@conference {JRN54995,
	title = {Long-term Trends in Perennial Grass Production, Precipitation and Temperature in the Chihuahuan Desert},
	booktitle = {72nd Society for Range Management International Meeting},
	year = {2019},
	month = {02/2019},
	publisher = {Society for Range Management Meeting Abstracts},
	organization = {Society for Range Management Meeting Abstracts},
	address = {Minneapolis, Minnesota},
	abstract = {<p>Rising temperatures and more frequent droughts are posing new challenges to livestock producers in the Southwest. Our objective was to evaluate long-term perennial grass production (PGP) in the Chihuahuan Desert in relation to ambient temperature and precipitation. PGP was correlated with precipitation (mm) and ambient temperature (oC) over a 49-year period (1969 {\textendash} 2017). Increasing precipitation in December through September was associated with higher PGP (r = 0.74, n = 49) whereas rising maximum average temperatures in March through September were associated with a reduction in PGP (r = -0.54, n = 49). Two-sample t-tests comparing averages of each variable for the first and last 25 years of the study period (1969-1993 vs. 1994-2017) revealed that mean PGP decreased by 35\% (220.7 {\textpm} 12.5 vs. 143.92 {\textpm} 15.89 kg DM*ha-1; P \&lt; 0.01), precipitation was more variable and decreased by 21\% (264.88 {\textpm} 1.30 vs. 211.13 {\textpm} 16.67 mm; P = 0.01), whereas mean maximum temperature (24.48 {\textpm} 0.14 vs. 25.22 {\textpm} 0.13{\textdegree}C; P \&lt; 0.01) and mean temperature (14.45 {\textpm} 0.13 vs. 15.04 {\textpm} 0.13{\textdegree}C; P \&lt; 0.01) increased by\&nbsp; 0.7oC and 0.6o C, respectively. Over this 49-year period, Chihuahuan Desert rangelands at our research site lost 35\% of grazing capacity (approximately 84 AUMs/1000 ha [7 AUYs/1000 ha]). Our research shows that increased temperatures and more frequent droughts are severely impacting forage and range livestock production in the southwest.</p>
},
	author = {Matthew M. McIntosh and Jerry L. Holechek and Andr{\'e}s F. Cibils and Richard E. Estell}
}
