“In Montana, you're only a week away from a drought”: Ranchers’ perspectives on flood irrigation and beaver mimicry as drought mitigation strategies

Moore, Megan A.; McEvoy, Jamie

doi:10.1016/j.rala.2022.03.004

Cited by 3 publications

(2 citation statements)

References 38 publications

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“…Reactive drought responses are also common, particularly in the agricultural sector (e.g., emergency loans to producers, compensation for losses, famine relief, etc. ; Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations [FAO], 2019; Moore & McEvoy, 2022); such programs may or may not be designed to adequately respond to flash drought.…”

Section: The Challenge Of Determining When Whom and Where Flash Droug...mentioning

confidence: 99%

Flash drought: A state of the science review

Christian,

Hobbins,

Hoell

et al. 2024

WIREs Water

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In the two decades, since the advent of the term “flash drought,” considerable research has been directed toward the topic. Within the scientific community, we have actively forged a new paradigm that has avoided a chaotic evolution of conventional drought but instead recognizes that flash droughts have distinct dynamics and, particularly, impacts. We have moved beyond the initial debate over the definition of flash drought to a centralized focus on the triad of rapid onset, drought development, and associated impacts. The refinement toward this general set of principles has led to significant progress in determining key variables for monitoring flash drought development, identifying notable case studies, and compiling fundamental physical characteristics of flash drought. However, critical focus areas still remain, including advancing our knowledge on the atmospheric and oceanic drivers of flash drought; developing flash drought‐specific detection indices and monitoring systems tailored to practitioners; improving subseasonal‐to‐seasonal prediction of these events; constraining uncertainty in flash drought and impact projections; and using social science to further our understanding of impacts, particularly with regard to sectors that lie outside of our traditional hydroclimatological focus, such as wildfire management and food‐security monitoring. Researchers and stakeholders working together on these critical topics will assure society is resilient to flash drought in a changing climate.This article is categorized under: Science of Water > Water Extremes

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Section: The Challenge Of Determining When Whom and Where Flash Droug...mentioning

confidence: 99%

Flash drought: A state of the science review

Christian,

Hobbins,

Hoell

et al. 2024

WIREs Water

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

show abstract

“…While BDA installation may achieve similar results to beaver translocation in the short term, BDAs require time‐consuming maintenance if they are intended to be permanent (Pearce et al 2021; Moore & McEvoy 2022), especially in more dynamic rivers. This maintenance may be offset when beavers use BDAs as starter structures on which to build their dams (Bouwes et al 2016; Charnley 2018; Yokel et al 2018).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Beaver dam analogs did not improve beaver translocation outcomes in a desert river

Sandbach,

Young,

Conner

et al. 2024

Restoration Ecology

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Stream restoration programs employ beaver‐related restoration techniques, including beaver translocations and installation of beaver dam analogs (BDA), to create complex in‐stream habitat. We investigated whether BDA installations improved the probability of translocated beavers surviving and colonizing a section of a degraded desert river. We translocated beavers fitted with tracking devices to the Price River, Utah, United States, for 2 years before and after BDAs were installed. We monitored survival and site fidelity of beavers to estimate apparent survival (φ), using model selection to evaluate models with BDA, flow, and other factors hypothesized to relate to apparent survival. We found similar apparent survival 8 weeks post‐release of pre‐BDA (φ = 0.50 ± 0.08 SE) and post‐BDA beavers (φ = 0.41 ± 0.06 SE). There were 15 predator‐caused mortalities and 39 beavers emigrated out of the study site. Top models indicated apparent survival was negatively related to mean flow. Of the 70 BDAs constructed, beaver activity was detected on only two structures and the number of intact natural dams decreased due to monsoon floods. Our results suggest BDAs may not improve survival and site fidelity of translocated beavers in desert river systems. Instead, the dynamic flow of desert rivers and negative relationship between flow and apparent survival suggest the timing of release may be an important consideration for successful beaver translocation. Additional research is needed to understand how habitat, food availability, individual behavior, and resident conspecifics influence beaver translocation success.

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Waterfowl and Wetland Birds

Vest,

Haukos,

Niemuth

et al. 2023

Rangeland Wildlife Ecology and Conservation

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The future of wetland bird habitat and populations is intrinsically connected with the conservation of rangelands in North America. Many rangeland watersheds are source drainage for some of the highest functioning extant wetlands. The Central and Pacific Flyways have significant overlap with available rangelands in western North America. Within these flyways, the importance of rangeland management has become increasingly recognized by those involved in wetland bird conservation. Within the array of wetland bird species, seasonal habitat needs are highly variable. During the breeding period, nest survival is one of the most important drivers of population growth for many wetland bird species and rangelands often provide quality nesting cover. Throughout spring and fall, rangeland wetlands provide key forage resources that support energetic demands needed for migration. In some areas, stock ponds developed for livestock water provide migration stopover and wintering habitat, especially in times of water scarcity. In the Intermountain West, drought combined with water demands from agriculture and human population growth are likely headed to an ecological tipping point for wetland birds and their habitat in the region. In the Prairie Pothole Region, conversion of rangeland and draining of wetlands for increased crop production remains a significant conservation issue for wetland birds and other wildlife. In landscapes dominated by agricultural production, rangelands provide some of the highest value ecosystem services, including water quality and wetland function. Recent research has shown livestock grazing, if managed properly, is compatible and at times beneficial to wetland bird habitat needs. Either directly, or indirectly, wetland bird populations and their habitat needs are supported by healthy rangelands. In the future, rangeland and wetland bird managers will benefit from increased collaboration to aid in meeting ultimate conservation objectives.

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“In Montana, you're only a week away from a drought”: Ranchers’ perspectives on flood irrigation and beaver mimicry as drought mitigation strategies

Cited by 3 publications

References 38 publications

Flash drought: A state of the science review

Flash drought: A state of the science review

Beaver dam analogs did not improve beaver translocation outcomes in a desert river

Waterfowl and Wetland Birds

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