Forest and Rangeland Ecosystem Science Center (FRESC)
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Scientists from the Forest and Rangeland Ecosystem Science Center capitalize on their diverse expertise to answer scientific questions shaped by the environments of the western United States. We collaborate with each other and with partners to provide rigorous, objective, and timely information and guidance for the management and conservation of biological systems in the West and worldwide.
FRESC Research Teams
FRESC scientists, individually or collaboratively with partners, investigate high-priority questions about biological systems.
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News
Weed-Suppressive Bacteria have no Effect on Exotic or Native Plants in Sagebrush Steppe
Approaches and techniques for controlling exotic annual grasses are a high priority in rangelands including sagebrush steppe.
Occupancy Patterns in a Reintroduced Fisher Population during Reestablishment
From 2008-10, researchers translocated 90 fishers from British Columbia to Washington’s Olympic Peninsula.
Assessing the Relative Importance of Factors at Multiple Spatial Scales Affecting Terrestrial and Aquatic Wildlife
The ability to understand a given ecological process depends on the scale of observation.
Publications
Riparian soil nitrogen cycling and isotopic enrichment in response to a long-term salmon carcass manipulation experiment
Pacific salmon acquire most of their biomass in the ocean before returning to spawn and die in coastal streams and lakes, thus providing subsidies of marine-derived nitrogen (MDN) to freshwater and terrestrial ecosystems. Recent declines in salmon abundance have raised questions of whether managers should mitigate for losses of salmon MDN...
Feddern, Megan; Holtgrieve, Gordon W.; Hart, Julia A.; Perakis, Steven; Ro, Hyejoo; Quinn, Tom Integration of eDNA-based biological monitoring within the US Geological Survey’s national streamgage network
This study explores the feasibility and utility of integrating environmental DNA (eDNA) assessments of species occurrences into the US Geological Survey’s national streamgage network. We used an existing network of five gages in southwest Idaho to explore the type of information that could be gained as well as the associated costs and limitations...
Pilliod, David; Laramie, Matthew; McCoy, Dorene; Maclean, Scott Designing multi-scale hierarchical monitoring frameworks for wildlife to support management: A sage-grouse case study
Population monitoring is integral to the conservation and management of wildlife; yet, analyses of population demographic data rarely consider processes occurring across spatial scales, potentially limiting the effectiveness of adaptive management. Therefore, we developed a method to identify hierarchical levels of organization (i.e., populations...
O'Donnell, Michael S.; Edmunds, David R.; Aldridge, Cameron L.; Heinrichs, Julie; Coates, Peter S.; Prochazka, Brian G.; Hanser, Steven E.