Ecostate Maps and the SageCon Landscape Planning Tool

Threat-Based Ecostate Maps apply the power of satellite imagery and machine learning to the concepts of Threat-Based Land Management.

Threat-Based Ecostate Maps provide a spatial depiction of sagebrush rangeland condition across public and private land in eastern Oregon and across the sagebrush biome. Ecostate maps are based on the principles of Threat-Based Land Management (Johnson et al 2019) as a framework to identify and address the primary large scale drivers of ecosystem change in the northern Great Basin: invasive annual grasses, conifer encroachment, and wildfire. Change over time is captured from circa 1990 to present, with map updates each year.

Data access and summarization tools:

As of July 2024, ecostate maps version 4 have been released and are available across the entire sagebrush biome! View the most recent (2021-2023) map and many other datasets through the SageCon Landscape Planning Tool, and harness the power of the time series using the Ecostate Summarization Tool function, which produces tables and charts summarizing ecostates for a customized, user-defined area of interest and time frame. Find out more and access the updated data from the ‘How to access’ section of the Ecostate Storymap.

The Institute for Natural Resources has updated our Threat Based Ecostate Maps to version 4. Ecostate maps provide a generalized snapshot of rangeland condition and trend based on ecosystem-level threats from invasive annual grasses, wildfire, and conifer encroachment. Based on conversations with partners and following an accuracy assessment using field-based data, we are making some small changes to the maps, outlined below. It is important to note that version 4 of the Ecostate Maps will not be compatible/comparable to earlier versions due to the ruleset changes – be sure to re-download or re-summarize ecostate maps if you have used ecostate maps prior to July 2024. 

Ecostate maps can still be viewed and summarized over time in the SageCon Landscape Planning Tool, within Oregon and across the sagebrush biome (note that the ecostate summarization tool will be updated with these new maps in early August). See the ecostate storymap for more details and information on how to download the maps, and stay tuned for an upcoming OSU extension publication.  Contact Dylan O’Leary (dylan.oleary@oregonstate.edu) or Megan Creutzburg (megan.creutzburg@oregonstate.edu) with questions or feedback. 

Threat Based Ecostate Maps Update

Version 4

Version 4 changes: 

  • Ecostate maps are now available across the sagebrush biome for all available years (1989-2023), and rangelands across the biome can be analyzed using the ecostate summarization tool within the SageCon Landscape Planning Tool (see below). Ecostate maps were developed to capture sagebrush systems in southeastern Oregon; use caution when applying these maps outside of the northern Great Basin and outside of areas of current or historic sagebrush steppe.  

  • Shrub cover threshold increase from 10% to 12% for all shrubland categories (A, A-C, and C) to improve overall accuracy and account for recent overestimation of shrub cover in the underlying datasets. After testing in multiple locations, 12% was chosen as the threshold that maximized map accuracy and captured known trends. As always, recognize that thresholds used in these maps are imperfect across the highly variable sagebrush ecosystem. 

  • Slightly different color scheme to better convey the relationships between ecostates, in particular changing state B-D to a color more similar to B. An alternative visualization option (in a layer file available upon request) may be more conducive for users with common types of colorblindness. 

  • Juniper: low-mid cover & Juniper: high cover renamed to Trees: low-mid cover & Trees: high cover to reflect the fact that these ecostates cover all areas with trees, not just juniper. Also note that a new Conifer Threat Map is available on the Landscape Planning Tool to complement the ecostate map with more information in areas with conifer encroachment. 

  • Forests and woodlands will no longer be masked out. Instead, they will be included in the Trees: high cover category. Areas excluded from mapping are urban, agriculture, and barren areas. 

  • Simplified attributes table for ease of use.