusts (biocrusts) are believed to contribute to site resistance to plant invasions in the presence of cattle grazing. Although fire is a concomitant disturbance with grazing, little is known regarding their combined impacts on invasion resistance. We are the first to date to test the idea that biotic communities mediate the effects of disturbance on site rClimate change-induced vegetation shifts lead to more ecological droughts despite projected rainfall increases in many global temperate drylands
Drylands occur world-wide and are particularly vulnerable to climate change since dryland ecosystems depend directly on soil water availability that may become increasingly limited as temperatures rise. Climate change will both directly impact soil water availability, and also change plant biomass, with resulting indirect feedbacks on soil moisture. Thus, the net impact of direct and indirect climPatterns in Greater Sage-grouse population dynamics correspond with public grazing records at broad scales
Human land use, such as livestock grazing, can have profound yet varied effects on wildlife interacting within common ecosystems, yet our understanding of land-use effects is often generalized from short-term, local studies that may not correspond with trends at broader scales. Here we used public land records to characterize livestock grazing across Wyoming, USA, and we used Greater Sage-grouse (Monitoring protocols: Options, approaches, implementation, benefits
Monitoring and adaptive management are fundamental concepts to rangeland management across land management agencies and embodied as best management practices for private landowners. Historically, rangeland monitoring was limited to determining impacts or maximizing the potential of specific land uses—typically grazing. Over the past several decades, though, the uses of and disturbances to rangelanClimate change reduces extent of temperate drylands and intensifies drought in deep soils
Drylands cover 40% of the global terrestrial surface and provide important ecosystem services. While drylands as a whole are expected to increase in extent and aridity in coming decades, temperature and precipitation forecasts vary by latitude and geographic region suggesting different trajectories for tropical, subtropical, and temperate drylands. Uncertainty in the future of tropical and subtropA holistic strategy for adaptive land management
Adaptive management is widely applied to natural resources management (Holling 1973; Walters and Holling 1990). Adaptive management can be generally defined as an iterative decision-making process that incorporates formulation of management objectives, actions designed to address these objectives, monitoring of results, and repeated adaptation of management until desired results are achieved (BrowAssessing transportation infrastructure impacts on rangelands: test of a standard rangeland assessment protocol
Linear disturbances associated with on- and off-road vehicle use on rangelands has increased dramatically throughout the world in recent decades. This increase is due to a variety of factors including increased availability of all-terrain vehicles, infrastructure development (oil, gas, renewable energy, and ex-urban), and recreational activities. In addition to the direct impacts of road developmeNational ecosystem assessments supported by scientific and local knowledge
An understanding of the extent of land degradation and recovery is necessary to guide land-use policy and management, yet currently available land-quality assessments are widely known to be inadequate. Here, we present the results of the first statistically based application of a new approach to national assessments that integrates scientific and local knowledge. Qualitative observations completedIs Rangeland Health Relevant to Mongolia?
DOI: 10.2111/1551-501X(2008)30[25:IRHRTM]2.0.CO;2Integrated monitoring of hydrogeomorphic, vegetative, and edaphic conditions in riparian ecosystems of Great Basin National Park, Nevada
In semiarid regions such as the Great Basin, riparian areas function as oases of cooler and more stable microclimates, greater relative humidity, greater structural complexity, and a steady flow of water and nutrients relative to upland areas. These qualities make riparian areaʼs attractive not only to resident and migratory wildlife, but also to visitors in recreation areas such as Great Basin NaMonitoring temporal change in riparian vegetation of Great Basin National Park
Disturbance in riparian areas of semiarid ecosystems involves complex interactions of pulsed hydrologic flows, herbivory, fire, climatic effects, and anthropogenic influences. We resampled riparian vegetation within ten 10-m × 100-m plots that were initially sampled in 1992 in 4 watersheds of the Snake Range, east central Nevada. Our finding of significantly lower coverage of grasses, forbs, and s