@article {JRN55379, title = {An inductive approach to developing ecological site concepts with existing monitoring data}, journal = {Rangeland Ecology \& Management}, volume = {83}, year = {2022}, month = {7/2022}, pages = {133-148}, abstract = {Ecological sites comprise a land classification system that represents potential vegetation states and their management needs for different soils and climates. In the Rio Grande del Norte National Monument (RGdNNM) in northern New Mexico, uncertainty about the patterns and drivers of vegetation states impedes sustainable land management. Similar challenges are ubiquitous across terrestrial ecosystems and in particular landscapes with high spatial variability in soils and climate. Lack of suitable data has been a barrier to large-scale ecological site development based on quantitative observations. We used data from existing federal monitoring programs alongside spatial, environmental, and land use data to test for the role of climate, geomorphology, soils, and land use history on vegetation communities in RGdNNM. The monitoring dataset was collected with standardized monitoring methods implemented by the Bureau of Land Management{\textquoteright}s Assessment, Inventory, and Monitoring program and the Natural Resources Conservation Service{\textquoteright}s Landscape Monitoring Framework program. Eleven ecological site concepts and paired vegetation communities were identified using multivariate fuzzy clustering and classification tree analysis to determine the influence of abiotic variables on vegetation communities. The ecological site and vegetation community concepts developed for RGdNNM demonstrate how existing monitoring data can be used to interpret the structural and functional characteristics of landscapes. A workflow for applying monitoring data to landscape classification is presented to support the broader framework for ecological site development.}, keywords = {climates, ecological site concepts, inductive approach, management, monitoring data, soils, vegetation states}, doi = {https://doi.org/10.1016/j.rama.2022.03.009}, url = {files/bibliography/22-010.pdf}, author = {A. Heller and Nicholas Webb and Brandon T Bestelmeyer and Colby Brungard and Zoe Davidson} } @proceedings {JRN55190, title = {Spatial prediction of ecosystem state transitions on the Taos Plateau}, volume = {88}, year = {2020}, month = {02/16/2020}, address = {Denver, CO}, abstract = {

Land use, climate, and landscape context jointly determine the occurrence of state transitions in terrestrial ecosystems. State-and- transition models (STM) are used to clarify the roles of drivers, and ecological sites (climoedaphic land units) represent the effects of landscape context. On the Taos Plateau in northern New Mexico, uncertainty about the patterns and drivers of vegetation state transitions impedes sustainable land management. The efficacy of restoration treatments is highly variable, likely due to unrecognized variation in climate and soils. Similar challenges are ubiquitous across terrestrial ecosystems and in particular landscapes with high spatial variability in soils. We used data from federal vegetation monitoring programs and spatial, environmental, and land use data to test for the role of climate, geomorphology, soils, and land use history on restoration success on the Taos Plateau. The large dataset comprises a suite of recently-established core monitoring methods that are consistent across agencies and provide scalable estimates of resource distribution and land change trends across the western U.S. We used a suite of multivariate methods to characterize vegetation states and their relationships to environmental variables to test propositions in conceptual STMs. Preliminary analysis verified the six ecological site concepts which were hypothesized for the study area. Plant functional group abundance and vegetation structure varied within ecological site group based on management history, indicating that multiple vegetation states are present on the landscape and correlated with land use legacies. A workflow for using multivariate analysis of core methods data to inform ecological site and STM concept development is presented for use in other study areas.

}, author = {A. Heller and Nicholas Webb and Brandon T Bestelmeyer and Sarah McCord} }