Ecological Assessment of the Effects of Army Training Activities on a Desert Ecosystem. National Training Center, Fort Irwin, California
Abstract
This report describes a study conducted in the spring of 1983 at Fort Irwin, California, to assess the effects of large-scale Army training maneuvers and war game scenarios on the installation's desert ecosystem. Additional objectives of the study were to develop rigorous methodologies for quantifying environmental impact assessments, to describe species/habitat associations, and to quantitatively summarize the relative relationships of experimental and control sites on the basis of vertebrate community structure. The field studies were conducted on five sites: two were controls while the others represented three gradations of environmental impacts. The data collected on habitat structure, birds, and small mammals were subjected to rigorous univariate and multivariate analyses and the results evaluated. The data obtained showed that cresote bush cover or volume was the best indicator for monitoring ecosystem degradation. The Brewer's and sage sparrows, the little pocket mouse, and the southern grasshopper mouse were identified as sensitive indicators of disturbances caused by Army training activities. The absence of black-throated sparrows and leconte's thrashers indicate severely degraded habitats. The presence of the desert Kangaroo rat is associated with very low shrub and ground cover and loose, sandy substrates-both characteristic of heavily trained areas.
Document Details
- Document Type
- Technical Report
- Publication Date
- Jun 01, 1985
- Accession Number
- ADA159248
Entities
People
- Anthony J. Krzysik
Organizations
- Construction Engineering Research Laboratory