Greater sage-grouse habitat suitability 15-years post simulated fire event and non-targeted sagebrush transplants (2015-2030)

Here, we present greater sage-grouse nesting habitat suitability 15-years after simulating a fire and planting of sagebrush. The planting design used here reflects a single-year (maximum-effort; me) habitat restoration effort where we used several small (ss) patches with low density (ld) planting of sagebrush. The planting was not targeted for nesting habitat, and the data reflects simulated habitat conditions in 2030.
To assess the degree to which transplanting sagebrush (Artemisia spp.) could quickly restore former sage-grouse habitat and the strategies by which greater sage-grouse (Centrocercus urophasianus; hereafter, sage-grouse) habitat restoration is best accomplished, we linked vegetation transitions with habitat selection models to evaluate habitat recovery. Within our modeling extent (Tuscarora, Nevada), we simulated the fire-induced loss of habitat, planting of sagebrush seedlings, and the regrowth of sagebrush and other vegetation over 15 years. We used sagebrush growth equations and vegetation state transitions to return and grow vegetation within the burned and planted areas. Every year, we updated seasonal sage-grouse habitat selection maps by re-applying pre-fire habitat selection equations to re-calculate the proportion of suitable habitat gained by sagebrush restoration efforts. We evaluated alternative planting designs to identify the key factors influencing habitat selection outcomes. Specifically, we varied the number of plants, patch sizes, densities, location of planting sites (i.e., random versus within sage-grouse nesting habitat), as well as post-transplant (30, 70, or 100%) survival. We assumed all planting occurred in a single year. We ranked the influence of these different planting factors on sage-grouse habitat recovery across restoration scenario. The following data reflect nesting habitat conditions 15-years after a simulated fire and sagebrush revegetation. Here, we provide the habitat recovery results for one of many different planting designs assessed for this project.

本研究呈现了模拟火灾与山艾（sagebrush）种植15年后的大艾草松鸡（greater sage-grouse, Centrocercus urophasianus；下文简称松鸡）筑巢栖息地适宜性结果。本次采用的种植方案对应单年度（最大投入量，简称me）栖息地修复工程，即使用若干小型（ss）斑块，以低密度（ld）方式种植山艾。本次种植未针对筑巢栖息地开展定向规划，本数据集反映的是2030年的模拟栖息地状态。
为评估移栽蒿属（Artemisia spp.）山艾能否快速恢复原有松鸡栖息地，以及最优的松鸡栖息地修复策略，本研究将植被动态与栖息地选择模型（habitat selection models）相结合，以评估栖息地恢复效果。本次研究的建模覆盖范围为内华达州塔斯卡罗拉（Tuscarora, Nevada），我们在该区域模拟了火灾导致的栖息地丧失、山艾幼苗种植，以及山艾与其他植被15年的自然恢复过程。我们通过山艾生长方程与植被状态转换（vegetation state transitions）模型，在过火及种植区域重建并培育植被。每年我们都会重新应用火灾前的栖息地选择方程，重新计算山艾修复工程所增加的适宜栖息地占比，以此更新季节性松鸡栖息地选择地图。本研究还评估了多种替代种植方案，以明确影响栖息地选择结果的关键因素。具体而言，我们对种植植株数量、斑块规模、种植密度、种植点位（即随机点位与松鸡筑巢栖息地内点位）以及移栽后存活率（post-transplant survival，30%、70%或100%）进行了变量调控。本研究假设所有种植活动均在单一年度内完成，并在不同修复情景下，对上述各类种植因素对松鸡栖息地恢复的影响进行了排序。以下数据反映了模拟火灾与山艾植被恢复15年后的筑巢栖息地状态。本数据集提供了本项目所评估的多种种植方案中，某一方案的栖息地恢复结果。