My impression of the ecology of the sagebrush steppe is that fire is a
natural occurrence (and/or was used by aboriginal types) that maintained
the steppe in a mosaic of grassland and brush. Human intervention in
this 'fire ecology' has permitted vast areas of the Great Basin to become
vegetated with large _Artemisia_ and other shrubs; the native grasses and
forbs are reduced in abundance and diversity, and wildlife - including
the avifauna - must adapt to an unnatural condition. A more 'natural'
condition includes grasslands, grasslands with 'invading' shrubs, and
patches of shrub vegetation of various ages.

Another result of fire suppression has been the invasion of Juniper from
the rimrock areas to the lower slopes and beyond. This has been
documented in numerous articles in the journals of the Society for Range
Management. Some of the articles implicate grazing activity along with
the fire suppression as a causative factor - probably depends on the
location, etc.

I am not as well acquainted with the Palouse steppe, but I would be surprised
if 'old-growth' sagebrush stands there are not artifacts of fire suppression
activities and heavy historical cattle grazing.

Jon. Anderson
Olympia, WA
anderjda at dfw.wa.gov

On Wed, 22 Mar 1995 STEPNIEWSKI at delphi.com wrote:

> Alan, The ALE maybe "very well preserved," but that includes a fire about
> 9 years ago that took out nearly all the sagebrush, just a remnant patch.
> Much of the landscape there now is that of steppe vegetation. Rabbitbrush
> and hop sage pockets are also common, but sagebrush has been slow to
> regenerate, as is typical after fires. To find shrub-steppe in reasonable
> condition, try the nearby Wahluke Slope Wildlife Area.
>
> Andy Stepniewski
> Wapato, WA
>