King Ranch Fuel Reduction Study

Invasive species can alter fire regimes having detrimental consequences to native ecosystems and can also lead to high intensity wildfires that are typically hard to suppress and cause damage to homes, businesses, and other high value resources. This funding opportunity pertains to the conservation and restoration of grasslands located at the Balcones Canyonlands National Wildlife Refuge. The project will assess the effects of fire intensity and seasonality in grasslands invaded by the exotic grass species Bothriochloa var. ischaemum var. songarica (King Ranch Bluestem), with the goal of reducing wildfire risk. The goal of this funding opportunity is to develop repeatable management actions that will reverse the loss of native grassland species and consequent increase in wildfire risk due to invasion by King Ranch bluestem. Proposals should focus on experimental manipulations that, if successful, could be incorporated into the Balcones Canyonlands National Wildlife Refuge's standard procedures for grassland management.