Dr. Matthew Brooks is an Ecologist with the U.S. Geological Survey's Western Ecological Research Center.
His primary research emphasis is on the ecology and management of alien plants and fire in the deserts and mountains of western North America. Other research topics include drought, wildlife ecology, ecological restoration, and the ecological effects of various land-use regimes. Dr. Brooks serves on the editorial boards of the journals Fire Ecology and Rangeland Ecology and Management, and was a charter editorial board member of Invasive Plant Science and Management. Dr. Brooks has taught at the high school, community college, and university levels and has advised numerous Master's and Doctoral students.
RESEARCH INTERESTS
Education and Certifications
Ph.D., Biology, concentration in Ecology and Population Biology, University of California, Riverside, CA 1998
M.A., Biology, California State University, Fresno, CA 1992
Teaching Credential, Biology/Physical Sciences, California State University, Fresno, CA 1990
B.S., Biological Sciences, University of California, Irvine, CA 1987
Science and Products
WERC Fire Science
Wildland Fire Science in Forests and Deserts
Yosemite Field Station
Fighting Drought with Fire: A Comparison of Burned and Unburned Forests in Drought-Impacted Areas of the Southwest
Evidence for shifts in plant species diversity along N deposition gradients: a first synthesis for the United States
How will Mammals in the Alpine Zone of the Sierra Nevada Mountains Respond to Future Climate?
Fire Regimes in the Mojave Desert (1972-2010)
Invasive Plant Cover in the Mojave Desert, 2009 - 2013 (ver. 2.0, April 2021)
Riparian vegetation, topography, sediment quality and river corridor geomorphology in the Lower Virgin River 2010-2017
Subalpine Meadow Plant Communities in Yosemite and Sequoia and Kings Canyon National Parks, 2011-2012
Fire Patterns among Ecological Zones in the California Desert, 1984-2013
U.S. Geological Survey wildland fire science strategic plan, 2021–26
Combined effects of biological control of an invasive shrub and fluvial processes on riparian vegetation dynamics
Effects of invasive plants on fire regimes and postfire vegetation diversity in an arid ecosystem
Potential vulnerability of 348 herbaceous species to atmospheric deposition of nitrogen and sulfur in the United States
Operationalizing resilience and resistance concepts to address invasive grass-fire cycles
Southeastern Deserts Bioregion
Fire and invasive plants
Alternative pathways to landscape transformation: Invasive grasses, burn severity and fire frequency in arid ecosystems
Climate change and tree-line ecosystems in the Sierra Nevada: Habitat suitability modelling to inform high-elevation forest dynamics monitoring
California Spotted Owl (Strix occidentalis occidentalis) habitat use patterns in a burned landscape
Evidence of fuels management and fire weather influencing fire severity in an extreme fire event
A multi-scale evaluation of pack stock effects on subalpine meadow plant communities in the Sierra Nevada
Science and Products
- Science
WERC Fire Science
WERC scientists are defining the past, present, and future of wildfires for wildlife and human communities. Explore this webpage to learn about specific, ongoing projects across California and parts of Nevada.Wildland Fire Science in Forests and Deserts
Fuel conditions and fire regimes in western forests and deserts have been altered due to past land management, biological invasions, and recent extreme weather events and climate shifts. These changes have created extreme fire risk to local and regional communities, threatening their economic health related to wildland recreation, forest production, livestock operations, and other uses of public...Yosemite Field Station
The Yosemite Field Station is comprised of a main office located on the west side of the Sierra Nevada.Fighting Drought with Fire: A Comparison of Burned and Unburned Forests in Drought-Impacted Areas of the Southwest
Drought is one of the biggest threats facing our forests today. In the western U.S., severe drought and rising temperatures have caused increased tree mortality and complete forest diebacks. Forests are changing rapidly, and while land managers are working to develop long-term climate change adaptation plans, they require tools that can enhance forest resistance to drought now. To address this immEvidence for shifts in plant species diversity along N deposition gradients: a first synthesis for the United States
The impacts of nitrogen (N) deposition on plant diversity loss have been well documented across N deposition gradients in Europe, but much less so in the U.S. Published N fertilizer studies suggest losses will occur in the US, but many of these were done at levels of N input that were higher than modeled and measured N deposition, and higher than presumed N critical loads. The recent availabilityHow will Mammals in the Alpine Zone of the Sierra Nevada Mountains Respond to Future Climate?
Our study addresses the general question of the degree to which wildlife species can adapt to, or possibly even modify, effects from climate change. We focused on five species of mammals in the alpine zone of the Sierra Nevada mountain range, including the federally endangered Sierra Nevada bighorn sheep and the American pika, a species recently proposed for listing due to the loss of populations - Data
Fire Regimes in the Mojave Desert (1972-2010)
This U.S. Geological Survey data release consists of 3 raster datasets representing estimates of probability of ignition (ProbIgnitPredict.tif), fire frequency (FrequencyPredictRF.tif), and burn severity (dNBRPredictRF.tif) in the Mojave Desert from 1984 to 2010. The data include: (1) A shapefile of the Mojave Desert that was used as our study area boundary (MojaveEcoregion_TNS_UTM83.shp). The oriInvasive Plant Cover in the Mojave Desert, 2009 - 2013 (ver. 2.0, April 2021)
We assessed the impacts of co-occurring invasive plant species on fire regimes and postfire native communities in the Mojave Desert, western USA by analyzing the distribution and co-occurrence patterns of three invasive annual grasses known to alter fuel conditions and community structure: Red Brome (Bromus rubens), Cheatgrass (Bromus tectorum), and Mediterranean grass (Schismus spp.: Schismus aRiparian vegetation, topography, sediment quality and river corridor geomorphology in the Lower Virgin River 2010-2017
Plant composition, geomorphic conditions and sediment properties before (2010-2012) and after (2015-2017) the arrival of a biocontrol agent (defoliating beetle in the Diorhabda genus) of invasive Tamarix spp. The data contains four csv files: localization (UTM coordinates of the transects), vegetation and geomorphology, species codes and sediment qualitySubalpine Meadow Plant Communities in Yosemite and Sequoia and Kings Canyon National Parks, 2011-2012
This publication presents data collected within meadows from samples used to assess meadow plant community responses to recreational pack stock as part of a USGS Natural Resources Preservation Project. High elevation meadows are a vital ecological component of mountain systems throughout western North America. They provide critical habitat for wildlife, supply key ecosystem services, and are favorFire Patterns among Ecological Zones in the California Desert, 1984-2013
The California desert occupies the southeastern 27 percent of California (11,028,300 ha, 110,283 km2 or 27,251,610 ac). It includes two ecoregional provinces comprised of five desert regions ("ecological sections"; Miles and Goudy 1997). The American Semi-Desert and Desert Province (warm deserts) includes the Mojave Desert, Sonoran Desert, and Colorado Desert sect - Publications
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U.S. Geological Survey wildland fire science strategic plan, 2021–26
The U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) Wildland Fire Science Strategic Plan defines critical, core fire science capabilities for understanding fire-related and fire-responsive earth system processes and patterns, and informing management decision making. Developed by USGS fire scientists and executive leadership, and informed by conversations with external stakeholders, the Strategic Plan is aligned wiByEcosystems, Natural Hazards, Earth Resources Observation and Science Center, Science Analytics and Synthesis (SAS), Alaska Science Center, Earth Resources Observation and Science (EROS) Center , Forest and Rangeland Ecosystem Science Center, Fort Collins Science Center, Geologic Hazards Science Center, Geology, Geophysics, and Geochemistry Science Center, Western Ecological Research Center (WERC)Combined effects of biological control of an invasive shrub and fluvial processes on riparian vegetation dynamics
Plant community responses to biocontrol of invasive plants are understudied, despite the strong influence of the composition of replacement vegetation on ecosystem functions and services. We studied the vegetation response to a folivore beetle (Diorhabda genus, Coleoptera) that has been introduced along southwestern US river valleys to control the invasion of non-native shrubs in the genus TamarixEffects of invasive plants on fire regimes and postfire vegetation diversity in an arid ecosystem
We assessed the impacts of co‐occurring invasive plant species on fire regimes and postfire native communities in the Mojave Desert, western USA. We analyzed the distribution and co‐occurrence patterns of three invasive annual grasses (Bromus rubens, Bromus tectorum, and Schismus spp.) known to alter fuel conditions and community structure, and an invasive forb (Erodium cicutarium) which dominatesPotential vulnerability of 348 herbaceous species to atmospheric deposition of nitrogen and sulfur in the United States
Atmospheric nitrogen and sulfur pollution increased over much of the United States during the twentieth century from fossil fuel combustion and industrial agriculture. Despite recent declines, nitrogen and sulfur deposition continue to affect many plant communities in the United States, although which species are at risk remains uncertain. We used species composition data from >14,000 survey sitesOperationalizing resilience and resistance concepts to address invasive grass-fire cycles
Plant invasions can affect fuel characteristics, fire behavior, and fire regimes resulting in invasive plant-fire cycles and alternative, self-perpetuating states that can be difficult, if not impossible, to reverse. Concepts related to general resilience to disturbance and resistance to invasive plants provide the basis for managing landscapes to increase their capacity to reorganize and adjust fSoutheastern Deserts Bioregion
The Southeast Deserts Bioregion (desert bioregion) occupies the southeastern 27% of California (11,028,300 ha, 110,283 km2 or 27,251,610 ac) (Miles and Goudy 1997) (Map 18.1). The desert bioregion is within the basin and range geomorphic province of western North America, and includes two ecoregional provinces comprised of five ecological sections. The American Semi-Desert and Desert Province (warFire and invasive plants
No abstract available.Alternative pathways to landscape transformation: Invasive grasses, burn severity and fire frequency in arid ecosystems
Arid ecosystems are often vulnerable to transformation to invasive-dominated states following fire, but data on persistence of these states are sparse. The grass/fire cycle is a feedback process between invasive annual grasses and fire frequency that often leads to the formation of alternative vegetation states dominated by the invasive grasses. However, other components of fire regimes, such as bClimate change and tree-line ecosystems in the Sierra Nevada: Habitat suitability modelling to inform high-elevation forest dynamics monitoring
Whitebark pine and foxtail pine serve foundational roles in the subalpine zone of the Sierra Nevada. They provide the dominant structure in tree-line forests and regulate key ecosystem processes and community dynamics. Climate change models suggest that there will be changes in temperature regimes and in the timing and magnitude of precipitation within the current distribution of these species, anCalifornia Spotted Owl (Strix occidentalis occidentalis) habitat use patterns in a burned landscape
Fire is a dynamic ecosystem process of mixed-conifer forests of the Sierra Nevada, but there is limited scientific information addressing wildlife habitat use in burned landscapes. Recent studies have presented contradictory information regarding the effects of stand-replacing wildfires on Spotted Owls (Strix occidentalis) and their habitat. While fire promotes heterogeneous forest landscapes showEvidence of fuels management and fire weather influencing fire severity in an extreme fire event
Following changes in vegetation structure and pattern, along with a changing climate, large wildfire incidence has increased in forests throughout the western U.S. Given this increase there is great interest in whether fuels treatments and previous wildfire can alter fire severity patterns in large wildfires. We assessed the relative influence of previous fuels treatments (including wildfire), firA multi-scale evaluation of pack stock effects on subalpine meadow plant communities in the Sierra Nevada
We evaluated the influence of pack stock (i.e., horse and mule) use on meadow plant communities in Sequoia and Yosemite National Parks in the Sierra Nevada of California. Meadows were sampled to account for inherent variability across multiple scales by: 1) controlling for among-meadow variability by using remotely sensed hydro-climatic and geospatial data to pair stock use meadows with similar no - News
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