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Land-use and land-cover patterns, including their spatial heterogeneity and configuration, are fundamental in shaping landscape-level ecological processes, functions, and services. Despite growing recognition of the importance of these patterns, gaps remain in our understanding of how they influence the functional connectivity of ecosystem services (ES)—a crucial aspect for ecosystem resilience and sustainability. This research aims to bridge this gap by investigating the functional connectivity among multiple ES, such as pollination, carbon storage, soil erosion control, wetland-based ES such as habitat provisioning and water storage capacity from marshes, swamps, and open water wetlands, and agricultural food production within a complex landscape. We define functional connectivity as the extent to which the landscape facilitates or impedes the interactions and interdependencies of ecological processes that combine to create distinct ecosystem services. This definition encompasses the dynamics within a spatially interconnected mosaic of land use and land cover, exemplified by connections such as those from pollination provisioning areas to croplands. The primary goal of this research is to develop an empirical framework that encapsulates ‘network topological’ interactions— essentially, the complex interplay among various components of the ecosystem — specific to agricultural landscapes and then to apply this framework to the Canadian prairies. Our methodology uses the spatial tools including InVEST, ARIES, and GIS to map diverse ES. An ecological network is then constructed for these ES at the landscape scale, designating network nodes based on high-value ES provisioning areas and defining links between pairs of ES according to their functional connections (overlapping and proximal in physical space). These functional connections effectively delineate areas of the landscape where the majority of ES flows occur. Mapping ES connectivity and network building revealed

Western research methods and ideologies have been shown to be incompatible with Indigenous culture, imposing righteous perspectives of what needs fixing and how to fix it. Indigenous youth have been subjects of research centralized around physical activity, sport and recreation, revealing common participation barriers. Previous research shows dominant social practices in sport/physical activity, including barriers to involvement/engagement, the notion of development, and various impacts of overcoming stereotypes. However, scholars often avoid linking these contextual factors to the root causes of oppression contributing to participation and engagement. In the literature review, I outline ways in which information regarding Indigenous populations has, historically, been gathered, analyzed, and applied through a Western framework, highlighting the absence of subjectivity impartiality’s role in perpetuating the oppression of minority populations within research/academic and governmental institutions (Wilson, 2008; Young, 1990). Through storytelling and personal experience, this study uncovers successes and trials experienced by individuals involved in coaching/mentorship roles for First Nations youth within the Canadian prairie provinces. Four participants gathered virtually for a focus group surrounding experiences of inclusion, exclusion, and leadership, followed up with one-to-one interviews. Personal journaling includes documentation of the researcher's perspective and progression throughout the project. Critical Thematic Analysis is a way of examining data within the data by identifying statements or ideas that are repetitive and forceful (Lawless & Chen, 2019), and comparing them to larger themes or theories. Primary analysis focuses on Young's (1990) five faces of oppression: exploitation, marginalization, powerlessness, cultural imperialism, and violence. The focus group and interviews were examined for repetitive and forceful statements, with the lens of the f

Cette étude vise à la réactualisation documentée et sourcée du référentiel d'exportations de phosphore par les prairies. Elle a été conduite à la demande de la Direction de l'Alimentation, de l'Agriculture et de la Forêt de La Réunion (DAAF), la Chambre d'Agriculture, et les filières d'élevages de la Réunion dans une optique de redéfinition in fine des règles d'élaboration des plans d'épandages. Dans un premier temps, une synthèse des différentes études qui ont été menées, à partir de 1962, sur le sujet, a été réalisée. Dans un second temps, une démarche a été mise en oeuvre pour actualiser la gamme des exportations en P. Celle-ci s'appuie sur la définition d'une typologie des prairies réunionnaises, qui détermine des niveaux de productivité représentatifs des pratiques, en fonction de l'altitude et du niveau d'intensification. Pour chaque type de prairie de la typologie, il a été testé deux approches, en parallèle, pour définir une teneur en P du fourrage associé. La première méthode, est une approche classique, qui s'appuie sur l'analyse en P des parties aériennes des prairies faite au laboratoire du Cirad à La Réunion. La seconde méthode estime les teneurs en P à partir du niveau de rendement, et des équations de dilution de l'azote (N) et du P. Les deux approches qui ont été testées et présentées dans ce rapport aboutissent à des gammes d'exportations en P similaires à celles observées dans le cadre d'essais. C'est l'approche qui utilise les équations de dilution pour l'estimation des exportations qui apparaît comme la plus appropriée pour répondre à la demande des acteurs locaux.

Les contributions des prairies à la qualité de l'eau, à la biodiversité et à la lutte contre le réchauffement climatique, par le stockage du carbone, font désormais largement consensus dans le monde scientifique, mais ne sont pas toujours bien connues au-delà. Malgré la reconnaissance de l'ampleur des services écosystémiques attribués aux prairies et aux parcours, leurs surfaces continuent de régresser en Europe : la question de la rémunération de leurs services reste posée, notamment en Europe pour la prochaine PAC. Mais il n'y a pas de prairies sans élevages d'herbivores qui les valorisent, ni sans les productions de lait et de viande qui en découlent. Des controverses se sont imposées dans le débat public, tout particulièrement en Europe, concernant la place du lait et de la viande dans l'alimentation humaine, la consommation de ressources naturelles, les pollutions associées à cet élevage, notamment le méthane, et le bien-être animal… Face à des visions souvent globalisantes, mais en fait sectorielles et partielles, la séance de l'AAF du 26 mai 20211 sur les prairies et l'élevage des herbivores a eu pour objectif de mieux cerner les enjeux et leur rôle, pour une alimentation et une planète durable, par une approche globale, systémique, à différentes échelles : monde, Europe, France, Régions. À chaque niveau, il s'est agi de cerner leur très grande diversité, ainsi que les contributions positives et les impacts négatifs, mais aussi de proposer de nouveaux outils pour mieux valoriser cette diversité. Les principaux enseignements que l'on peut tirer de cette séance sont ici rassemblés autour d'une dizaine de mots clés (en italique dans les sous-titres).

The use of electromagnetic induction to map and monitor the salinity levels of soil and other soil properties such water content has been an important tool of modern agriculture for decades. The present study used an electromagnetic induction (EMI) sensor (i.e EM-38 meter) to conduct surveys at two locations in Manitoba in order to assess the salinity levels and distribution of the soils in these locations. These study sites are Prairies East Sustainable Agriculture Initiative (PESAI) at Arborg, and a research farm Hespler commercial farms in Winkler Southern Manitoba, Canada. At PESAI, the study investigated the impact of drain spacing on the salinity levels of heavy clay soil. At the Winkler site, we investigated the impact on soil salinity of four water management system designs which include irrigation and drainage. At the PESAI research site, drain tiles were installed at a depth of 0.9 m to 1.1 m in the north north-south direction with drain spacing from 15 ft (4.57m), 30 ft (9.14m) and 45 ft (13.72m). The control plot had no drain tiles installed. Similarly, at the Winkler research site, the research area was divided into four water management systems in order to characterize better the effects of these water management systems on the salinity of the soil. These water management systems included no drainage with no irrigation (NDNI), free drainage with overhead irrigation (FDIR), controlled drainage with subirrigation (CDSI), and no drainage with overhead irrigation (NDIR). The irrigation and drainage on these plots started in 2009 and irrigation was stopped in 2013. A total of 2648 ECa data were surveyed from Arborg whereas Winkler had total ECa 11,715. A total of 165 soil samples were taken from 33 separate locations in the two study sites and were taken to the laboratory for further soil analysis. The apparent electrical (ECa) data from the Arborg study was corrected for departure from low induction number (LIN) response. No LIN correction was required for

Maintaining the future sustainability of agriculture and ensuring soil security is of primary concern across Canada. Understanding the state of soil erosion and determining the vulnerable areas are essential measures in combatting future soil erosion and avoiding soil degradation. Therefore, the general goal of this thesis was to quantify soil erosion rates and develop an improved understanding of erosion processes within the Canadian Prairies. To fulfill the aim of the research project, typical agricultural and native prairie landscapes of the region were studied within three watersheds including the Red River Valley and the Broughton’s Creek watershed in Manitoba, and the Bigstone Creek watershed in Alberta. Initially, passive uni-directional wind erosion sediment samplers were employed to assess wind-eroded soil movement in agricultural lands of the Red River Valley. Cesium-137 (137Cs) measurements were conducted to quantify total soil loss and deposition rates within the wetland landscapes in the Broughton’s Creek and Bigstone Creek watersheds. In addition, soil and sediment properties were characterized to understand tillage-, water- and wind-induced sediment transport dynamics and distinguish between eroded and depositional zones. Landform classification maps of the studied wetland catchments were also created to assist developing sediment budgets of soil loss and accumulation, and quantify sediment flux rates from agricultural fields to wetland environments. Furthermore, soil erosion models were used to characterize spatial patterns of soil loss by tillage, water, and wind erosion and assess relative contribution of these processes towards total soil erosion. This study found that: i) Measured soil loss and sedimentation caused by wind erosion are very small in the Red River Valley. Moreover, abrasion of crops by wind-transported sediment was not observed in this study; ii) Using the measurements of 137Cs, average annual soil losses in cultivated fields were

La multiplication des sécheresses est un défi toujours plus grand pour les cultures fourragères bio.

Cette présentation a été réalisée lors d'une réunion portant sur la dose de phosphore autorisée dans le cadre des plans d'épandage à La Réunion, en présence du Cirad, de la DAAF, de la FRCA et de la chambre d'agriculture de La Réunion. Elle a été tenue le 11/09/2023, dans les locaux de la DAAF de Saint-Pierre de La Réunion.

Spring wheat is one of the most economically important crops grown on the Canadian prairies. Improvements in genetics and agronomy have resulted in higher yields obtained by producers, but have introduced challenges such as maintaining grain protein content and managing increased lodging risk. The objectives of this thesis research were to evaluate the effect of agronomic management practices such as N management, plant density, plant growth regulator (PGR) application and their interactions on spring wheat lodging risk, grain yield and protein content of spring wheat in the eastern Canadian prairies. This was done through two small plot field trials in south central Manitoba during the 2018 and 2019 growing seasons using cultivars common to, and widely grown across Manitoba. Early season N availability was critical for the development of yield components and allowed the crop to buffer against dry environmental conditions to produce grain protein. However, increased lodging risk associated with application of large amounts of N early in the season needs to be balanced with lodging management strategies. Low plant densities (150 plants m-2) and PGR applications improved the crop’s ability to resist lodging in this research. The lowest plant densities tested (150 plants m-2) allowed the crop to better resist both root and shoot lodging through increases in stem and anchorage strength and stem flexibility indicators compared to the highest densities tested (350 plants m-2). Low plant densities are often associated with decreased early season competitive ability against weeds and more variable crop maturity, neither of which are desirable. Therefore, the ability of PGRs to reduce lodging risk, through increased stem strength and reduced leverage, provides a critical tool for lodging management in spring wheat in regions with high yield potential and lodging pressure. Flexibility of application and yield increases, even in the absence of lodging, through increased kernel

Amid trends of privatization, financialization, and decreasing access to agricultural land, there is a call for more sustainable and equitable land tenure and access. In response, I present four cases as interventions into the story of private property in the Canadian prairies, asking how stakeholders negotiate the multiple and sometimes competing functions of agricultural land in economic development, food production, conserving and enhancing ecological resources, recreation, and reconciliation. In qualitative studies of a) persuasive stories used by respondents to government consultations on land ownership to foster change b) public responses to changes in trespassing legislation, c) conflict and collaboration among stakeholders managing land for agri-environmental goals in alternative grazing land tenure models and d) a network of settler landholders sharing land with Indigenous land users, I employ critical realism to analyse interviews and secondary data. I consider questions of rights and responsibilities to land, mechanisms of inclusion and exclusion from land, the public good, and the discourse and actions that challenge or legitimize land access/tenure practices and related policies/legislation. Each case also explores the possibility of different futures for land regimes based on changing social relations as people work to challenge or further entrench private property rights. Alternatives to private land ownership cultivate diverse relationships in relation to, and with, land and people.

Livestock grazing is often used as a land management tool to maximize vegetation diversity in grassland ecosystems worldwide. Prior research has shown that cattle grazing benefits native annual forb species in California's coastal prairies, but drought and increasing aridity may alter this relationship. In 2016 and 2017, we resurveyed the vegetation structure, native annual forb cover, and native annual forb richness in ten grazed and ungrazed prairies that were originally measured in 2000 and 2001 along a 200-km gradient from Monterey to Sonoma counties in California. We found that grazed prairies continued to have significantly lower vegetation height and thatch depth than ungrazed prairies, and that shrub encroachment over the 15-year period was significantly greater in ungrazed prairies. Furthermore, grazed prairies continued to have greater native annual forb richness (4.9 species per site) than ungrazed sites (3.0 species per site), but native annual forb richness declined by 2.8 species per site in grazed prairies and 0.1 species per site in ungrazed prairies between survey periods. We suggest that severe drought and increasing aridity may be driving declines in native annual forb richness in grazed prairies. The species we recorded only in earlier surveys were disproportionately wetland-associated and had higher average specific leaf area than species that remained through the second survey period. Finally, the cover of native annual species increased regardless of whether prairies were grazed, suggesting that the high precipitation in 2017 may have benefitted the native annual forb species that persisted at sites between surveys. Our study shows that weather conditions affect the outcomes of land management strategies.

An effective water management system is necessary to address global food shortages, water scarcity, and increasing climate extremes. Southern Manitoba is a major crop production area with highly productive soils, flat topography, and seasonally high water table. The objectives of this research were to (i) determine the impacts of controlled drainage (CD), free drainage (FD), and no drainage (ND) on canola yield and quality, (ii) simulate water table depth (WTD) under canola production using the DRAINMOD model, (iii) evaluate the potential impacts of climate change on the hydrology and canola yield using the DRAINMOD model and (iv) assess the performance of the standard ET model under limiting conditions and fourteen empirical ET models in the region. The result shows large differences in yield between the years, suggesting that canola yield is significantly influenced by weather variables. In 2019 with normal average temperature and rainfall close to the long-term average, CD plots consistently yielded higher yields than FD and ND, with a significant difference with FD. As rainfall decreased and temperature increased in the following years, the impact of drainage, especially CD, becomes diminished, with no significant differences between the treatments. Also, the prevailing weather may have masked the oil quality parameters and nutrient dynamics across the soil profile, as there were no significant differences between the treatments. The WTD collected from the PESAI (Prairies East Sustainable Agriculture Initiative) site in Arborg was used to test the ability of the DRAINMOD model to predict WTD using the 2019 and 2020 canola growing seasons. Statistical analysis and graphical plots showed close agreement between the measured and simulated WTD. Economic analysis using the simulation results suggests that the 10 m drain spacing maximized the return on investment. The parameterized DRAINMOD model was thereafter run with downscaled climate model projections from CANESM

Tallgrass prairies are diverse ecosystems spread across the Midwest. Due to human activities such as farming and urban development, these prairies are now rare in their authentic form. The focus of this study is on the tallgrass prairies of Southwest Illinois. Prairie conservation efforts have engaged in various reconstruction projects, aiming to encourage and reestablish lost tallgrass prairie ecosystems. The objective of this study was to evaluate the effect of post-planting maintenance methods on coverage and biodiversity of native and invasive species within early-stage reconstructed tallgrass prairies in urban parks of southern Illinois. Evaluated variables included: total and individual species cover, plant type category, plant classification, species diversity, and community evenness in relation to management methods of annual mowing, manual weeding, and biannual prescribed burning. Results show total percent cover by management method is nonsignificant, but cover by plant type category revealed forb and grass cover to be significant for manually weeded beds in comparison to biannually burned and annually mowed beds. Similarly, manually weeded beds promoted the highest cover by planted native species whereas cover by invasive species was highest within annually mowed treatment beds. In conclusion, results suggest future promotion of grass species across all observed prairie systems due to their lack of presence in relation to native forbs. Manual weeding was most influential on native species flourishment, and in combating invasive species in relation to other treatments. Although, manual weeding is not always efficient and successful alone as a maintenance practice, therefore the use of long-term adaptive techniques is recommended.

Les écosystèmes des prairies occupent plus de 40% des terres émergées de la Terre, et ce dans des contextes édapho-climatiques variés. Leur fonctionnement et leur compréhension sont essentiels dans le contexte du changement climatique et de l'augmentation de la demande mondiale en produits alimentaires d'origine animale. De précédentes expérimentations à long terme menées sur plus de 10 ans ont montré que l'application répétée sur plusieurs années d'engrais organiques et minéraux avait un impact sur les performances agronomiques et environnementales des prairies. Ces effets long-termes ne sont pas suffisamment documentés en ce qui concerne les prairies tropicales. Ainsi, pour évaluer les effets agronomiques et environnementaux à long terme de différents types de fertilisation organique et/ou minérale des prairies tropicales de l'île de la Réunion, un dispositif expérimental de fertilisation a été réalisé sur une période de 15 années sur des prairies tropicales composées majoritairement de graminées tropicales sur des sols sableux et des prairies tempérées d'altitudes composées majoritairement graminées tempérées sur des sols volcaniques. Cependant, les expérimentations aux champs montrent leurs limites dans leur singularité, en particulier les expériences à long terme. Ainsi, complémentairement l'utilisation de modèles mécanistes et leur paramétrage sont importants pour étudier le fonctionnement des écosystèmes dans un contexte plus large. Nous avons donc utilisé les données de l'expérience in-situ pour paramétrer le modèle tempéré PASIM aux conditions tropicales observées à la Réunion. Le dispositif expérimental a montré les effets in-situ de ces fertilisations sur le statut nutritif et le carbone organique du sol. La fertilisation minérale montre une partie de ses limites sur la production fourragère et le stockage du carbone, en considérant son application sur le long terme, les bénéfices agronomiques s'estompant et les bénéfices environnementaux restant limités.

Dehesas (i.e., substeppic prairies with Quercus suber) represent a poorly studied Mediterranean habitat type of high eco-biogeographic interest. Here, we applied a point-transect method along a yearly cycle (from spring to autumn), to focus on seasonal differences in bird assemblages inhabiting a Dehesas landscape in north-western Sardinia (Italy). We confirmed the presence of Mediterranean species with restricted ranges (e.g. Sturnus unicolor, Sylvia sarda). At the community level, seasonal patterns show significant differences among mean abundance, with a maximum in autumn and a minimum in summer. The highest values in autumn may be explained by the aggregations of wintering small passerines. Considering the univariate metrics of diversity, the number of species significantly differs among seasons, with the richest community in spring. Shannon-Wiener diversity and Margalef (normalized richness) were higher in spring and summer compared to autumn. Habitat heterogeneity of these landscape mosaics, driven by historical agro-pastoral practices (fires and pastures), together with the presence of patchy 'key structures', positively affects bird species richness and abundance, improving, respectively, the number of niches and resources. More resource effort should be devoted to study these habitat types recently interested in an increased anthropogenic pressure (urban sprawl and road infrastructures, location of wind power plants, etc.).&nbsp

Plusieurs centaines de faons et de jeunes lièvres meurent chaque année en Suisse lors de la fauche des prairies. Quelles mesures peuvent empêcher cela?

Author Posting. © American Geophysical Union, 2021. This article is posted here by permission of American Geophysical Union for personal use, not for redistribution. The definitive version was published in Water Resources Research 57(7), (2021): e2020WR028727, https://doi.org/10.1029/2020WR028727., Numerous wetlands in the prairies of Canada provide important ecosystem services, yet are threatened by climate and land-use changes. Understanding the impacts of climate change on prairie wetlands is critical to effective conservation planning. In this study, we construct a wetland model with surface water balance and ecoregions to project future distribution of wetlands. The climatic conditions downscaled from the Weather Research and Forecasting model were used to drive the Noah-MP land surface model to obtain surface water balance. The climate change perturbation is derived from an ensemble of general circulation models using the pseudo global warming method, under the RCP8.5 emission scenario by the end of 21st century. The results show that climate change impacts on wetland extent are spatiotemporally heterogenous. Future wetter climate in the western Prairies will favor increased wetland abundance in both spring and summer. In the eastern Prairies, particularly in the mixed grassland and mid-boreal upland, wetland areas will increase in spring but experience enhanced declines in summer due to strong evapotranspiration. When these effects of climate change are considered in light of historical drainage, they suggest a need for diverse conservation and restoration strategies. For the mixed grassland in the western Canadian Prairies, wetland restoration will be favorable, while the highly drained eastern Prairies will be challenged by the intensified hydrological cycle. The outcomes of this study will be useful to conservation agencies to ensure that current investments will continue to provide good conservation returns in the future., Z. Zhang was funded by a Mitacs Accelerate Fellowship funded by Ducks Unlimited Canada's Institute for Wetland and Waterfowl Research. Z. Zhang, Z. Li, and Y. Li acknowledge the financial support from the Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council of Canada (NSERC) Discovery Grant, and Global Water Futures Program, Canada First Research Excellence Fund. This project was supported by grants from Wildlife Habitat Canada, Bass Pro Shops Cabela’s Outdoor Fund, and the Alberta NAWMP Partnership., 2021-12-21

La valorisation des travaux analytiques conduits par le CIRAD sur l'île de la Réunion au cours de la période 2005 à 2012 a permis de préciser les fournitures en azote associées à la minéralisation de l'azote organique en l'absence d'apport d'azote exogène (témoins 0N). Quatre contextes pédoclimatiques sont décrits en intégrant différentes altitudes et pluviométries. A l'échelle de l'année, le prélèvement d'azote par la prairie associé à la minéralisation de l'azote du sol dépasse les 200 kg N/ha/an. Sur le littoral, ce prélèvement varie de 200 à 380 kg N/ha/an. A 1 600 m d'altitude, il varie de 170 à 280 kg N/ha/an. Ces quantités d'azote disponibles pour le couvert doivent être prises en compte dans les prévisions de fertilisation en lien notamment avec les profils de croissance de l'herbe observés à La Réunion. La variabilité observée sur les différents sites renforce la nécessité de compléter ces données par de nouvelles références issues de sites complémentaires et de les intégrer dans un modèle de prévision.

Microbial symbionts inhabiting the digestive tract of ruminants contribute to a wide range of metabolic functions essential for the survival of host. However, abrupt changes in the composition of diet can adversely affect the composition of these microbial communities, leading to metabolic disorders that could compromise the performance of the animals. Development of frothy bloat following exposure of over-wintered steers to legume pastures and impairment of ruminal fermentation as a result of feeding high-grain diets are common metabolic disorders affecting beef cattle in Canadian Prairies. Mitigation strategies to control these metabolic conditions are mainly based on dietary interventions, providing moderate protection to cattle. Understanding the contribution of microbiota to development of these metabolic conditions would pave the way towards implementing more effective strategies. In the first experiment of this thesis, the effects of supplementing the probiotic strain Propionibacterium acidipropionici P169 on the microbiota and metabolic profile of feedlot cattle receiving a high-grain diet were evaluated. Overall, the data suggest that P169 confers its beneficial effect via favoring the growth of cellulolytic bacteria, thus inhibiting the overgrowth of amylolytic bacteria and subsequent drop in the ruminal pH. In the second experiment, dynamics of rumen microbiota during development of frothy bloat and following administration of mitigating strategies was characterized (i.e., use of mixed alfalfa and sainfoin pasture and supplementing drinking water with Alfasure™). The data suggest that rapid proliferation of amylolytic bacteria following consumption of alfalfa contribute to development of frothy bloat. Dietary interventions used in this study prevented the development of clinal bloat, increased the proportions of cellulolytic bacteria, and alleviated bloat-associated dysbiosis in the composition of rumen microbiota. Finally, the third study evaluated the i

Blackleg, caused by the fungal pathogen Leptosphaeria maculans, is a serious threat to canola (Brassica napus L.) production in western Canada. In recent years, new pathogen races have reduced the effectiveness of some of the resistant cultivars deployed. Strategic deployment and rotation of major resistance genes in cultivars has been used in France and Australia to help increase the longevity of blackleg resistance. Canada introduced a grouping system in 2017 to identify blackleg resistance genes in canola cultivars. The goal of this research was to examine and validate the concept of major resistance gene deployment through monitoring the avirulence profile of L. maculans population and disease levels in commercial canola fields within the Canadian prairies. Blackleg disease incidence and severity was collected from 146 cultivars from 53 sites across Manitoba, Saskatchewan, and Alberta in 2018 and 2019, and the results varied significantly between resistance gene groups, which is influenced by the pathogen population. Isolates collected from spring and fall stubble residues were examined for the presence of Avr alleles AvrLm1, AvrLm2, AvrLm3, AvrLm4, AvrLm5, AvrLm6, AvrLm7, AvrLm9, AvrLm10, AvrLm11, AvrLepR1, AvrLepR2, AvrLep3, and AvrLmS using a set of differential host genotypes carrying known resistance genes or PCR based markers. The Simpson’s evenness index was very low, due to two dominant L. maculans races (AvrLm2-4-5-6-7-10-11 and AvrLm2-5-6-7-10-11) in representing 49% of the population, but diversity of the population was high from the 35 L. maculans races isolated in Manitoba. AvrLm6 and AvrLm11 were found in all 254 L. maculans isolates collected in Manitoba and over 90% of isolates collected in Alberta contained AvrLm5, AvrLm6, and AvrLm7. Knowledge of the blackleg disease levels in relation to the resistance genes deployed, along with the L. maculans avirulence profile helps to measure the effectiveness of genetic resistance and the use of this mana

Near Sherman's Hill from meadow. Trees along fence with building off to right.

Cutworms can cause serious damage to crops in the Prairies Ecozone of southern Manitoba, Saskatchewan, and Alberta. By far, the best-known biocontrol agents of pest cutworms are parasitoids. However, the community of parasitoids is poorly known, and parasitoids remain as an unutilized resource for controlling cutworms. Thus, this study is designed to identify the economically important cutworms, to characterize the taxonomy and biology of the parasitoid community attacking those cutworm species in relationships to cutworm biology, and to identify and characterize potential plant resources that can enhance pest control services of parasitoids in the Prairies. Cutworms, including redbacked, darksided, dingy, and army cutworms were collected from infested fields and reared in the laboratory conditions during 2012-2016. Hymenopteran parasitoids emerged from cutworms were 64% Encyrtidae, 23% Ichneumonidae, and 13% Braconidae. The percent parasitized by each species was below 10% throughout the study period. Copidosoma bakeri and Copidosoma cuproviridis were the two Encyrtidae species recorded according to their original descriptions, but data obtained from their morphology, morphometry, genetic, collection locality, and host data support did not provide support for two species and new revision for this genus is needed. C. bakeri was the most common parasitoid recorded in the Prairies, and 89.1 % of hymenopteran parasitoids recorded from Manitoba were C. bakeri. Thus, C. bakeri was the only species capable of controlling cutworms in Manitoba. In contrast, both Cotesia spp. and C. bakeri were parasitizing cutworm communities in Alberta. All other hymenopteran parasitoids were recorded in small numbers or recorded only once during the study period. Finally, I assessed potential cover crops that could provide resources to parasitoids with respect to buckwheat, camelina, canola, chickling vetch, field pennycress, flax, oriental mustard, phacelia, and tillage radish and found

Depuis quelques années, l’évolution de la fertilité minérale des terres agricoles inquiète les agronomes des laboratoires d’analyses provinciaux. La 3ème synthèse de la base de données « sols » de Requasud, publiée en 2012, mettait déjà en évidence une diminution très importante de la teneur en potassium des sols de prairies en Haute Ardenne et en Région Herbagère, et une augmentation quasi généralisée des teneurs en magnésium. Le rapport K/Mg moyen est inférieur à 1 dans la majorité des régions alors que l’optimum se situe entre 1 et 2.

Les prairies temporaires et les engrais verts sont importants dans les rotations culturales de toutes les fermes bio. On peut aussi détruire et incorporer cette masse verte sans labourer.

La fauche des prairies représente un grand danger pour les animaux sauvages. Non seulement les faons et les jeunes lièvres sont menacés, mais aussi des milliers d'insectes.

Les prairies fleuries fleurissent très tôt cette année à cause des chaleurs du printemps. En plaine, la plupart d’entre elles seront fauchées dans quelques semaines. Le moment est donc idéal pour mettre en place ou revaloriser ces précieuses îles de biodiversité en utilisant la méthode dite du semis de fleur de foin ou celle de l’utilisation du produit de la fauche sur d'autres surfaces.

In Canada, land registries fall within provincial governments’ jurisdiction and therefore, approaches to management vary across the country. A trend of privatization has occurred in some provinces, marking changes in how governments approach the management of their land registries. Research on land administration and management of public services has not included thorough examination of the levels of accessibility of land registry data to the public. While there are some members of the general public who can efficiently access data, others face challenges when seeking to acquire data for various public interest purposes. This multiple case study analysis centres on the Canadian prairies where provincial governments’ decisions regarding land registries are developing within a context of modernizing public services. Through semi-structured interviews with 21 individuals and document analysis of various resources including Hansard records, I seek to explore the political economy of land registry management and the inclusion of the private sector in modernization and service delivery. I highlight the streamlining of services according to lawyer-centric systems and products, which have developed based on an orientation towards creating, improving and marketing services towards professionals in legal, real estate and financial sectors. I connect this trend to the evolving commercialization and marketization of land registries occurring in cases where private sector service providers (in partnership with provincial governments) are leveraging data to generate capital for shareholders and owners. In doing so, the “public” nature of land registry data is challenged and compromised. Based on these developments, I usefully discuss the implications of lawyer-centric systems on the accessibility of data to members of the public who do not fit within the mainstream category of clientele, but maintain a right and hold valid interests in accessing public land registry data.

East of the Continental Divide in the cold interior of Western Canada, the Mackenzie and Nelson River basins have some of the world's most extreme and variable climates, and the warming climate is changing the landscape, vegetation, cryosphere, and hydrology. Available data consist of streamflow records from a large number (395) of natural (unmanaged) gauged basins, where flow may be perennial or temporary, collected either year-round or during only the warm season, for a different series of years between 1910 and 2012. An annual warm-season time window where observations were available across all stations was used to classify (1) streamflow regime and (2) seasonal trend patterns. Streamflow trends were compared to changes in satellite Normalized Difference Indices. Clustering using dynamic time warping, which overcomes differences in streamflow timing due to latitude or elevation, identified 12 regime types. Streamflow regime types exhibit a strong connection to location; there is a strong distinction between mountains and plains and associated with ecozones. Clustering of seasonal trends resulted in six trend patterns that also follow a distinct spatial organization. The trend patterns include one with decreasing streamflow, four with different patterns of increasing streamflow, and one without structure. The spatial patterns of trends in mean, minimum, and maximum of Normalized Difference Indices of water and snow (NDWI and NDSI) were similar to each other but different from Normalized Difference Index of vegetation (NDVI) trends. Regime types, trend patterns, and satellite indices trends each showed spatially coherent patterns separating the Canadian Rockies and other mountain ranges in the west from the poorly defined drainage basins in the east and north. Three specific areas of change were identified: (i) in the mountains and cold taiga-covered subarctic, streamflow and greenness were increasing while wetness and snowcover were decreasing, (ii) in t

In Grasslands Grown Molly P. Rozum explores the two related concepts of regional identity and sense of place by examining a single North American ecological region: the U.S. Great Plains and the Canadian Prairie Provinces. All or parts of modern-day Alberta, Montana, Saskatchewan, North Dakota, South Dakota, and Manitoba form the center of this transnational region. As children, the first postconquest generation of northern grasslands residents worked, played, and traveled with domestic and wild animals, which introduced them to ecology and shaped sense-of-place rhythms. As adults, members of this generation of settler society worked to adapt to the northern grasslands by practicing both agricultural diversification and environmental conservation. Rozum argues that environmental awareness, including its ecological and cultural aspects, is key to forming a sense of place and a regional identity. The two concepts overlap and reinforce each other: place is more local, ecological, and emotional-sensual, and region is more ideational, national, and geographic in tone. This captivating study examines the growth of place and regional identities as they took shape within generations and over the life cycle.

Throughout southwestern Kansas thousands of acres of native grassland have been converted to cropland for agricultural use, reducing native prairie by over 60% in the sandsage prairie. Due to low precipitation and arid conditions, much of these croplands are irrigated by center pivot irrigation systems fed by the Ogallala Aquifer. These fields are abandoned when the aquifers dry up, resulting in erosion of the unused farmland. Conservation programs such as the Conservation Reserve Enhancement Program (CREP) were established to address this problem but have been unsuccessful in restoring native grasslands in abandoned croplands in southwestern Kansas. We hypothesized that insect larvae infestation could be instrumental in the lack of vegetation establishment success. To address this, we investigated whether insecticide use would result in higher seedling survival and plant cover of native grasses. Using a custom seed mixture, we planted three strip plots in an abandoned center pivot located in Kearny County, Kansas and measured seed establishment and canopy cover in two transects per strip plot. The strip plots were divided into halves, with one half sprayed with insecticide and the other half used as a control. We found marginally significant difference in average median seed counts between unsprayed and sprayed plots, with sprayed plots having greater seedling counts. We also found significant difference in Total Plant cover and Planted Grass cover, with more Total Plant cover and Planted Grass cover in sprayed plots. We found that Pivot soil had greater amounts of carbon than Native soil. In 2020, we planted a total of three new strip plots in two new sites in Kearny County, Kansas, with the intent to evaluate which of three different frames worked better for seed counting – A small frame (20 cm x 50 cm), a larger frame (one m x one m), and a three-meter tract of seed row. We found a significant difference between the three frame types, but only the small frame

Présentation de mélanges de semences pour réussir ses cultures fourragères dans le contexte du changement climatique. Aperçu de la stratégie fourragère de deux fermes bio au Jura.

Temperature plays a key role in the physiology of aquatic ectotherms. Northern Crayfish (Faxonius virilis) are a keystone freshwater macroinvertebrate found in North America from Oklahoma to Manitoba and therefore are subjected to a wide variety of water temperatures. The current study investigates the thermal physiology of F. virilis across a wide range of temperatures between 5C to 25C for 14 days and to acute heat stress. The animals’ routine and maximum oxygen consumption (MO2) and associated hemolymph acid-base parameters were assessed. Additionally, MO2 and metabolically produced ammonia was measured in isolated gill tissue. Warmer temperatures resulted in predictable increases in the animal’s ammonia excretion rates and MO2. Notably, the isolated gill tissue of F. virilis had 4-14 times higher rates of oxygen consumption compared to the whole animal, signifying its importance for respiration. Hemolymph measurements resulted in a significant pH and [HCO3-] decrease at higher temperatures, suggesting a metabolic acidosis. Acute exposure to a +5C increase relative to baseline conditions caused a significant increase in ammonia excretion rates and MO2 in both the whole animal and isolated gill tissue. Crayfish acclimated to 5C resulted in drastically different physiological outcomes compared to warmer acclimated crayfish, signifying a reduced metabolic state. Overall, F. virilis is capable of rapid adjustments to oxygen consumption, excretion, and associated hemolymph parameters needed to respond to heat stress of +5C for 6 hours, and demonstrates a high degree of plasticity to temperatures between 5C and 25C.

Les services écosystémiques résultent du fonctionnement des écosystèmes et sont fondamentaux au bien-être des sociétés humaines. Le maintien de ces services étant aujourd'hui menacé, il devient crucial de développer des indicateurs pour mieux les évaluer et in fine prioriser les actions de conservation. Le présent travail visait à calculer et analyser des indicateurs de délivrance de ces services par les prairies. Structurés en arbres d'agrégation, ils sont basés uniquement sur des critères de végétation et des relevés botaniques d'abondance d'espèces. Ils ont été construits à partir de la littérature et leur calcul fait intervenir un outil d'analyse multicritère, TATALE. Ces choix expriment une volonté de rendre le calcul de ces indicateurs simple et applicable à une large échelle spatiale et sur diverses échelles temporelles. Ainsi les indicateurs de 5 services écosystémiques différents ont pu être calculé sur des relevés localisés en France : " Approvisionnement en fourrage ", " Conservation de la diversité ", " Robustesse de la communauté végétale à l'aléa ", " Souplesse d'exploitation des prairies " et " Fourniture d'azote à la végétation ". Nous avons montré que la méthode utilisée parvient à condenser une partie de l'information véhiculée par les critères de végétation, en un score représentatif des fonctions écosystémiques de la communauté végétale d'intérêt. Cependant la démarche utilisée est critiquable sur plusieurs points qui sont la gestion des données manquantes et la fiabilité des données disponibles. Malgré ces biais et ces incertitudes, ce premier travail a permis d'obtenir un outil d'évaluation et d'aide à la décision dans un contexte écologique où les besoins de l'homme restent centraux dans l'évaluation des écosystèmes.

Les prairies fournissent à l'Homme de nombreux services écosystémiques. Cependant, il reste toujours difficile de les évaluer précisément et simplement. Le projet PESI a pour objectif d'évaluer le potentiel de ces services écosystémiques rendus, à partir de la seule composition floristique des prairies. Dans le cadre du projet PESI soutenu par le programme EcoSERV de l'INRA, des indicateurs ont été construits en 2018. En 2019, l'objectif a été de construire différentes bases de données afin de calculer ces indicateurs puis de les valider en les comparants avec des données observées. Les indicateurs de production de fourrage ont été validés dans les limites des conditions climatiques testées. Certains facteurs climatiques n'étant pas pris en compte en conditions réelles, les indicateurs pourraient prédire seulement le potentiel de production de la prairie, et non la production réelle. Les indicateurs de pollinisation, quant à eux, n'ont pas été validés, en raison de la possibilité d'un mauvais choix des critères de l'arbre et de la non-considération de la structure du paysage et de la gestion de la prairie. Des études approfondies sur la construction des indicateurs seront nécessaires pour évaluer plus précisément les services écosystémiques par les prairies.

Les prairies fleuries sont un élément important de la promotion de la biodiversité sur les terres cultivées. Malheureusement, la qualité écologique de nombreuses prairies extensives est insuffisante. L'ensemencement de fleurs de foin permet à faible coût d'améliorer la diversité botanique et génétique d'une prairie ou de créer une nouvelle prairie fleurie adaptée à l'endroit.

Owing to years of Indigenous lobbying, organizing, and scholarship, recent decades have seen growing engagement with Indigenous peoples and their knowledges in environmental management, policy-making, and research around climate change. In Canada, there has been increasing partnerships between researchers and Indigenous communities to collaborate on documenting impacts and responses to climate change and co-producing knowledge to inform policy. While most of this work has been undertaken in the Arctic, there has been little research documenting Indigenous perspectives on climate change in the Canadian Prairies. This thesis aims to address this gap by documenting and communicating Indigenous understandings, experiences, and responses to climate change in seven communities across the Prairies. The research process was primarily guided by and evolved from the vision of the community of Turtle Lodge - an Indigenous education centre in Sagkeeng First Nation, Manitoba – to convene an Indigenous-led, cross-cultural dialogue on climate solutions. Through a process of Indigenous community-based research, the project employed interviews, talking circles, participant observation, and participatory video methods that were designed to support and honour the unique epistemological considerations required when documenting Indigenous knowledge and sharing across cultures. The results illustrate that while communities across the Prairies are being impacted by cumulative effects of climate change and other colonial stressors, many are bringing forward environmental solutions that further their social well-being and self-determination. Through diverse community-led actions – such as community-owned renewable energy projects, land-based education programs, cross-cultural conversations on climate, and ceremony – communities are reconnecting with their traditional knowledges, cultures, spiritualities, and lands, and leading solutions with broader benefits for the earth and humanity. Impo

Gustave Aimard (1818-1883) "Deux mois se sont écoulés. Nous sommes dans le désert. Devant nous se déroule l’immensité. Quelle plume assez éloquente oserait entreprendre de décrire ces incommensurables océans de verdure auxquels les Américains du Nord ont, dans leur langage imagé, donné le nom poétique et mystérieux de Far West (Ouest lointain), c’est-à-dire la région inconnue par excellence, aux aspects à la fois grandioses et saisissants, doux et terribles, prairies sans bornes, dans lesquelles on trouve cette flore riche, puissante, échevelée et d’une vigueur de production contre laquelle l’Inde seule peut lutter ? Ces plaines n’offrent d’abord à l’œil ébloui du voyageur téméraire qui ose s’y hasarder qu’un vaste tapis de verdure émaillé de fleurs, sillonné par de larges rivières, et paraissent d’une régularité désespérante, se confondant à l’horizon avec l’azur du ciel. Ce n’est que peu à peu, lorsque la vue s’habitue à ce tableau, que, quittant l’ensemble pour les détails, on distingue çà et là des collines assez élevées, les bords escarpés des cours d’eau, enfin mille accidents imprévus qui rompent agréablement cette monotonie dont le regard est d’abord attristé, et que les hautes herbes et les gigantesques productions de la flore cachent complètement. Comment énumérer les produits de cette nature primitive, qui s’élancent, se heurtent, se croisent et s’entrelacent à l’infini, décrivant des paraboles majestueuses, formant des arcades grandioses et complétant enfin le plus splendide et le plus sublime spectacle qu’il soit donné à l’homme d’admirer par ses éternels contrastes et ses harmonies saisissantes ?" Suite de "Le chercheur de pistes". L'infernale poursuite continue...

Pour son premier recueil, Sébastien Rock s’est inspiré de la démesure des Prairies, de leurs ciels majestueux et des petites surprises qui nourrissent son quotidien dans une ville aux dimensions encore très humaines. excursion scolaire les passereaux piaillent plus que les élèves bleu blanc jaune un parhélie tracé dans un ciel ouvert

D'un point de vue des sauterelles, la fauche représente une transformation fulgurante de leur forêt flamboyante en un désert. Plus la fauche est radicale, plus les effets sont néfastes pour les résidents des prairies.

The Kasota Prairie is located in Le Sueur County, Mn. It begins around the little village of Kasota and ends near Mankato, largely bordering the Minnesota River. Although it is small in size, it is the home to one of the remaining tall grass prairies in the state and the site of two of the nation’s largest limestone and sandstone mining operations. The environmental history of these seemingly opposing landscapes is discussed in this book.