Community Diversity in Closed vs. Open Habitats in the Sagebrush Steppe

The sagebrush steppe ecosystems of southern Idaho are extremely diverse and include a variety of annual, perennial, and shrub plants, as well as species well-adapted for their specific niches. This ecosystem varies in openness created by differing amounts of shrub cover, which allows for complex community interactions between predator/prey utilizing differing strategies and amounts of cover. We aim to document the species composition and richness in different cover types (open and closed understories). We hypothesize that community composition and richness differ between closed and open areas, the more complex habitat will better support greater species richness and draw more ambushing predators. Data collection included placing field cameras in habitats with dense shrubbery, high-coverage annual grasses, and sparse perennial grasslands between January 23rd and March 31st. We analyzed the images of the species present during this time and their presence in closed or open areas. If composition varies between habitats, we expect to see more ambush predators and non-burrowing species utilizing dense shrublands, and burrowing species in open habitats. Our results could prompt future studies on species habitat adaptations and interactions, as well as further studies on diversity to indicate ecosystem health.