fairfield creek fire | The Prairie Ecologist

Last week, I posted that I’d been up at our Niobrara Valley Preserve, helping to set up timelapse cameras to document the recovery of that site from the wildfire last July. Back in February, photographer Michael Forsberg, Jeff Dale, Rich Walters, and I picked out preliminary locations for nine cameras. Jeff then built the camera systems, and we got them installed and started up last Tuesday and Wednesday.

Mike and Jeff are part of Moonshell Media, the group we’re contracting with for this project. You may have seen their work before – most of the Moonshell Media staff are also working on the Platte Basin Timelapse project, which includes video from one of our Platte River wetland restoration projects, along with numerous other stories of water and the Platte River from headwaters to mouth.

A timelapse camera, taking a photo every daylight hour, will record the change in this landscape view over the next several years.

This timelapse camera will be taking a photo every daylight hour for the next several years, recording the recovery of this landscape from the Fairfield Creek wildfire in July 2012.

The timelapse project at the Niobrara Valley Preserve is being funded by the Nebraska Environmental Trust, as part of a larger project to study the aftermath of the wildfire and generate information to help reduce negative impacts from similar events in the future. Eacn of our nine cameras will be taking one photo every hour, during daylight hours, for at least several years. An additional camera will be a mobile unit that we’ll move from location to location to document short-term changes or events. The cameras will help us tell the overall story of wildfire recovery, but will also link with and help illustrate the results of several research projects happening in the same places.

Here are some photos of the installation last week, along with descriptions of what some of the cameras will be documenting. I will, of course, let you know when/where videos from the project can be viewed when its time.

Jeff Dale fastens a camera mount near the top of a windmill tower.

The "windmill cam" will capture a wide view of bison-grazed sandhill prairie as it greens up this spring, but will also follow it over the next several years, as dynamic patterns of bison grazing, weather, and prescribed fires shape its habitat structure and species composition.

The “windmill cam” will capture a wide view of bison-grazed sandhill prairie as it greens up this spring, and then will follow it over the next several years, as dynamic patterns of bison grazing, weather, and prescribed fires shape its habitat structure and species composition.

Jeff Dale and David Weber install a camera that will look straight down a steep slope in the burned pine woodland on the ridge north of the river. Among other things, this camera will help capture evidence of any soil erosion that occurs over time.

Jeff Dale and David Weber install a camera that will look straight down a steep slope on the ridge north of the river. Among other things, this camera will help capture evidence of any soil erosion that occurs over time under the burned ponderosa pine woodland.

This camera is set up to record any sediment that pools up at the base of the (formerly) pine-covered ridge north of the river. In addition, it will record the resprouting of several oak trees growing within the frame.

This camera is set up to record any sediment that pools up at the base of the (formerly) pine-covered ridge. In addition, it will record the resprouting of several oak trees growing within the frame.

This camera was installed on a new fenceline - moved after the initial fence was destroyed by fire. The new fenceline moves the south end of the bison pasture into what was formerly cattle pasture. This camera will record differences in the recovery of prairie grazed year-round by bison (left) vs. prairie grazed by cattle. One of many differences we expect to see is that yucca will likely disappear on the left side of the fence due to year-round grazing by bison. Winter grazing (by either cattle OR bison) suppresses yucca, which is rarely grazed at all during the summer.

This camera was installed on a new fenceline – rebuilt in a new location after the initial fence was destroyed by fire. The new fence location expands the south end of the bison pasture into what was formerly cattle pasture. The camera will record differences in the recovery of prairie grazed year-round by bison (left) vs. prairie grazed only periodically by cattle. One of many differences we expect to see is that yucca will largely disappear in the bison pasture. Winter grazing (by either cattle OR bison) suppresses yucca, which is rarely grazed at all during the summer.

How fast will this sandhills blowout carve away recently-burned sand prairie? Our camera will help us find out. Based on previous experience with summer fires, we don’t expect to see any significant increase in wind erosion, but this camera (combined with aerial photographs, and perhaps on-the-ground measurements) will allow us to test that assumption.

Jeff digs a hole for the camera I'm most excited about. This camera will focus on a 8x10 foot rectangle of bison-grazed prairie, looking straight down on it from above. Over the next several years, we should be able to watch the plant community recover from the fire, but we'll also see yearly differences in which species bloom, and when, in response to weather, grazing, future fires, etc. We can also record any long-term changes in the plant composition within this area.

Jeff digs a post hole for the camera I’m most excited about. This camera will focus on a 8×10 foot rectangle of bison-grazed prairie, looking straight down on it from above. Over the next several years, we should be able to watch the plant community recover from the fire, but we’ll also see yearly differences in which species bloom, when they bloom, and how they respond to weather, grazing, future fires, etc. We can also record any long-term changes in the plant composition within this area.

We want to see how the plant community will recover in areas formerly underneath dense cedar now that those cedars are dead. We expect lots of weeds, but hope not to see many truly invasive plants.

We want to see how the plant community will recover underneath dense cedar trees now that those cedars are dead. We expect lots of weeds, but hope not to see many truly invasive plants.

Jeff, the technical wizard who designed most of the equipment that makes the cameras work right, explains how they work. I got some of it, I think...

Jeff, the technical wizard who designed most of the timelapse camera systems, explains how to adjust them and keep them working. I followed some of it, I think…

Last week, I got to help our Niobrara Valley Preserve staff round up and sort bison from the Preserve’s east bison pasture. Ok, I actually only helped with the sorting part because the bison were already in the corral by the time I got there…

Richard Egelhoff, our bison manager, had decided that, even with good grass regrowth this fall, we were going to have to reduce the herd size in order to get them through the winter. His plan was to sort off the yearling and two-year-old bison and keep the rest. Many of bison to be sold would have been sold anyway, but not until November. Richard hopes that shipping them off early will save enough forage to keep the rest of the herd fed. In total, the east herd was reduced from 475 animals to 355.

The corral system for the east bison herd is essentially a series of gates along a chute. The process starts by moving a group of bison from the larger corral into the chute. Once there, gates are opened and closed to let a few bison at a time down the chute until they are finally winnowed down to a single animal (or a few of the same kind). At that point, Richard opens one of two gates at the end, and the bison either goes left (back to the pasture) or right (into the sale pen).

If you’ve ever been to similar event with a corral full of cattle, it’s a noisy dusty mess. With bison, it’s dusty (especially in a drought) but not noisy. Bison mainly communicate with a series of low grunts. Because of that, there’s no loud bawling of mothers and calves or bellowing of bulls – just the pounding of lots of bison feet on the dirt, accentuated by grunts and the occasional BANG of a gate. It can be a violent process at times, as bison ram into each other or into gates – they ARE wild animals, after all – but we tried to get them through as quickly and calmly as we could. They’re amazingly tough animals.

The bison were pushed down to the corral last Wednesday afternoon and the sorting was finished shortly after lunchtime on Thursday, so the “keepers” spent less than a day in the corral before they were back in their pasture. The bison selected for sale were run through the chutes one more time on Friday morning so the neighborhood vet could check their tag numbers (little clips on their ears) or add a tracking number to any that were missing one. That number is required to be on any animals moved across state lines so that a buyer can track health records for each individual animal.

Now if we can get a few more rains, maybe we can grow enough grass to keep those bison happy and healthy until next spring. By then their 7,200 acre pasture should have plenty of grass again. Come on rain!

Below is a series of photos from last week’s roundup. You can click on an image to see a larger version of it, then click on the arrows to move through the remaining photos. When you’re done, just close the window by clicking on the X in the top left corner. To see more on this subject, click HERE to see a short story from the Omaha World Herald, along with fantastic photos and video by Alyssa Schukar.