Few deer from last week

[Moosie]

Always enjoy yer pictures. Thanks MtMiller !!

 

[1_pointer]

1_pointer, the Sage Grouse Initiative for NRCS uses those protocols for Line-point Intercept. It does add a lot of time to each plot but that information does help when looking at structural diversity within a site. When we have summer help, each level intercepted will also get a height measurement otherwise we take herbaceous and shrub height measurements every 3 feet to get a general idea.

Sorry to hijack mtmiller's thread but Jornada has a great inventory site: http://jornada.nmsu.edu/monit-assess

Thanks for that info.I figured they might since Pat Shaver helped develop them to correlate with Rangeland Health. I work for NRCS, but not in sage grouse country so I haven't taken the time to look into that initiative. Course, for my current job I deal very little with initiatives.

One way to speed up the process would be to lump them into height classes (say every 5") and then just mark the pin you're using to do the point intercept. That was an option we allowed in the Utah BLM Range monitoring manual that I helped write. We didn't make it mandatory because structural diversity wasn't really a factor (ie no sage grouse) in parts of the state as well as the increased time it would take. 20 transects 100ft long at each site it doesn't take too much of a time increase to make it take a long time...

 

[MThuntr]

Craig, have you ever seen that batch of antelope that run up in the Bear's Paw Mtns south of Chinook? I worked on a ranch a couple years ago that had a dozen or so that cruised the timber! The oddest thing I've ever seen.

 

[pointingdogsrule]

A few months back I was looking over job openings on the Montana website and I found one that was for Sage Grouse monitoring. I thought that would be really cool to do. If I ever give up my job as a DVM. I can only dream.

good luck to all
the dog

 

[jlmatthew]

that is some awesome looking country!