New Report Inventories and Classifies Sagebrush Habitats in Wyoming with Remote Sensing

Vista of sagebrush-steppe ecosystem in Wyoming. Photo [copyright] Cameron Aldridge, Colorado State University/USGS.

Sagebrush-steppe ecosystems have dramatically diminished, with many wildlife species dependent on these systems experiencing significant range contractions and population declines. USGS scientists and cooperators recently undertook ecosystem-wide research, integrated with monitoring and management activities, to better characterize sagebrush habitat at multiple spatial scales in order to improve management potential. Investigators developed a rigorous, remote-sensing-based classification and inventory of sagebrush habitats in Wyoming using statistically validated products based on several new modeling tools. This report highlights the development of this new methodology. The results will help land and resource managers analyze and monitor sagebrush rangelands at several spatial scales and better understand the uncertainties involved in, and possible consequences of, landscape-scale changes on wildlife in sagebrush systems. Currently these modeling techniques are being applied across sagebrush habitats in Wyoming and more recently, within the Gunnison Basin of Colorado and the Billings, Montana, BLM Field Office.

For more information contact: Cameron Aldridge