Collaborative sagebrush management practices -- specifically in Grand Teton National
Park -- are the topic of the Thursday, June 27, Harlow Summer Seminar Series event
at the renovated University of Wyoming-National Park Service (UW-NPS) Research Station.
The facility is located at the AMK Ranch in Grand Teton National Park.
Laura Jones and Anne Beeman will present “Rooted in Restoration: Collaborative Sagebrush
Management Practices and Strategies.” The event begins at 5:30 p.m. with a barbecue,
followed by a 6:30 p.m. seminar. The events are free and open to the public, although
a $10 donation is suggested.
Jones is the vegetation ecology and management branch chief in Grand Teton National
Park, and Beeman is a botany graduate student in UW’s College of Agriculture, Life
Sciences and Natural Resources.
The two speakers note that sagebrush habitat restoration is an essential land management
strategy for a biome that has shrunk to half its original area across the American
West. Grand Teton National Park officials have restored 1,500 acres of sagebrush habitat
since 2009, learning lessons and adapting practices along the way.
Park ecologists have collaborated with UW researchers to understand drivers of restoration
outcomes and techniques to optimize success. An evaluation of data showed that, although
native grasses were establishing well, forb and shrub diversity and cover were low.
Climate year, soil type and seed mix influenced plant community composition, compelling
Grand Teton restoration practitioners to consider which approaches to modify.
The two speakers say they are testing the effects of soil tilling and seed mix design
on restoration success at the latest 90-acre restoration site, collecting data at
the site two years post-restoration in July 2024.
Restoration work is being conducted in Grand Teton National Park as part of a
collaborative sagebrush management project between park officials and the University
of Wyoming. Laura Jones and Anne Beeman will present results of the project Thursday,
June 27, as part of the Harlow Summer Seminar Series at the UW-National Park Service
Research Station. The facility is located at the AMK Ranch in Grand Teton National
Park. (National Park Service Photo)
“We hypothesize that forb-dominated seed mixes alongside tilled treatments will result
in optimal species diversity and shrub establishment,” they say. “These results will
guide future restoration efforts and management techniques within Grand Teton National
Park.”
Jones, who has been at the park the last five years, served in resource manager, ecologist
and planner roles at Colorado National Monument, Yosemite National Park and Boulder
County Parks and Open Space. She received her Master of Science in biology, studying
estuarine restoration at the University of Southern Maine. Her work focuses on ecological
restoration and embraces opportunities to integrate new science and research to uncover
better management strategies.
Beeman is studying sagebrush restoration management strategies in the park, specifically
observing how tilling treatments and seed mix ratios affect shrub establishment and
species diversity. She attended Saint Louis University as an undergraduate and has
since conducted vegetation research in a variety of ecosystems, including Great Basin
cold desert communities, eastern Oregon riparian communities and southeastern Alaska
temperate rainforest communities.
About the University of Wyoming-National Park Service Research Station
The research station, a cooperative effort between UW and the NPS for the past 71
years, provides a base for university faculty members and government scientists from
around the world to conduct research in the diverse aquatic and terrestrial environments
of Grand Teton National Park and the greater Yellowstone area. The research station
is located on the AMK Ranch historic district on a peninsula extending into Jackson
Lake near Leeks Marina.
About the Harlow Summer Seminar Series
Formerly called the AMK Ranch Talk Series, the Harlow program is named after retired
UW Department of Zoology and Physiology Professor Hank Harlow, who helped make the
UW-NPS Research Station a significant center for research and community outreach.
Harlow began the popular weekly public seminars during the summer months. This summer’s
weekly programs are from June 20-Aug. 8.
Further details of the evening events are available at www.uwnps.org, where those interested can join a mailing list.
