WERC Highlights -- August 1999

Giant Sequoia Research in the News: Though they are the world's largest trees and are among the oldest, giant sequoias have experienced an unprecedented failure in reproduction during this century. The reproductive failure is a direct result of humans excluding fire from its natural role in sequoia ecosystems. The use of prescribed fire to restore sequoia reproduction is one of the topics of an upcoming feature article by John Ritter for USA Today. Ritter recently interviewed USGS scientist Nate Stephenson of the Western Ecological Research Center about giant sequoia research studies in Sequoia and Kings Canyon National Parks, California. Other topics of the interview included the possible detrimental consequences of global warming on giant sequoias, and the rich records found in sequoia tree rings of past events ranging from droughts to fires to ancient supernovas. (Nate Stephenson, Three Rivers, CA, 559-565-3176)

World's Turtles in Crisis: Over half of the world's 280 turtle species are imperiled, including about half of species found in the United States, according to 60 of the world's leading experts on turtles. A phenomenon described by the experts as a Turtle Survival Crisis was the most urgent of topics discussed at Powdermill IV, a prestigious international conference that met to discuss key issues of turtle ecology, behavior, systematics, and conservation in Laughlin, Nev., August 13-15. Jeff Lovich, a scientist and research manager with the USGS Western Ecological Research Center co-organized the workshop, which is held only once every three to eight years, with scientists attending from as far away as Colombia and Australia. Lovich was interviewed for stories about the turtle crisis on MSNBC.COM and ENN.COM. (Jeff Lovich, Riverside, CA, 909-787-4719)

Invasive Species Threaten Biodiversity in Desert Southwest: Annual and perennial grasses from the Mediterranean region and Africa (e.g., red brome and buffelgrass) are actively invading the Sonoran Desert, causing the desert to be more susceptible to fires and converting the saguaro-paloverde ecosystem to one with few cacti and other native plants. Introduction of nonnative aquatic predators (exotic fishes, bullfrogs, and crayfish) is the single most important factor in current declines of native frog populations in the Southwest. Cecil Schwalbe, a scientist at the USGS Western Ecological Research Center, was recently interviewed by Martin Enserick for an article in the journal Science about invasive species. (Cecil Schwalbe, Tucson, AZ, 520-621-5508)