Document Type

Article

Publication Version

Published Version

Publication Date

2014

Journal or Book Title

Ecology and Society

Volume

19

Issue

2

First Page

1

Last Page

13

DOI

10.5751/ES-06404-190241

Abstract

Ecologists recognize that fire and herbivory are essential to maintaining habitat quality in grassland ecosystems. Prescribed fire and grazing are typically used on public reserves to increase biodiversity, improve grassland productivity, and control encroachment of woody plants. However, these tools, particularly prescribed fire, have not been widely adopted by private landowners. Fire suppression and prescribed fire are strategies that present competing risks to owners who make management decisions. We explore landowner perceptions of risk associated with (1) eastern redcedar (Juniperus virginiana) encroachment, and (2) the use of prescribed fire to control woody species in the Grand River Grasslands of Iowa and Missouri, USA. We found that although mapping data of eastern redcedar in this region showed substantial encroachment over the past three decades, concept mapping of landowner beliefs and in-person interviews of local community leaders revealed that perceived risks associated with prescribed fire often outweighed those associated with loss of forage and grassland habitats.

Comments

This article is from Ecology and Society 19 (2014): 41, doi:10.5751/ES-06404-190241. Posted with permission.

Copyright Owner

Ryan N. Harr, et al.

Language

en

File Format

application/pdf

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