The Olympic Peninsula Audubon Society offers a free Zoom presentation on “Wildfire, Habitat Recovery, and the Greater Sage-Grouse” at 7 p.m. Wednesday, June 16.

Presented by Dr. Lizz Schulyer of Oregon State University, the event is available by going online at tinyurl.com/OPASgrouse.

Although wildfire is a natural process in sagebrush ecosystems, fire severity and frequency have changed substantially in recent years, program organizers note. The interaction between fire suppression, certain land management practices, and the invasion of non-native grasses has led to an increase in the frequency of wildfires that has significant impacts on sage-brush dependent species such as the Greater Sage-Grouse.

Grouse are members of the bird family that includes quail, turkeys, chickens and pheasants.

Schulyer has been studying the effects of a large scale wildfire on Greater Sage-Grouse in the Trout Mountains of Oregon and Nevada. She is a veteran of many field seasons, studying how habitat disturbances and climate influence population dynamics of harvestable species such as deer and grouse.

For more about the Olympic Peninsula Audubon Society, visit olympicpeninsula audubon.org.