Bontti, E.E., J.P. DeCant, S.M. Munson, M.A. Gathany, A. Przeszlowska, M.L. Haddix, S. Owens, I.C. Burke, W.J. Parton, and M.E. Harmon. 2009. Litter decomposition in grasslands of Central North America (US Great Plains). Global Change Biology 15: 1356–1363.
Seth Munson
Biography
Seth Munson is an ecologist with the Southwest Biological Science Center in Flagstaff, Arizona. His research focuses on plant-soil interactions in dryland ecosystems and how these interactions are affected by climate and land use changes. Much of his research aims to understand the dynamics of dryland ecosystems at long temporal and broad spatial scales, and employs a multidisciplinary approach. His work seeks to improve the management of arid and semiarid lands and is done in close collaboration with several land management agencies.
Education:
Ph.D. Ecology, Colorado State University, Fort Collins, CO, May 2009
B.A. Biology, Earlham College, Richmond, IN, May 2001
Research Interests:
Plant Ecology, Ecosystem Ecology, Dryland Ecology, Restoration Ecology, Soil Erosion
Current Positions:
Research Ecologist, US Geological Survey, Southwest Biological Science Center, Flagstaff, AZ
Adjunct Faculty, Northern Arizona University, Department of Biological Sciences, Flagstaff, AZ
Adjunct Faculty, Arizona State University, School of Life Sciences, Phoenix, AZ
Current Research Projects:
Plant Responses to Drought and Climate Change in the Southwestern United States
Restoration and Ecosystem Recovery Dynamics in Arid and Semiarid Landscapes
Restoration Assessment & Monitoring Program for the Southwest (RAMPS)
Aeolian Dust in Dryland Landscapes of the Western United States
Past Positions:
Jan 2011 - Dec 2013; Research Ecologist (Mendenhall Fellow), US Geological Survey, Geology and Environmental Change Science Center, Denver, CO
Dec 2008 - Jan 2011; Ecologist, US Geological Survey, Canyonlands Research Station, Moab, Utah
May 2004 - Nov 2008; Research Assistant, Colorado State University, Forest and Rangeland Stewardship, Fort Collins, CO
Sep 2002 – May 2004; Research Associate, University of New Mexico, Biology Department, Albuquerque, NM
Publications:
Bradford, J.B., M.C. Duniway, and S.M. Munson. 2019. Assessing rangeland health under climate variability and change. Pages 310 - 322 in D.J. Gibson and J.A. Newman, editors. Grasslands and Climate Change. Cambridge University Press, Cambridge, UK. [Link]
Bishop, T.B.B., S. Munson, R.A. Gill, J. Belnap, S.L. Petersen, and S.B. St. Clair. 2019. Spatiotemporal patterns of cheatgrass invasion in Colorado Plateau National Parks: Landscape Ecology 34: 925 - 941. [Link]
Copeland, S.M., S.M. Munson, J.B. Bradford, B.J. Butterfield, and K.L. Gunnell. 2019. Long‐term plant community trajectories suggest divergent responses of native and non‐native perennials and annuals to vegetation removal and seeding treatments. Restoration Ecology, DOI: 10.1111/rec.12928. [Link]
Elkind, K., T.T. Sankey, S.M. Munson, and C.E. Aslan. 2019. Invasive buffelgrass detection using high‐resolution satellite and UAV imagery on Google Earth Engine. Remote Sensing in Ecology and Conservation, DOI: 10.1002/rse2.116. [Link]
Copeland, S.M., S.M. Munson, J.B. Bradford, and B.J. Butterfield. 2019. Influence of climate, post-treatment weather extremes, and soil factors on vegetation recovery after restoration treatments in the southwestern US. Applied Vegetation Science 22: 85 - 95. [Link]
Munson, S.M., E.L. Bunting, J.B. Bradford, B.J. Butterfield, and J.R. Gremer. 2018. Plant production responses to precipitation differ along an elevation gradient and are enhanced under extremes. Ecosystems, DOI: 10.1007/s10021-018-0296-3. [Link]
Thoma, D.P., S.M. Munson, and D.L. Witwicki. 2018. Landscape pivot points and responses to water balance in national parks of the southwest U.S. Journal of Applied Ecology 56: 157 - 167. [Link]
Gremer, J.R., C. Andrews, J.R. Norris, L.P. Thomas, S.M. Munson, M.C. Duniway, and J.B. Bradford. 2018. Increasing temperature seasonality may overwhem shifts in soil moisture to favor shrub over grass dominance in Colorado Plateau drylands. Oecologia 188: 1195 – 1207. [Link]
Winkler, D.E., ..., S.M. Munson [15th author], et al. 2018. Beyond traditional ecological restoration on the Colorado Plateau. Restoration Ecology 26: 1055 – 1060. [Link]
Bradford, J.B., B.L. Betancourt, B.J. Butterfield, S.M. Munson, and T.E. Wood. 2018. Anticipatory natural resource science and management for a changing future. Frontiers in Ecology and the Environment 16: 295 – 303. [Link]
Munson, S.M., S.C. Reed, J. Peñuelas, N.G. McDowell, and O.E. Sala. 2018. Ecosystem thresholds, tipping points, and critical transitions. New Phytologist 218: 1315 – 1317. [Link]
Solazzo, D., J.B. Sankey, T.T. Sankey, and S.M. Munson. 2018. Mapping and measuring aeolian sand dunes with phogrammetry and LiDAR from unmanned aerial vehicles (UAV) and mulitspectral satellite imagery on the Paria Plateau, AZ, USA. Geomorpholody 319: 174 – 185. [Link]
S.D. Wilson, ..., S.M. Munson [9th author], et al. 2018. Functional group, biomass, and climate change effects on ecological drought in semiarid grasslands. Journal of Geophysical Research - Biogeosciences 123: 1072 – 1085. [Link]
Copeland, S.M., S.M. Munson, D.S. Pilliod, J.L. Welty, J.B. Bradford, and B.J. Butterfield. 2018. Long-term trends in restoration and associated land treatments in the southwestern United States. Restoration Ecology 26: 311 – 322. [Link]
Schlaepfer, D.R., J.B. Bradford, W.K. Lauenroth, S.M. Munson, B. Tietjen, S.A. Hall, S.D. Wilson, M.C. Duniway, G. Jia, D.A. Pyke, A. Lkhagva, and K. Jamiyansharav. 2017. Climate change reduces extent of temperate drylands and intensifies drought in deep soils. Nature Communications 8: 14196. [Link]
Bradford, J.B., D.R. Schlaepfer, W.K. Lauenroth, C.B. Yackulic, M. Duniway, S. Hall, G. Jia, K. Jamiyansharav, S.M Munson, S.D. Wilson, and B. Tietjen. 2017. Future soil moisture and temperature extremes imply expanding suitability for rainfed agriculture in temperate drylands. Scientific Reports 7: 12923. [Link]
Tietjen, B., D.R. Schlaepfer, J.B. Bradford, W.K. Lauenroth, S.A. Hall, M.C. Duniway, T. Hochstrasser, G. Jia, S.M. Munson, D.A. Pyke, and S.D. Wilson. 2017. Climate change-induced vegetation shifts lead to more ecological droughts despite projected rainfall increases in many global temperate drylands. Global Change Biology 23: 2743 – 2754. [Link]
Bunting, E.L, S.M. Munson, and M.L. Villarreal. 2017. Climate legacy and lag effects on dryland plant communities in the southwestern U.S. Ecological Indicators 74: 216 – 229. [Link]
Munson, S.M. and A.L. Long. 2017. Climate drives shifts in grass reproductive phenology across the western USA. New Phytologist 213: 1945 – 1955. [Link]
Butterfield, B.J., J.B. Bradford, S.M. Munson, and J.R. Gremer. 2017. Aridity increases below-ground niche breadth in grass communities. Plant Ecology 218: 385 – 394. [Link]
Butterfield, B.J., S.M. Copeland, S.M. Munson, C.M. Roybal, and T.E. Wood. 2017. Prestoration: Using species in restoration that will persist now and into the future. Restoration Ecology 25: S155 – S163. [Link]
Witwicki, D.L., S.M. Munson, and D.P. Thoma. 2016. Effects of climate and water balance across grasslands of varying C3 and C4 grass cover. Ecosphere 7: e01577. [Link]
Munson, S.M., T.T. Sankey, G. Xian, M.L. Villarreal, and C.G. Homer. 2016. Decadal shifts in grass and woody plant cover are driven by prolonged drying and modified by topo-edaphic properties. Ecological Applications 26: 2480 – 2494. [Link]
Reynolds, R.L., S.M. Munson, D.P. Fernandez, H.L. Goldstein, and J.C. Neff. 2016. Concentrations of mineral aerosol from desert to plains across the central Rocky Mountains, western United States. Aeolian Research 23: 21 – 35. [Link]
Butterfield, B.J. and S.M. Munson. 2016. Temperature is better than precipitation as a predictor of plant community assembly across a dryland region. Journal of Vegetation Science 27: 938 – 947. [Link]
Munson, S.M., A. L. Long, C.S.A. Wallace, and R.H. Webb. 2016. Cumulative drought and land-use impacts to perennial vegetation across a North American dryland region. Applied Vegetation Science 19: 430 – 441. [Download File]
Thoma, D.P., S.M. Munson, K.M. Irvine, D.L. Witwicki, and E.L. Bunting. 2016. Semi-arid vegetation response to antecedent climate and water balance windows. Applied Vegetation Science 19: 413 – 429. [Download File]
Munson, S.M., M.C. Duniway, and J.K. Johanson. 2016. Rangeland monitoring reveals long-term plant responses to precipitation and grazing at the landscape-scale. Rangeland Ecology and Management 69: 76 – 83. [Download File]
Gremer, J.R., J.B. Bradford, S.M. Munson, and M.C. Duniway. 2015. Desert grassland responses to climate and soil moisture suggest divergent vulnerabilities across the southwestern U.S. Global Change Biology 21: 4049 – 4062. [Download File]
Sankey, J.B., S.M. Munson, R.H. Webb, C.S.A. Wallace, and C.M. Duran. 2015. Remote sensing of Sonoran desert vegetation structure and phenology with ground-based LiDAR. Remote Sensing 7: 342 – 359. [Download File]
Munson, S.M., A.L. Long, C. Decker, K.A. Johnson, K. Walsh, and M.E. Miller. 2015. Repeated landscape-scale treatments following fire to suppress a non-native annual grass and promote recovery of native perennial vegetation. Biological Invasions 17: 1915 – 1926. [Download File]
Munson, S.M., R.H. Webb, D.C. Housman, K.E. Veblen, K.E. Nussear, E.A. Beever, K.B. Hartney, M.N. Miriti, S.L. Phillips, R.E. Fulton, and N.G. Tallent. 2015. Long-term plant responses to climate are moderated by biophysical attributes in a North American desert. Journal of Ecology 103: 657 – 668. [Download File]
Munson, S.M. and A.A. Sher. 2015. Long-term shifts in the phenology of rare and endemic Rocky Mountain plants. American Journal of Botany 102: 1268 – 1276. [Download File]
Belnap, J., B.J. Walker, S.M. Munson, and R.A. Gill. 2014. Controls on sediment production in two U.S. deserts. Aeolian Research 14: 15 – 24. [Download File]
Munson, S.M., J. Belnap, R.H. Webb, J.A. Hubbard, M.H. Reiser, and K. Gallo. 2014. Climate change and plant community composition in national parks of the southwestern U.S.: forecasting regional, long-term effects to meet management needs: The George Wright Forum 31: 137 – 148. [Download File]
Munson, S.M. and W.K. Lauenroth. 2014. Controls of vegetation structure and net primary production in restored grasslands. Journal of Applied Ecology 51: 988 – 996. [Download File]
Sankey, J.S., D.D. Breshears, D.J. Law, S.M. Munson, and R.H. Webb. 2013. Employing lidar to detail vegetation canopy architecture for prediction of aeolian flux. Geophysical Research Letters 40: 1724 – 1728 [Download File]
Munson, S.M., E.H. Muldavin, J. Belnap, D.P.C. Peters, J.P. Anderson, M.H. Reiser, K. Gallo, A. Melgoza, J.E. Herrick, T.A. Christiansen. 2013. Regional signatures of plant response to drought and elevated temperature across a desert ecosystem. Ecology 94: 2030 – 2041. [Download File]
Munson, S.M. 2013. Plant responses, climate pivot points, and tradeoffs in water-limited ecosystems. Ecosphere 4: 109. [Download File]
Neff, J.C., R.L. Reynolds, S.M. Munson, D. Fernandez, and J. Belnap. 2013. The role of dust storms in total atmospheric particle concentrations at two sites in the western U.S. Journal of Geophysical Research 118: 11201 – 11212. [Download File]
Munson, S.M., W.K. Lauenroth, and I.C. Burke. 2012. Soil carbon and nitrogen recovery on semiarid Conservation Reserve Program lands. Journal of Arid Environments 79: 25 – 31. [Link]
Munson, S.M. and W.K. Lauenroth. 2012. Plant community recovery following restoration in semiarid grasslands. Restoration Ecology 20: 656 – 663. [Link]
Munson, S.M., R.H. Webb, J. Belnap, J.A. Hubbard, D.E. Swann, and S. Rutman. 2012. Forecasting climate change impacts to plant community composition in the Sonoran Desert region. Global Change Biology 18: 1083 – 1095. [Download File]
Munson, S.M., J. Belnap, G.S. Okin. 2011. Responses of wind erosion to climate induced vegetation changes on the Colorado Plateau. Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences 108: 3854 – 3859.[Download File]
Munson, S.M., J. Belnap, C.D. Schelz, M. Moran, and T.W. Carolin. 2011. On the brink of change: plant responses to climate on the Colorado Plateau. Ecosphere 2: Article 68. [Download File]
Munson, S.M., R.H. Webb, and J.A. Hubbard. 2011. A comparison of methods to assess long-term changes in Sonoran Desert vegetation. Journal of Arid Environments 75: 1228 – 1231. [Download File]
Belnap, J., S.M. Munson, and J.P. Field. 2011. Aeolian and fluvial processes in dryland regions: the need for integrated studies. Ecohydrology 4: 615 – 622. [Download File]
Munson, S.M., T.J. Benton, W.K. Lauenroth, and I.C. Burke. 2010. Soil carbon flux following pulse precipitation events in the shortgrass steppe. Ecological Research 25: 205 – 211. [Link]
Li, J., G.S. Okin, J.E. Herrick, J. Belnap, S.M. Munson, and M.E. Miller. 2010. A simple method to estimate threshold friction velocity of wind erosion in the field. Geophysical Research Letters 37: L10402. [Link]
Anderson, G., S. Rutman, and S.M. Munson. 2010. Plant population and habitat characteristics of the endemic Sonoran Desert cactus Peniocereus striatus in Organ Pipe Cactus National Monument, Arizona. Madroño 57: 220 – 228. [Link]
Munson, S.M. and W.K. Lauenroth. 2009. Plant population and community responses to removal of the dominant species in the shortgrass steppe. Journal of Vegetation Science 20: 224 – 232. [Link]
Bontti, E.E., J.P. DeCant, S.M. Munson, M.A. Gathany, A. Przeszlowska, M.L. Haddix, S. Owens, I.C. Burke, W.J. Parton, and M.E. Harmon. 2009. Litter decomposition in grasslands of Central North America (US Great Plains). Global Change Biology 15: 1356 – 1363. [Link]
Science and Products
Date published: October 1, 2020
Status: Active A global synthesis of multi-year drought effects on terrestrial ecosystems
Drought impacts on terrestrial ecosystems have increased globally in the 21st century, and droughts are expected to become more frequent, extreme, and spatially extensive in the future. Historical site-based observations are inadequate to predict how future extreme water deficits will affect the global terrestrial surface, because future droughts and their impacts may be more extreme than they...
Contacts: Seth Munson
Attribution: John Wesley Powell Center for Analysis and Synthesis
Date published: August 5, 2017
Status: Active RestoreNet: Distributed Field Trial Network for Dryland Restoration
U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) researchers and land managers are co-producing a network of restoration field trial sites on DOI and surrounding lands in the southwestern U.S. The network systematically tests restoration treatments across a broad range of landscape, soil, and climate conditions. Each site in the network is used to test suitable seed mixes and treatments that promote plant...
Contacts: Seth Munson, Molly McCormick, Katie Laushman, Rebecca Mann, Mike Duniway, Ph.D., Brad Butterfield, Elise Gornish, Loralee Larios, Akasha Faist, Helen Rowe, Caroline A. Havrilla
Date published: February 28, 2017
Status: Active Southwest Energy Development and Drought (SWEDD)
Deserts of the southwestern US are replete with oil and gas deposits as well as sites for solar, wind, and geothermal energy production. In the past, many of these resources have been too expensive to develop, but increased demand and new technologies have led to an increase in exploration and development. However, desert ecosystems generally have low resilience to disturbance. More frequent,...
Attribution: Environments Program, Southwest Biological Science Center
Date published: December 9, 2016
Status: Active RAMPS: Restoration Assessment & Monitoring Program for the Southwest
The Restoration Assessment and Monitoring Program for the Southwest (RAMPS) seeks to assist U.S. Department of the Interior (DOI) and other land management agencies in developing successful techniques for improving land condition in dryland ecosystems of the southwestern United States. Invasion by non-native species, wildfire, drought, and other disturbances are growing...
Date published: June 7, 2012
Status: Active Climate change and ecohydrology in temperate dryland ecosystems: a global assessment
Water cycling and availability exert dominant control over ecological processes and the sustainability of ecosystem services in water - limited ecosystems. Consequently, dryland ecosystems have the potential to be dramatically impacted by hydrologic alterations emerging from global change, notably increasing temperature and altered precipitation patterns. In addition, the possibility of...
Attribution: John Wesley Powell Center for Analysis and Synthesis
Year Published: 2020
Climate-induced abrupt shifts in structural states trigger delayed transitions in functional states
Theoretical models suggest that ecosystems can be found in one of several possible alternative stable states, and a shift in structural stable state (SSS) can trigger a change in functional stable state (FSS). But we still lack the empirical evidence to confirm these states and transitions, and to inform the rates of change. Here, a 30-yr dataset...
Hao, Yanbin; Liu, Wenjun; Xu, Xingliang; Munson, Seth M.; Cui, Xiaoyong; Kang, Xiaoming; He, Nianpeng; Wang, YanfenAttribution: Northern Prairie Wildlife Research Center, Ecosystems, Region 1: North Atlantic-Appalachian, California Water Science Center, Water Resources, Geology, Geophysics, and Geochemistry Science Center, Region 7: Upper Colorado Basin, South Atlantic Water Science Center (SAWSC), Water Resources, Region 2: South Atlantic-Gulf (Includes Puerto Rico and the U.S. Virgin Islands), Earthquake Science Center, Natural Hazards, Earthquake Hazards Program, Patuxent Wildlife Research Center, Ecosystems, Region 1: North Atlantic-Appalachian, Western Fisheries Research Center, Ecosystems, Fisheries Program, Caribbean-Florida Water Science Center, Region 2: South Atlantic-Gulf (Includes Puerto Rico and the U.S. Virgin Islands), Northern Prairie Wildlife Research Center, Ecosystems, Central Energy Resources Science Center, Energy Resources Program, Region 7: Upper Colorado Basin, Patuxent Wildlife Research Center, Ecosystems, Region 1: North Atlantic-Appalachian, Fort Collins Science Center, Ecosystems, Fort Collins Science Center, Ecosystems, United States of America, Pacific Coastal and Marine Science Center, Pacific Coastal and Marine Science Center, National Wildlife Health Center, Ecosystems, Wetland and Aquatic Research Center, Ecosystems, Region 4: Mississippi Basin, Water Resources, Columbia Environmental Research Center, Ecosystems, Region 4: Mississippi Basin, Climate Adaptation Science Centers, Land Resources, Climate Adaptation Science Centers, California Water Science Center, Water Resources, Core Science Systems, National Geospatial Program, National Geospatial Technical Operations Center, Core Science Systems, National Geospatial Program, National Geospatial Technical Operations Center, Wetland and Aquatic Research Center, Ecosystems, Region 4: Mississippi Basin, Community for Data Integration (CDI), Science Analytics and Synthesis (SAS), United States of America, Utah Water Science Center, Water Resources, Region 7: Upper Colorado Basin, Wetland and Aquatic Research Center, Ecosystems, Region 4: Mississippi Basin, Alaska Science Center, Ecosystems, Region 11: Alaska, Southwest Biological Science Center, Ecosystems, Western Ecological Research Center, Ecosystems, Geosciences and Environmental Change Science Center, Region 7: Upper Colorado Basin, Washington Water Science Center, Water Resources, Wetland and Aquatic Research Center, Ecosystems, Region 4: Mississippi Basin, Central Energy Resources Science Center, Energy Resources Program, Region 7: Upper Colorado Basin, Southwest Biological Science Center, Ecosystems, Science and Decisions Center, Alaska Science Center, Ecosystems, Region 11: Alaska, Utah Water Science Center, Water Resources, Region 7: Upper Colorado Basin, Patuxent Wildlife Research Center, Ecosystems, Region 1: North Atlantic-Appalachian, Earth Resources Observation and Science (EROS) Center, Earth Resources Observation and Science Center, Water, New Jersey Water Science Center, Water Resources, Region 4: Mississippi Basin, New Jersey, United States of America, St. Petersburg Coastal and Marine Science Center, Region 2: South Atlantic-Gulf (Includes Puerto Rico and the U.S. Virgin Islands), Upper Midwest Water Science Center, Water Resources, Washington Water Science Center, Water Resources, Wetland and Aquatic Research Center, Ecosystems, Region 4: Mississippi Basin, Fort Collins Science Center, Ecosystems, Earthquake Science Center, Natural Hazards, Earthquake Hazards Program, Northern Prairie Wildlife Research Center, Ecosystems, Pacific Coastal and Marine Science Center, National Geospatial Program, Upper Midwest Water Science Center, Geology, Minerals, Energy, and Geophysics Science Center, Natural Hazards, Earthquake Hazards Program, Region 7: Upper Colorado Basin, Central Energy Resources Science Center, Energy Resources Program, Region 7: Upper Colorado Basin, Alaska Science Center, Ecosystems, Region 11: Alaska, Woods Hole Coastal and Marine Science Center, Region 1: North Atlantic-Appalachian, Wyoming-Montana Water Science Center, Water Resources, Florence Bascom Geoscience Center, Western Fisheries Research Center, Ecosystems, Fisheries Program, Wetland and Aquatic Research Center, Ecosystems, Region 4: Mississippi Basin, Wetland and Aquatic Research Center, Ecosystems, Region 4: Mississippi Basin, New York, United States of America, Northern Prairie Wildlife Research Center, Ecosystems, Utah Water Science Center, Water Resources, Region 7: Upper Colorado Basin, Wetland and Aquatic Research Center, Ecosystems, Region 4: Mississippi Basin, New England Water Science Center, Water Resources, Region 4: Mississippi Basin, Colorado Water Science Center, Water Resources, Region 7: Upper Colorado Basin, Upper Midwest Environmental Sciences Center, Ecosystems, Upper Midwest Environmental Sciences Center, Ecosystems, Region 11: Alaska, California Water Science Center, Water Resources, Geology, Geophysics, and Geochemistry Science Center, Water Resources, Region 7: Upper Colorado Basin, Alaska Science Center, Region 11: Alaska, Northern Rocky Mountain Science Center (NOROCK), Ecosystems, Upper Midwest Water Science Center, Ecosystems, Colorado Water Science Center, Water Resources, Region 7: Upper Colorado Basin, Pacific Island Ecosystems Research Center, Ecosystems, Western Ecological Research Center, Ecosystems, National Wildlife Health Center, Ecosystems, Western Fisheries Research Center, Ecosystems, Fisheries Program, Lower Mississippi-Gulf Water Science Center, Region 4: Mississippi Basin, Lower Mississippi-Gulf Water Science Center, Region 4: Mississippi Basin, Lower Mississippi-Gulf Water Science Center, Region 4: Mississippi Basin, National Wildlife Health Center, Ecosystems, Pacific Coastal and Marine Science Center, Western Fisheries Research Center, Ecosystems, Fisheries Program, Volcano Hazards Program Office, Earthquake Science Center, Natural Hazards, Earthquake Hazards Program, Water Resources, Pacific Coastal and Marine Science Center, Pacific Coastal and Marine Science Center, Northern Rocky Mountain Science Center (NOROCK), Ecosystems, Forest and Rangeland Ecosystem Science Center (FRESC), Ecosystems, Alaska Science Center, Ecosystems, Region 11: Alaska, National Wildlife Health Center, Ecosystems, Natural Hazards, Geologic Hazards Science Center, Natural Hazards, Landslide Hazards Program, Region 7: Upper Colorado Basin, United States of America, Alaska Science Center, Ecosystems, Region 11: Alaska, Columbia Environmental Research Center, Ecosystems, Region 4: Mississippi Basin, Southwest Biological Science Center, Ecosystems
Year Published: 2020
Dust deposited on snow cover in the San Juan Mountains, Colorado, 2011-2016: Compositional variability bearing on snow-melt effects
Light-absorbing particles in atmospheric dust deposited on snow cover (dust-on-snow, DOS) diminish albedo and accelerate the timing and rate of snow melt. Identification of these particles and their effects are relevant to snow-radiation modeling and thus water-resource management. Laboratory-measured reflectance of DOS samples from the San Juan...
Reynolds, Richard L.; Goldstein, Harland L.; Moskowitz, Bruce M.; Kokaly, Raymond; Munson, Seth M.; Solheid, Peat; Breit, George N.; Lawrence, Corey R.; Derry, Jeff
Year Published: 2020
The right trait in the right place at the right time: Matching traits to environment improves restoration outcomes
(Munson) The challenges of restoration in dryland ecosystems are growing due to a rise in anthropogenic disturbance and increasing aridity. Plant functional traits are often used to predict plant performance and can offer a window into the potential outcomes of restoration efforts across environmental gradients. We tracked 15 years of seeding...
Balazs, Kathleen R.; Kramer, Andrea T.; Munson, Seth M.; Talkington, Nora; Still, Shannon; Butterfield, Bradley J.Attribution: Southwest Biological Science Center, Ecosystems
Year Published: 2020
Supporting the development and use of native plant materials for restoration on the Colorado Plateau (Fiscal Year 19 Report)
A primary focus of the Bureau of Land Management’s (BLM’s) Colorado Plateau Native Plant Program (CPNPP) is to identify and develop appropriate native plant materials (NPMs) for current and future restoration projects. Multiple efforts have characterized the myriad challenges inherent in providing appropriate seed resources to enable effective,...
Massatti, Robert; Winkler, Daniel E.; Reed, Sasha; Duniway, Michael C.; Munson, Seth M.; Bradford, JohnAttribution: Southwest Biological Science Center, Ecosystems
Year Published: 2019
Ecological effects of establishing a 40-year oasis protection system in a Northwestern China Desert
Aims: Desertification around oasis areas is a serious problem in semi-arid and arid regions, which is expected to continue into the future due to a rapidly increasing human population. Oasis protection systems are created to reverse desertification by recovering degraded soil and vegetation properties and improving ecosystem services. Most...
Wang, Guohua; Munson, Seth M.; Yu, Kailiang; Chen, Ning; Gou, QianqianAttribution: Southwest Biological Science Center, Ecosystems
Year Published: 2019
Assessing plant production responses to climate across water-limited regions using Google Earth Engine
(Munson) Climate variability and change acting at broad scales can lead to divergent changes in plant production at local scales. Quantifying how production responds to variation in climate at local scales is essential to understand underlying ecological processes and inform land management decision-making, but has historically been limited in...
Bunting, Erin L.; Munson, Seth M.; Bradford, JohnAttribution: Southwest Biological Science Center, Ecosystems
Year Published: 2019
Spatiotemporal patterns of cheatgrass invasion in Colorado Plateau National Parks
Exotic annual grasses are transforming native arid and semi-arid ecosystems globally by accelerating fire cycles that drive vegetation state changes. Cheatgrass (Bromus tectorum), a particularly widespread and aggressive exotic annual grass, is a key management target in national parks of the western United States due to its impacts on...
Bishop, Tara B.B.; Munson, Seth M.; Gill, Richard; Belnap, Jayne; St. Clair, Samuel B.; Petersen, Steven L.
Year Published: 2019
Assessing rangeland health under climate variability and change
RANGELAND HEALTH IN A CHANGING WORLD Rangeland health is an integrated metric that describes a complex suite of ecosystem properties and processes as applied to resource management. While the concept of “healthy” landscapes has a long history, the term “rangeland health” was codified in the US in 1994 as part of an effort to move towards a...
Bradford, John B.; Duniway, Michael C.; Munson, Seth M.
Year Published: 2019
Invasive buffelgrass detection using high-resolution satellite and UAV imagery on Google Earth Engine
Methods to detect and monitor the spread of invasive grasses are critical to avoid ecosystem transformations and large economic costs. The rapid spread of non‐native buffelgrass(Pennisetum ciliare) has intensified fire risk and is replacing fire intolerant native vegetation in the Sonoran Desert of the southwestern US. Coarse‐resolution...
Elkind, Kaitlyn; Sankey, Temuulen T.; Munson, Seth M.; Aslan, Clare E.
Year Published: 2019
Long‐term plant community trajectories suggest divergent responses of native and non‐native perennials and annuals to vegetation removal and seeding treatments
Land managers frequently apply vegetation removal and seeding treatments to restore ecosystem function following woody plant encroachment, invasive species spread, and wildfire. However, the long‐term outcome of these treatments is unclear due to a lack of widespread monitoring. We quantified how vegetation removal (via wildfire or management)...
Copeland, Stella M.; Munson, Seth M.; Bradford, John B.; Butterfield, Bradley J.; Gunnell, Kevin L.
Year Published: 2019
Influence of climate, post‐treatment weather extremes, and soil factors on vegetation recovery after restoration treatments in the southwestern US
AimsUnderstanding the conditions associated with dryland vegetation recovery after restoration treatments is challenging due to a lack of monitoring data and high environmental variability over time and space. Tracking recovery trajectories with satellite‐based vegetation indices can strengthen predictions of restoration outcomes across broad...
Copeland, Stella M.; Munson, Seth M.; Bradford, John B.; Butterfield, Bradley J.
Year Published: 2019
Landscape pivot points and responses to water balance in national parks of the southwest US
A recent drying trend that is expected to continue in the southwestern US underscores the need for site‐specific and near real‐time understanding of vegetation vulnerability so that land management actions can be implemented at the right time and place.We related the annual integrated normalized difference vegetation index (iNDVI), a proxy for...
Thoma, David P.; Munson, Seth M.; Witwicki, Dana L.Pre-USGS Publications
Munson, S.M. and W.K. Lauenroth. 2009. Plant population and community responses to removal of the dominant species in the shortgrass steppe. Journal of Vegetation Science 20: 224–232.
Munson, S.M. and W.K. Lauenroth. 2012. Plant community recovery following restoration in semiarid grasslands. Restoration Ecology 20: 656–663.
Munson, S.M., W.K. Lauenroth, and I.C. Burke. 2012. Soil carbon and nitrogen recovery on semiarid Conservation Reserve Program lands. Journal of Arid Environments 79: 25–31
Date published: March 23, 2018
Plant Functional Groups Affect Ecological Drought in Semiarid Grasslands
Plant functional groups have contrasting effects on soil water availability by affecting interception, uptake, and transpiration.
Date published: September 6, 2017
Wildfire and Invasive Species Drives Increasing Size and Cost of Public Land Restoration Efforts
An examination of long-term data for lands managed by the Bureau of Land Management finds that land treatments in the southwestern United States are increasingly large, expensive and related to fire and invasive species control.
Date published: February 10, 2015
Predicting Plant Responses to Drought
A new U.S. Geological Survey study shows how plants’ vulnerability to drought varies across the landscape; factors such as plant structure and soil type where the plant is growing can either make them more vulnerable or protect them from declines.
Date published: February 15, 2012
Hotter and Drier Climate Likely to Alter Abundance of Sonoran Desert Plants
TUCSON, Ariz. – Climate change is likely to have strong effects on the abundance of dominant Sonoran Desert plant species, according to a study published recently in Global Change Biology.
Attribution:
Date published: October 12, 2011
Arizona Dust Storms: USGS Science Explains the Phenomenon
A dust storm that rolled across the Arizona desert on Tuesday, October 4, 2011, effectively blinded motorists, leading to a large string of motor vehicle crashes, multiple injuries, and at least one death.
Attribution:
Date published: February 24, 2011
Drier Conditions Projected to Accelerate Dust Storms in the Southwest
Drier conditions projected to result from climate change in the Southwest will likely reduce perennial vegetation cover and result in increased dust storm activity in the future, according to a new study by scientists with the U.S. Geological Survey and the University of California, Los Angeles.