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Presentation made by Ken Reid to the NM Forest and Watershed Management Coordinating Group on 01/11/19

Call for proposals for "Biodiversity and Management of the Madrean Archipelago Conference", May 14-18, 2018 in Tucson, Arizona

Video presentations from the conference held October 18-19, 2016 at Utah State University. As climate changes, forests are being impacted by severe drought, longer fire seasons, and impressive insect epidemics. New approaches to landscape restoration are needed to cope with these disturbances. The 2016 Restoring the West Conference offered presentations by experts in climate science, landscape restoration, and forest ecology on techniques for this uncertain future, and gave examples where these techniques are working.

The USDA Office of Sustainability and Climate Change posted a 2-hour introduction to upcoming opportunities related to drought and water challenges. The aim is to engage Forest Service employees and partners in planning for and adapting to the impacts of drought and other water challenges in the face of a changing climate.

Description of the topics covered during the Malpai Borderlands Group 2015 science conference, held Jan. 6, 2015 in Douglas Arizona

Presentation: More than 200+ mammal species worldwide are affected by plague, and yet, the dynamics of enzootic plague and its inter-species interactions among rodents are largely unknown. Non-epizootic manifestation of the disease on nocturnal or cryptic species is difficult to quantify, and how the disease persists between epizootic events is poorly understood. Enzootic transmission cycles may be maintained in soils, or by small mammals and/or fleas acting as reservoirs for the disease. If so, the invasive plague bacterium, Yersinia pestis, may be functioning as a non-native predator, whose effects augment natural mortality. We hypothesized that enzootic plague is causing chronic mortality in wild rodent species in northern New Mexico. Our objectives included: (1) measuring survival rates of rodents protected from plague via an experimental F1 antigen vaccine; (2) measuring the effects of flea vectors on host mortality by controlling vectors through the application of a pyrethroid, DeltaDust; (3) testing the efficacy and longevity of DeltaDust by tracking flea abundance on host species; and (4) field-testing the efficacy of the F1 experimental vaccine. Preliminary data indicate that vaccine improved survival of brush mice (Peromyscus boylii) by 66% at one plot without demonstrating any benefit for brush mice at a second plot with similar treatment. Survival was higher in short-tailed Peromyscus spp. on dusted plots than non-dusted plots. Control for vectors and plague vaccinations may improve survival of small mammals and interdict plague transmission.

Presentation: Invasive species are known to cause devastating effects in introduced habitats. Invasive species can be introduced on purpose or by accident, most commonly by human activity. They are known to increase competition for habitat and food resources with native species. Invasive bullfrogs (Lithobates catesbeianus) were introduced along the Mora River at the Rio Mora National Wildlife Refuge. We have eradicated the bullfrogs in a section of the river to study their impact on the aquatic fauna. We found that the invasive northern crayfish (Orconectes virilis) is an important component of the diet of bullfrogs. In this study we hypothesized that the removal of bullfrogs in the Mora River will release the crayfish population from predation, which may lead to a mesopredator release. We used systematic sampling to determine the relative abundance and overall size of crayfish in both sites using baited minnow traps. There is a highly significant difference in mass between control (21.63 g) and experimental sites (18.58 g; p-value< 0.0001). However we did not find a significant difference in abundance between both sites. We hypothesize that the size difference between both sites is the results of increase recruitment and survival of young individuals that now suffer less predation, dragging the average down. Cursory evaluation of data on fish density shows a similar pattern where fish. Further examination of the data will provide us insight to the trophic interactions amongst bullfrogs, crayfish and fishes in the Mora River at the Rio Mora National Wildlife Refuge.

Presentation: Invasive species are able to alter the dynamics of the trophic levels of an ecosystem and have no natural controls. They can displace native species in the food web, and prey on species with no adaptive defenses. The Rio Mora National Wildlife Refuge has both invasive Bullfrogs and native Northern Leopard Frogs. The purpose of this study is to investigate the effects of the presence of the invasive Bullfrog on the demographics of the native Northern Leopard Frog in northern New Mexico. A section of the Mora River in the refuge was divided into two 2000-meter long section a control site containing Bullfrogs and an experimental site, where Bullfrogs were eradicated. Relative abundance surveys were utilized to sample demographic parameters. Fifty one Leopard Frogs were captured, pit tagged, and processed for demographic data. Six frogs were fitted with radio transmitters. Control and experimental regions did not differ in the relative abundance of Leopard Frogs. We did not find a significant difference in the mass of frogs from the two regions. However, preliminary data does show lower average mass and greater abundance in the experimental region suggesting an increase in recruitment of metamorphosis frog into the population. Telemetry data for four frogs in the control region produced a mean home range size of 531.7 square meters. The Telemetry data shows how frogs can have a large range of sizes in their home range area. Further study of the home range will be conducted to determine if there is a difference in home range between the control and experimental areas.

This is the 11th in a series of Desert Technology conferences since 1991. These conferences focus on desertification issues & multidisciplinary solutions such as special characteristics and benefits of desert ecosystems, mechanism of desertification and its management, and appropriate technologies for developed and developing regions. This document details how to submit an abstract for the conference, for people interested presenting.

Presentation about managing weeds in riparian restoration projects. Gregory Fenchel, NRCS Los Lunas Plant Materials Center