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AUTHORS: Heidi L. Hillhouse, University of Nebraska - Lincoln
ABSTRACT: The Rainwater Basin region of Nebraska is a key stopover location during spring waterfowl migrations. The availability of appropriate food resources is a major management concern, with preferred food sources being seeds of annual and perennial wetland plants. Reed canarygrass (Phalaris arundinacea) is a widespread invasive species in wetlands. The abundant aboveground biomass produced by reed canarygrass suppresses more desirable seed producing species and blocks access to any seeds that are produced. Grazing is commonly used to manage regional wetlands, but there is little information on how the timing of grazing affects management goals related to wetland vegetation, including seed production and removal of reed canarygrass biomass. We selected three wetlands with a history of recent grazing and evaluated seed production and end of season reed canarygrass biomass in response to four grazing treatments across three years. Treatments included grazing until June 15th, July 15th, August 15th (standard practice), and ungrazed.
