Range Science

Permanent URI for this communityhdl:10365/32641

Research from the Department of Range Science. The department is part of the School of Natural Resources, and their website may be found at https://www.ndsu.edu/snrs/

Browse

Browsing Range Science by browse.metadata.department "Range Science"

Filter results by typing the first few letters
Now showing 1 - 4 of 4
  • No Thumbnail Available
    Item
    Creating Better Working Landscapes in Post-Conservation Reserve Program (CRP) Lands: Promoting Butterfly and Floral Resource Populations Through Patch-Burn Grazing (PBG) and Over-Seeding
    (North Dakota State University, 2022) Zralka, Kimberly
    Declines in pollinator populations are a concern globally, and more information is needed to help conserve them. We studied how post-Conservation Reserve Program (CRP) lands could be managed as pollinator habitat. Our study occurred in Hettinger, ND from 2017-2021. We assessed the effects of patch-burn grazing on butterflies and floral resources. We also assessed the success of over-seeding to enhance flowering resources utilized by butterflies. We found that different butterfly species exhibited site selection based on time-since-fire, indicating that patch-burn grazing may be an effective grassland management method for creating diversity. We also found that grazer species (sheep or cattle) was influential on butterfly and vegetative communities. Our over-seeding efforts yielded low seedling establishment, but models indicated that drought and herbivory potentially influenced this. Overall, our results suggest that post-CRP working landscapes may benefit pollinators, but there are many challenges to create more forb-rich environments in these low diversity landscapes.
  • No Thumbnail Available
    Item
    Impacts of Invasive Plant Species on the Plant Community in the Northern Great Plains
    (North Dakota State University, 2021) Ouren, Rachel Hope
    Invasive species are encroaching rangelands in the U.S. and altering community composition and plant diversity. In the Northern Great Plains, exotic cool-season perennial grasses (Kentucky bluegrass, Poa pratensis; crested wheatgrass, Agropyron cristatum; smooth brome, Bromus inermis) have invaded rangelands with their ecological impacts less understood. This study analyzed a long-term (13-year) and landscape-scale dataset to identify potential impacts on site richness, diversity, community composition shifts, and species tolerant of invasion by Kentucky bluegrass, crested wheatgrass, and smooth brome. We found these three invaders cumulatively are associated with decreased site richness, maximum richness, and site diversity, especially native forb diversity. Clayey and loamy sites had a shift in plant community composition when invaded with Kentucky bluegrass and smooth brome. Clayey, loamy and limy residual ecological sites were more likely to be invaded, while very shallow, shallow loamy, and thin loamy sites were least likely to be invaded by cool-season invasive perennials.
  • No Thumbnail Available
    Item
    The Interactions of Early-Fall Prescribed Burning, Different Cutting Techniques and Whitetailed Deer Browsing on Bur Oak Regeneration in Eastern North Dakota: Phase II
    (North Dakota State University, 2010) Murdoff, Marc Thomas
    This study was developed to determine the interaction of white-tailed deer browsing with effects of clear and selective cutting, and prescribed burning on bur oak (Quercus macrocarpa) regeneration in northeastern North Dakota. The study was conducted on Camp Grafton North (CGN) near Devils Lake, North Dakota, using four treatments: 1) dormant season clear-cut of all trees and shrubs (CC), 2) growing season selective cut of all trees and shrubs except bur oak (SC), 3) early fall prescribed bum (PB) and 4) nonmanipulated control (CO). The study consisted of four blocks (replicates) using a randomized complete block design. The interaction of white-tailed deer ( Odocoileus virginianus) browsing was determined using a split-plot design, creating browsed and nonbrowsed plots. Bur oak seedling, sprout, sapling, and mature tree production was measured pre-treatment in 2006 and post-treatment in 2007, 2008 and 2009 on two 25 m transects per plot. Herbaceous vegetation was measured using these two transects. An aerial survey conducted 12 March 2007 reported 45 deer per km2 on CGN. Bur oak seedling density increased (P ::S 0.05) 36 Months After Treatment (MAFT). Bur oak saplings decreased (P::S 0.05) at 36 MAFT. Bur oak sprouts were greatest (P ::S 0.05) on the CC treatment, while the CO, PB, and SC did not differ (P > 0.05). Deer browsing reduced bur oak sprout height, irrelevant of treatment. Clear-cutting increased bur oak sprouts 36 MAFT. Selective cutting to retain bur oak trees did not enhance seedling or sprout development compared to the control.
  • No Thumbnail Available
    Item
    Patch-burning Improves Forage Nutritive Value and Livestock Performance over Rotational and Continuous Grazing Strategies
    (North Dakota State University, 2022) Wanchuk, Megan
    Rangelands simultaneously support livestock production while maintaining ecosystem functionality. Patch-burning is a grazing management strategy with benefits for wildlife habitat and conservation. However, previous work pertaining to livestock has not examined potential benefits to livestock production. We assessed forage nutritive value, and cattle performance on patch-burning compared to continuous and rotational grazing. We also examined how prescribed fire alters forage mineral content through time since patch-burning. The recently burned patch had better forage nutritive value than patches with longer time since fire and no fire grazing methods, meeting the highest proportion of cow requirements. In 2017, a mild-drought year, cows performed better on patch-burned pastures. Without the mild-drought year, patch-burn cattle performance was similar to continuous, but better than rotational grazing. Mineral content varied seasonally, but was greater in recently burned patches than other patches. Our results indicate patch-burning can benefit livestock production while working to achieve rangeland conservation goals.