Standardized soil monitoring protocol available in Spanish
2013-05-23
Healthy forests depend on productive soils and sustaining their productivity requires a sound soil disturbance monitoring protocol. A team of USFS scientists met this challenge when they developed and published the Soil Disturbance Monitoring Protocol, and it is now available in Spanish. More »

New report on U.S. rangelands assesses future impacts of energy development, climate change, and invasive species
2013-03-27
A new US Forest Service report finds that US rangelands are currently in relatively good ecological condition. Yet invasive species continue to pose a threat to many ecosystems. The 16 most pervasive species affect 126 million acres and are expanding at a rate of up to 4000 acres per day. More »

Aldo Leopold Wilderness Research Institute Welcomes New Director
2013-03-13
The US Forest Service Rocky Mountain Research Station is pleased to announce Susan Fox as the new Director for the multi-agency Aldo Leopold Wilderness Research Institute located on the University of Montana campus in Missoula, Mont. More »

Looking Back in Time at Utah’s Climate
2013-02-22
A decade of collecting tens of thousands of tree ring samples from throughout the western United States is providing USDA Forest Service and Utah State University researchers with new data and a promising new way to reconstruct Utah’s past climate change patterns. More »

New report finds Western states most vulnerable to water shortages
2013-02-21
A new U.S. Forest Service report predicts that most of the Southwest, parts of California and the southern and central Great Plains will be the most vulnerable areas in the nation to water shortages during the next 60 years. More »

Software for Fighting Wildfires Wins Award
2013-01-11
The development and application of the Wildland Fire Decision and Support System, has been selected for the 2013 Award for Excellence in Technology Transfer by the Federal Laboratory Consortium. This annual award recognizes federal laboratory employees who have accomplished outstanding work in the process of transferring technology. More »

Free master class offered for FireWorks educational trunk
2013-01-08
The USDA Forest Service Rocky Mountain Research Station’s Fire Sciences Laboratory in Missoula, Mont. is offering its annual free “master class” on teaching with the FireWorks educational trunk on Friday and Saturday, Feb. 22-23, at the Northern Rockies Training Center in Missoula. The class consists of two days of intense, entertaining, hands-on activities teaching about wildland fire behavior, ecology, and management. The curriculum has activities for every age group. More »

Understanding the effects of a changing climate on native trout in the Rockies
2012-12-17
Record setting drought and temperatures like those experienced in 2012 may become the “new normal” that managers of aquatic resources in the Rocky Mountains have to contend with as the century progresses. Exploring the historical patterns and potential consequences of a changing climate on native trout habitats and populations to feed into better risk management assessments is the focus of a new study. More »

Scientists synthesize best practices for fuels management in dry mixed conifer forests
2012-11-26
USDA Forest Service Rocky Mountain Research Station scientists along with collaborators from Humboldt State University, the University of Montana, and the U.S. Forest Service Pacific Northwest Research Station, synthesized a vast array of information on the ecology, management strategies, and effectiveness of fuel treatments within the dry mixed conifer forests of the northwestern United States. More »

New publication assesses trends in the nation’s fish and aquatic resources
2012-09-11
The importance of healthy aquatic ecosystems pertains to everyone as it affects the ecological and economic benefits to society from safe drinking water to healthy and abundant fish populations that provide food for consumers and sustain recreational opportunities for anglers. A newly released report by the U.S. Forest Service, Rocky Mountain Research Station focuses on assessing the trends in the health of these ecosystems. More »

Climate Change in Grasslands, Shrublands, and Deserts of the Interior American West: A Review and Needs Assessment
2012-08-27
The Rocky Mountain Research Station published a comprehensive report summarizing climate change research and potential effects on grassland, shrub, and desert ecosystems. The report, “Climate Change in Grasslands, Shrublands, and Deserts of the Interior American West: A Review and Needs Assessment,” highlights current knowledge and future research essential to mitigate the prospective detrimental effects of climate change. It addresses animal, plant, and invasive species models and responses, vulnerabilities and genetic adaption, animal species and habitats, and decision support tools for restoration and land management. More »

High-tech Tool Predicts Fire Behavior in Bark Beetle-ravaged Forests
2012-08-09
Fire fighters facing fast-moving wildfires need better tools to predict erratic fire behavior A high-tech computer model called HIGRAD/FIRETEC, a collaborative effort between US Forest Service Rocky Mountain Research Station and Los Alamos National Laboratory, provides insights that are essential for front-line fire fighters. More »

Attention: Reporters, Editors, and Science Writers
2012-07-26
What does RMRS offer reporters and science writers? In a word: access - to scientists and their research. RMRS has a staff of personable, well-spoken researchers who enjoy sharing their discoveries. More »

Assessment on the Fourmile Canyon Fire completed and available online.
2012-07-25
One of the key findings of the Fourmile Canyon Fire assessment, released in final form today, is that homeowners' actions are the most important factor in protecting their homes from a wildfire. More »

'Wings Across the Americas' National Research and Partnership Award Honors Rocky Mountain Research Station Team's Work on Neotropical Migratory Birds
2012-03-19
A 10-year collaborative partnership that coalesced around the relationships between Neotropical migratory birds, their habitats, increasing fires, and the spread of exotic woody species in riparian ecosystems of the southwestern United States brought national recognition to Dr. Deborah Finch of the USDA Forest Service Rocky Mountain Research Station and her multi-organizational team. The team’s project, “Bird Responses to Invasive Species, Fire and Fuel Removal in Vulnerable Southwestern Ecosystems,” was recognized with the “National Research and Partnership Award” from the Wings Across the Americas program. More »

Relationships between moisture, chemistry, and ignition of Pinus contorta needles during the early stages of mountain pine beetle attack
2012-02-09
The international Elsevier Forest Ecology and Management Journal recently published this study, written by the U.S. Forest Service Rocky Mountain Research Station research ecologist Dr. W. Matt Jolly in collaboration with seven RMRS co-authors. It focuses on the foliage characteristics and flammability of lodgepole pine needles during the early stages of a mountain pine beetle attack. More »

Rocky Mountain Research Station Scientist Named Outstanding Associate Editor
2012-01-17
Robert E. (Bob) Keane, a research ecologist with the Rocky Mountain Research Station’s Fire Sciences Laboratory in Missoula, MT., serves as one of 49 associate editors from around the world for the International Journal of Wildland Fire. The IJWF recently recognized Keane with its first annual Outstanding Associate Editor Award for 2010. More »

U.S. Forest Service Researcher honored with National Outdoor Leadership School's Stewardship Award
2011-11-08
U.S. Forest Service Research Geographer David Cole was recently presented with the National Outdoor Leadership School's (NOLS) Stewardship Award, presented annually to "an individual who has exhibited exceptional stewardship of public lands and the environment." More »

Colorado Governor recognizes RMRS/CSU research
2011-11-03
Dr. Tom Brown of RMRS and his CSU team, Dr. Jorge Ramirez and Dr. Romano Foti, received recognition by Colorado Governor John Hickenlooper as Designated Finalists in CO-LABS 2011 Governor’s Award for High Impact Research awards for their research, “Quantifying the Current and Future Vulnerability of the United States Water Supply System.” More »

Experimental forests home to Southwest Experimental Garden Array
2011-11-03
Two USDA Forest Service Rocky Mountain Research Station experimental forests in Arizona, Fort Valley and Long Valley, have been included as sites for a network of 10 research gardens across northern Arizona as part of the Southwest Experimental Garden Array. More »