- Carlson, D. H. and T. L. Thurow. 1992. SPUR91: Workbook and User Guide.
- MP-1743. TAES and USDA-SCS. 259pp.
- Hanson, J. D., B. B. Baker, and R. D. Bourdon. 1992. SPUR2: Documentation and User Guide.
- GPSR Tech. Rep. 1. USDA-ARS. 24pp.
- Wight, J. R. and J. W. Skiles, eds. 1987. SPUR: Documentation and User Guide.
- ARS 63. USDA-ARS. 372pp.
SPUR Version 2.4 will be released in 1997. Previous releases
of SPUR have included a foraging module and a cow/calf model
(Hanson et al. 1992). The newly revised model includes all
of the changes, corrections, and additions from SPUR91
(Carlson and Thurow 1992), and the soil organic matter submodel
from CENTURY (Foy 1993, Parton et al. 1992).
SPUR2.4 is currently being validated using 30 years of data from
experimental ranches in the north Texas Rolling Plains. Field
data from three additional sites in Texas have been used to verify
the efficacy of the new model compared to SPUR91.
These modelling exercises will be included in the written
documentation, along with detailed steps for parameterizing, running,
and interpreting output from SPUR2.4.
- Foy, J. K. 1993. Soil organic matter changes as a function of
stocking rate and grazing system under
- different climate
regimes for the Central Plains Experimental Range.
M. S. Thesis. Rangeland Ecosystem Science. CSU, Ft. Collins,
CO. 85pp.
- Parton, W. J., B. McKeown, V. Kirchner, and D. S. Ojima. 1992.
Users guide for the CENTURY model.
- Natural Resource Ecology
Laboratory, CSU, Ft. Collins, CO. 35pp.
Validation of SPUR continues in the Rolling Plains of Texas using
field data from the Waggoner Project. The W. T. Waggoner Estate
and the USDA National Resource Initiative are jointly funding a
long-term study of managed rangelands. This private-public
research effort evaluates sustainable grazing management strategies
that limit woody plant populations without recurring chemical and
mechanical control inputs. Rotational resting and grazing allow
fire and drought strategies to be implemented more effectively than
continuous grazing management strategies.
Dr. W. R. Teague oversees every aspect of the Waggoner Project and
specifically contributes to the development of "the intelligent
rancher" subroutines for SPUR. Dr. R. J. Ansley directs the fire
ecology program. Dr. Ansley's work will be the basis for a
prescribed fire model. Dr. W. E. Pinchak provides animal behavior
and nutritional data for the improvement of the existing steer and
cow/calf models. Dr. J. M. McGrann will analyze each treatment
using the Standardized Performance Analysis to identify profitable
management practices.
- Better water relations between plant species
- Improved plant competition
- Three-component soil organic matter submodel
- Improved soil inorganic nitrogen status
- "intelligent" rancher
- spatially-explicit animal movement
- fire and fertilizer
Email: j-foy@tamu.edu
Last modified: March 29, 2002
