Matthew Brooks
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
Fire in the southwest: Integrating fire into management of changing ecosystems
A Chronosequence Feasibility Assessment of Emergency Fire Rehabilitation Records within the Intermountain Western United States - Final Report to the Joint Fire Science Program - Project 08-S-08
Fire rehabilitation effectiveness: a chronosequence approach for the Great Basin
Wildland fire in ecosystems: Fire and nonnative invasive plants
Interactions among livestock grazing, vegetation type, and fire behavior in the Murphy Wildland Fire Complex in Idaho and Nevada, July 2007
Monitoring ecosystem quality and function in arid settings of the Mojave Desert
Fire management and invasive plants- A handbook
Dominance and environmental correlates of alien annual plants in the Mojave Desert, USA
Effects of livestock watering sites on alien and native plants in the Mojave Desert, USA
Control of invasive weeds with prescribed burning
Effects of invasive alien plants on fire regimes
Spatial and Temporal Patterns of Off-highway Vehicle Use at the Dove Springs OHV Open Area, California. Report prepared for the Bureau of Land Management, California State Office, Sacramento, California
Science and Products
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Filter Total Items: 90
Fire in the southwest: Integrating fire into management of changing ecosystems
No abstract available.AuthorsCarolyn Hull Sieg, Peter Z Fulé, Molly E. Hunter, Craig D. Allen, Matthew L. Brooks, Randy G. BaliceA Chronosequence Feasibility Assessment of Emergency Fire Rehabilitation Records within the Intermountain Western United States - Final Report to the Joint Fire Science Program - Project 08-S-08
Department of the Interior (DOI) bureaus have invested heavily (for example, the U.S. Bureau of Land Management (BLM) spent more than $60 million in fiscal year 2007) in seeding vegetation for emergency stabilization and burned area rehabilitation of non-forested arid lands over the past 10 years. The primary objectives of these seedings commonly are to (1) reduce the post-fire dominance of non-naAuthorsKevin C. Knutson, David A. Pyke, Troy A. Wirth, David S. Pilliod, Matthew L. Brooks, Jeanne C. ChambersFire rehabilitation effectiveness: a chronosequence approach for the Great Basin
Federal land management agencies have invested heavily in seeding vegetation for emergency stabilization and rehabilitation (ES&R) of non-forested lands. ES&R projects are implemented to reduce post-fire dominance of non-native annual grasses, minimize probability of recurrent fire, quickly recover lost habitat for sensitive species, and ultimately result in plant communities with desirable chAuthorsDavid A. Pyke, David S. Pilliod, Jeanne C. Chambers, Matthew L. Brooks, James GraceWildland fire in ecosystems: Fire and nonnative invasive plants
This state-of-knowledge review of information on relationships between wildland fire and nonnative invasive plants can assist fire managers and other land managers concerned with prevention, detection, and eradication or control of nonnative invasive plants. The 16 chapters in this volume synthesize ecological and botanical principles regarding relationships between wildland fire and nonnative invAuthorsKristin Zouhar, Jane Kapler Smith, Steve Sutherland, Matthew L. BrooksInteractions among livestock grazing, vegetation type, and fire behavior in the Murphy Wildland Fire Complex in Idaho and Nevada, July 2007
A series of wildland fires were ignited by lightning in sagebrush and grassland communities near the Idaho-Nevada border southwest of Twin Falls, Idaho in July 2007. The fires burned for over two weeks and encompassed more than 650,000 acres. A team of scientists, habitat specialists, and land managers was called together by Tom Dyer, Idaho BLM State Director, to examine initial information from tAuthorsKaren Launchbaugh, Bob Brammer, Matthew L. Brooks, Stephen C. Bunting, Patrick Clark, Jay Davison, Mark Fleming, Ron Kay, Mike Pellant, David A. PykeMonitoring ecosystem quality and function in arid settings of the Mojave Desert
Monitoring ecosystem quality and function in the Mojave Desert is both a requirement of state and Federal government agencies and a means for determining potential long-term changes induced by climatic fluctuations and land use. Because it is not feasible to measure every attribute and process in the desert ecosystem, the choice of what to measure and where to measure it is the most important starAuthorsJayne Belnap, Robert H. Webb, Mark E. Miller, David M. Miller, Lesley A. DeFalco, Philip A. Medica, Matthew L. Brooks, Todd C. Esque, Dave BedfordFire management and invasive plants- A handbook
Fire management can help maintain natural habitats, increase forage for wildlife, reduce fuel loads that might otherwise lead to catastrophic wildfire, and maintain natural succession. Today, there is an emerging challenge that fire managers need to be aware of: invasive plants. Fire management activities can create ideal opportunities for invasions by nonnative plants, potentially undermining theAuthorsMatthew L. Brooks, Michael LuskDominance and environmental correlates of alien annual plants in the Mojave Desert, USA
Land managers are concerned about the negative effects of alien annual plants on native plants, threatened and endangered species such as the desert tortoise (Gopherus agassizii), and ecosystem integrity in the Mojave Desert. Management of alien plants is hampered by a lack of information regarding the dominance and environmental correlates of these species. The results of this study indicate thatAuthorsM.L. Brooks, K.H. BerryEffects of livestock watering sites on alien and native plants in the Mojave Desert, USA
Increased livestock densities near artificial watering sites create disturbance gradients called piospheres. We studied responses of alien and native annual plants and native perennial plants within 9 piospheres in the Mojave Desert of North America. Absolute and proportional cover of alien annual plants increased with proximity to watering sites, whereas cover and species richness of native annuaAuthorsM.L. Brooks, J.R. Matchett, K.H. BerryControl of invasive weeds with prescribed burning
Prescribed burning has primarily been used as a tool for the control of invasive late-season annual broadleaf and grass species, particularly yellow starthistle, medusahead, barb goatgrass, and several bromes. However, timely burning of a few invasive biennial broadleaves (e.g., sweetclover and garlic mustard), perennial grasses (e.g., bluegrasses and smooth brome), and woody species (e.g., broomsAuthorsJoseph M. DiTomaso, Matthew L. Brooks, Edith B. Allen, Ralph Minnich, Peter M. Rice, Guy B. KyserEffects of invasive alien plants on fire regimes
Plant invasions are widely recognized as significant threats to biodiversity conservation worldwide. One way invasions can affect native ecosystems is by changing fuel properties, which can in turn affect fire behavior and, ultimately, alter fire regime characteristics such as frequency, intensity, extent, type, and seasonality of fire. If the regime changes subsequently promote the dominance of tAuthorsM.L. Brooks, C. M. D'Antonio, D.M. Richardson, J.M. DiTomaso, J.B. Grace, R.J. Hobbs, J. E. Keeley, M. Pellant, D. PykeSpatial and Temporal Patterns of Off-highway Vehicle Use at the Dove Springs OHV Open Area, California. Report prepared for the Bureau of Land Management, California State Office, Sacramento, California
No abstract available at this timeAuthorsJ.R. Matchett, L. Gass, M.L. Brooks, A.M. Mathie, R.D. Vitales, M.W. Campagna, D. M. Miller, J.F. Weigand - News