In grasslands, overgrazing by domestic livestock, fertilization, and introduction of exotic forage species leads to plant communities consisting of a mixture of native and exotic species. These degraded grasslands present a problem for land managers, farmers, and restoration ecologists concerned with improving biodiversity while continuing to use the land for livestock production. Here we assessed the response of butterfly and plant community composition to the use of fire and moderate grazing by domestic cattle on degraded grasslands dominated by exotic plants. We evaluated change by comparing experimental pastures to two reference sites that were grasslands dominated by native plants. We used two burning and grazing treatments: 1) patch-burn graze, a heterogeneously managed treatment, where one third of the pasture is burned each year and cattle have free access to the entire pasture, and 2) graze-and-burn, a homogenously managed treatment, where the entire pasture is grazed each year and burned in its entirety every three years. We tested for change in the butterfly and plant community composition over seven years using Bray-Curtis dissimilarity measures. Over the course of seven years, degraded pastures in both treatments became more similar to reference sites with respect to the butterfly and plant communities. Only two butterfly species and two plant functional guilds exhibited significant linear trends over time, with varying responses. Compositional changes in both the butterfly and plant communities indicate that the use of moderate grazing and fire may shift butterfly and plant communities of exotic-dominated grasslands to be more similar to reference tallgrass prairies over time.

The Iowa Monarch Conservation Consortium was established in March 2015. Adding milkweeds to agricultural landscapes is one of many Consortium goals. In order to further monarch butterfly conservation efforts, scientists need more information about milkweed phenology and persistence on the landscape, and how monarchs are using these plants because milkweeds are now absent from most agricultural fields. This study is being conducted over multiple years to examine both oviposition preference and larval survival on nine milkweed species endemic to Iowa. These data will be used as a baseline for informing monarch habitat conservation and restoration efforts across the midwest.

The Iowa Monarch Conservation Consortium was established in March 2015. Adding milkweeds to agricultural landscapes is one of many Consortium goals. In order to further monarch butterfly conservation efforts, scientists need more information about milkweed phenology and persistence on the landscape, and how monarchs are using these plants because milkweeds are now absent from most agricultural fields. This study is being conducted over multiple years to examine both oviposition preference and larval survival on nine milkweed species endemic to Iowa. These data will be used as a baseline for informing monarch habitat conservation and restoration efforts across the midwest.

The Iowa Monarch Conservation Consortium was established in March 2015. Adding milkweeds to agricultural landscapes is one of many Consortium goals. In order to further monarch butterfly conservation efforts, scientists need more information about milkweed phenology and persistence on the landscape, and how monarchs are using these plants because milkweeds are now absent from most agricultural fields. This study is being conducted over multiple years to examine both oviposition preference and larval survival on nine milkweed species endemic to Iowa. These data will be used as a baseline for informing monarch habitat conservation and restoration efforts across the midwest.

Ecological theory predicts that diversity decreases variability in ecosystem function. We predict that, at the landscape scale, spatial variability created by a mosaic of contrasting patches that differ in time since disturbance will decrease temporal variability in aboveground plant biomass. Using data from a multi‐year study of seven grazed tallgrass prairie landscapes, each experimentally managed for one to eight patches, we show that increased spatial variability driven by spatially patchy fire and herbivory reduces temporal variability in aboveground plant biomass. This pattern is associated with statistical evidence for the portfolio effect and a positive relationship between temporal variability and functional group synchrony as predicted by metacommunity variability theory. As disturbance from fire and grazing interact to create a shifting mosaic of spatially heterogeneous patches within a landscape, temporal variability in aboveground plant biomass can be dampened. These results suggest that spatially heterogeneous disturbance regimes contribute to a portfolio of ecosystem functions provided by biodiversity, including wildlife habitat, fuel, and forage. We discuss how spatial patterns of disturbance drive variability within and among patches.

The Iowa Monarch Conservation Consortium was established in March 2015. Adding milkweeds to agricultural landscapes is one of many Consortium goals. In order to further monarch butterfly conservation efforts, scientists need more information about milkweed phenology and persistence on the landscape, and how monarchs are using these plants because milkweeds are now absent from most agricultural fields. This study is being conducted over multiple years to examine both oviposition preference and larval survival on nine milkweed species endemic to Iowa. These data will be used as a baseline for informing monarch habitat conservation and restoration efforts across the midwest.

The Iowa Monarch Conservation Consortium was established in March 2015. Adding milkweeds to agricultural landscapes is one of many Consortium goals. In order to further monarch butterfly conservation efforts, scientists need more information about milkweed phenology and persistence on the landscape, and how monarchs are using these plants because milkweeds are now absent from most agricultural fields. This study is being conducted over multiple years to examine both oviposition preference andlarval survival on nine milkweed species endemic to Iowa. These data will be used as a baseline for informing monarch habitat conservation and restoration efforts across the midwest.

The Iowa Monarch Conservation Consortium was established in March 2015. Adding milkweeds to agricultural landscapes is one of many Consortium goals. In order to further monarch butterfly conservation efforts, scientists need more information about milkweed phenology and persistence on the landscape, and how monarchs are using these plants because milkweeds are now absent from most agricultural fields. This study is being conducted over multiple years to examine both oviposition preference and larval survival on nine milkweed species endemic to Iowa. These data will be used as a baseline for informing monarch habitat conservation and restoration efforts across the midwest.

The Iowa Monarch Conservation Consortium was established in March 2015. Adding milkweeds to agricultural landscapes is one of many Consortium goals. In order to further monarch butterfly conservation efforts, scientists need more information about milkweed phenology and persistence on the landscape, and how monarchs are using these plants because milkweeds are now absent from most agricultural fields. This study is being conducted over multiple years to examine both oviposition preference and larval survival on nine milkweed species endemic to Iowa. These data will be used as a baseline for informing monarch habitat conservation and restoration efforts across the midwest.

The Iowa Monarch Conservation Consortium was established in March 2015. Adding milkweeds to agricultural landscapes is one of many Consortium goals. In order to further monarch butterfly conservation efforts, scientists need more information about milkweed phenology and persistence on the landscape, and how monarchs are using these plants because milkweeds are now absent from most agricultural fields. This study is being conducted over multiple years to examine both oviposition preference and larval survival on nine milkweed species endemic to Iowa. These data will be used as a baseline for informing monarch habitat conservation and restoration efforts across the midwest.