We conducted the first investigation of insect community responses to post-fire seeding on public rangelands by comparing the composition of insect communities at burned-and-seeded (treatment) and burned-and-unseeded (control) sagebrush-steppe ecological sites in southwestern Idaho. Insect communities in burned areas were compared to unburned (reference) areas. We collected insect and vegetation data within and around the burn perimeter of the 2007 Murphy Fire (652,209 ha), 2002 Big Crow Fire (1,134 ha), and 1995 Clover Fire (78,102 ha) in southwestern Idaho, USA. We captured and identified 24,862 insects from 130 families at the three study sites in 2010. We used a nadir photogrid and point-centered quarter method to estimate the percent cover of vegetation at plots within the sampling sites. To estimate the effect of surrounding landscape on the measured insect communities, we measured the relative percent cover of shrublands and grasslands surrounding each sampling plot using ArcGIS 10 and a LANDFIRE vegetation cover shapefile (LANDFIRE Existing Vegetation Type Layer. U.S. Department of Interior, Geological Survey. Available: http://landfire.cr.usgs.gov [2013, June 26]). We measured interannual variability of insect and vegetation community composition at the 1995 Clover Fire (78, 102 ha) from 2009 through 2011. We captured 10,104 individual insects from 145 families during this sampling effort. We used a nadir photogrid method each of the three years and point-centered quarter method in 2009 and 2011 (but not 2010) to estimate the percent cover of vegetation at plots within the sampling site.

In this study, the U.S. Geological Survey investigated the use of insects as bioindicators of climate change in sagebrush steppe shrublands and grasslands in the Upper Columbia Basin. The research was conducted in the Stinkingwater and Pueblo mountain ranges in eastern Oregon on lands administered by the Bureau of Land Management. We used a “space-for-time” sampling design that related insect communities to climate and weather along elevation gradients. We analyzed our insect dataset at three levels of organization: (1) whole-community, (2) feeding guilds (detritivores, herbivores, nectarivores, parasites, and predators) and (3) orders within nectarivores (i.e., pollinators). This dataset contains information about insects, vegetation, and weather in 2012 and 2013 at four sites that span elevation gradients in sagebrush steppe habitats in eastern Oregon. Each site contained nine sampling plots, arranged in groups of three at low, mid, and high elevations. Insects were collected using blue and yellow Japanese beetle flight traps and pitfall traps several times throughout the active season in 2012 and 2013. All insects were identified to the level of family and abundance. Abundances of families collected in pitfall traps, blue Japanese beetle flight traps, and yellow Japanese beetle flight traps are reported separately. Weather data was collected using iButton data loggers and weather stations. Hourly data was summarized into daily values which are reported here. When weather stations were not available, weather variables were estimated using data from nearby NOAA weather stations (see methods section of associated publication for details). Vegetation density data were collected using photo-grid analysis and point-quarter analysis. Vegetation data were collected at every sampling plot once per year.

In this study, the U.S. Geological Survey investigated the use of insects as bioindicators of climate change in sagebrush steppe shrublands and grasslands in the Upper Columbia Basin. The research was conducted in the Stinkingwater and Pueblo mountain ranges in eastern Oregon on lands administered by the Bureau of Land Management. We used a “space-for-time” sampling design that related insect communities to climate and weather along elevation gradients. We analyzed our insect dataset at three levels of organization: (1) whole-community, (2) feeding guilds (detritivores, herbivores, nectarivores, parasites, and predators) and (3) orders within nectarivores (i.e., pollinators). This dataset contains information about insects, vegetation, and weather in 2012 and 2013 at four sites that span elevation gradients in sagebrush steppe habitats in eastern Oregon. Each site contained nine sampling plots, arranged in groups of three at low, mid, and high elevations. Insects were collected using blue and yellow Japanese beetle flight traps and pitfall traps several times throughout the active season in 2012 and 2013. All insects were identified to the level of family and abundance. Abundances of families collected in pitfall traps, blue Japanese beetle flight traps, and yellow Japanese beetle flight traps are reported separately. Weather data was collected using iButton data loggers and weather stations. Hourly data was summarized into daily values which are reported here. When weather stations were not available, weather variables were estimated using data from nearby NOAA weather stations (see methods section of associated publication for details). Vegetation density data were collected using photo-grid analysis and point-quarter analysis. Vegetation data were collected at every sampling plot once per year.

These data were compiled in support of the "Predicting the next high-impact insect invasion: Elucidating traits and factors determining the risk of introduced herbivorous insects on North American native plants" project supported by the U.S. Geological Survey John Wesley Powell Center for Analysis and Synthesis, as well as the "Forecasting high-impact insect invasions by integrating probability models with i-Tree from urban to continental scales" project supported by the USDA Forest Service National Urban and Community Forestry Advisory Council. The project working group compiled data for non-native, tree-feeding insects in North America. Data were synthesized from existing resources for a variety of insect traits, traits of their North American host plants, divergence time between the North American host species and the host species in the insects' native range, and native insects that feed on the same North American host as the non-native insect (co-evolved). This dataset supports analysis performed by the working group on quantifying host breadth and determining the drivers of non-native insect impact on North American tree species.

These data were compiled in support of the "Predicting the next high-impact insect invasion: Elucidating traits and factors determining the risk of introduced herbivorous insects on North American native plants" project supported by the U.S. Geological Survey John Wesley Powell Center for Analysis and Synthesis, as well as the "Forecasting high-impact insect invasions by integrating probability models with i-Tree from urban to continental scales" project supported by the USDA Forest Service National Urban and Community Forestry Advisory Council. The project working group compiled data for non-native, tree-feeding insects in North America. Data were synthesized from existing resources for a variety of insect traits, traits of their North American host plants, divergence time between the North American host species and the host species in the insects' native range, and native insects that feed on the same North American host as the non-native insect (co-evolved). This dataset supports analysis performed by the working group on quantifying host breadth and determining the drivers of non-native insect impact on North American tree species.

This data release includes sampling location identification and timing data as well as plant and insect pollinator taxonomic information in Conservation Reserve Program fields. Sampling took place during July and August of 2019. Fields were located on private land managed for the U.S.Department of Agriculture Conservation Reserve Program in eastern central Iowa, U.S.A.

This data release includes sampling location identification and timing data as well as plant and insect pollinator taxonomic information in Conservation Reserve Program fields. Sampling took place during July and August of 2019. Fields were located on private land managed for the U.S.Department of Agriculture Conservation Reserve Program in eastern central Iowa, U.S.A.

Potentially suitable habitat for the American burying beetle (Nicrophorus americanus) was identified within the Southern Plains. The American burying beetle (ABB) is listed as endangered under the Endangered Species Act, but in 2019 the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service proposed to reclassify this species as threatened. We applied a deductive model for the ABB that identified potentially suitable habitat using LANDFIRE Existing Vegetation Types (EVT). The habitat model ranked each EVT using one of four categories: (1) favorable; suitable vegetation to support all or critical portions of the ABB life cycle, (2) conditional; favorable only under certain conditions including seasonality of flooding and land management practices, (3) marginal; may provide limited habitat for portions of the ABB life cycle, or (4) unsuitable; does not provide habitat for any portion of the life cycle. We supplemented the habitat model with an ancillary dataset that mapped the estimated surface disturbance footprint from development (agriculture, transportation, urban, and energy and minerals). All cells ranked as favorable, conditional, or marginal were reclassified as unsuitable if any development was present. Source and derived raster datasets have a spatial resolution of 30 x 30 meters. The derived habitat suitability map indicates the location of potential ABB habitat based on EVT and development within the Southern Plains. Because additional factors can strongly affect ABB occurrence (including soil type, availability of carrion, management activities, seasonality of flooding, and climate), areas identified as favorable or conditional habitat may not be occupied by the ABB.