Print Report
CEGL001666 Pseudoroegneria spicata - Cushion Plants Grassland
Type Concept Sentence: No Data Available
Common (Translated Scientific) Name: Bluebunch Wheatgrass - Cushion Plants Grassland
Colloquial Name: No Data Available
Hierarchy Level: Association
Type Concept: This association is found in foothills of southwestern and south-central Montana. It is also known from the high limestone plateaus and ridges of Dinosaur National Monument in northwestern Colorado and Fossil Butte National Monument in southwestern Wyoming. In south-central Montana, this type occurs at elevations between 1250 and 1680 m (4100-5500 feet). In southwestern Montana, it has been documented from 2580 m (8450 feet) elevation but is noted in reconnaissance from 2075 to 2685 m (6800-8800 feet) elevation. In Colorado, elevations range from 1650 to 2650 m (5400-8700 feet), and in Wyoming from 2350 and 2400 m (7710-7875 feet). This community occurs on moderately deep, rocky and gravelly soils derived from limestone or calcareous sandstone of mesas, ridgetops, plateaus and saddles, and the upper slopes of outwash plains. The primary influencing environmental factor is wind; in most examples of this type, wind deflation has produced a gravel-paved surface. This herbaceous type is characterized by the presence of short-statured, compact cushion plants of the genera Arenaria, Astragalus, Hymenoxys, Phlox, Cryptantha, Stenotus, Heterotheca, Eriogonum, and in the Bighorn region, Sphaeromeria capitata. Pseudoroegneria spicata is present at relatively low canopy cover, although many other species of grasses may also be present. Scattered dwarfed shrubs may be scattered throughout.
Diagnostic Characteristics: No Data Available
Rationale for Nominal Species or Physiognomic Features: No Data Available
Classification Comments: This type was described by DeVelice and Lesica (1993) as the Agropyron spicatum / cushion plant community type, but no clear vegetational parameters were described for the type; in their key this was a default type dropping out at the bottom of the key. To incorporate this type into a comprehensive classification a means of treating the "cushion plant" component would have to be found. It would be a first step to name the various cushion plants that could serve as alternative diagnostic species and also specify what species would not be expected due to severity of these sites.
Similar NVC Types: No Data Available
note: No Data Available
Physiognomy and Structure: No Data Available
Floristics: At first glance from the distance, this association appears as a barren, windswept ridge. Under closer observation, it is a species-rich, diverse community of grasses and forbs. This herbaceous type is characterized by the presence of short-statured, compact cushion plants in the genera Arenaria, Astragalus, Hymenoxys, Phlox, Cryptantha, Stenotus, Heterotheca, Eriogonum, and in the Bighorn region, Sphaeromeria capitata. Pseudoroegneria spicata is present at relatively low canopy cover, and other grasses present may include Hesperostipa comata, Poa fendleriana, Poa secunda, Koeleria macrantha, Leucopoa kingii, and Achnatherum hymenoides. Dwarfed shrubs may be scattered throughout the community, including Artemisia tridentata ssp. vaseyana, Krascheninnikovia lanata, Tetradymia canescens, Cercocarpus montanus, Artemisia nova, Artemisia frigida, and Gutierrezia sarothrae.
Dynamics: The primary influencing environmental factor is wind; in most examples of this type, wind deflation has scoured a gravel-paved surface.
Environmental Description: This association is found in the Tendoy Mountains in southwestern Montana and the Pryor Mountains and adjacent Bighorn Canyon area in south-central Montana. It is also known from the high limestone plateaus and ridges of Dinosaur National Monument in northwestern Colorado and Fossil Butte National Monument in southwestern Wyoming. In the Pryor Mountains, this type occurs at foothill elevations between 1250 and 1680 m (4100-5500 feet). In the Tendoy Mountains, it has been documented from 2580 m (8450 feet) elevation but is noted in reconnaissance from 2075 to 2685 m (6800-8800 feet). In Colorado, elevations range from 1650 to 2650 m (5400-8700 feet), and in Wyoming from 2350 and 2400 m (7710-7875 feet). This community occurs on moderately deep, rocky and gravelly soils derived from limestone, shale or calcareous sandstone of mesas, ridgetops, plateaus and saddles and the upper slopes of outwash plains. Slopes are moderately steep to steep and may be oriented to any aspect. The unvegetated surface of these windswept sites typically has high cover of large and small rocks and low exposure of bare soil often forming a near-pavement.
Geographic Range: This association is found in the Tendoy Mountains in southwestern Montana, the Pryor Mountains and adjacent Bighorn Canyon area in south-central Montana, and in Dinosaur National Monument in northwestern Colorado. It may also occur in the Bighorn Mountains of north-central Wyoming.
Nations: US
States/Provinces: CO, MT, WY
Plot Analysis Summary:
http://vegbank.org/natureserve/ELEMENT_GLOBAL.2.688477
Confidence Level: Moderate
Confidence Level Comments: No Data Available
Grank: G3?
Greasons: No Data Available
| Type | Name | Database Code | Classification Code |
|---|---|---|---|
| Class | 3 Desert & Semi-Desert Class | C03 | 3 |
| Subclass | 3.B Cool Semi-Desert Scrub & Grassland Subclass | S11 | 3.B |
| Formation | 3.B.1 Cool Semi-Desert Scrub & Grassland Formation | F033 | 3.B.1 |
| Division | 3.B.1.Ne Western North American Cool Semi-Desert Scrub & Grassland Division | D040 | 3.B.1.Ne |
| Macrogroup | 3.B.1.Ne.1 Yellow Rabbitbrush - Blackbrush / Indian Ricegrass Dry Shrubland & Grassland Macrogroup | M171 | 3.B.1.Ne.1 |
| Group | 3.B.1.Ne.1.c James'' Galleta - Indian Ricegrass - Needle-and-Thread Semi-Desert Grassland Group | G311 | 3.B.1.Ne.1.c |
| Alliance | A1262 Indian Ricegrass - Bluebunch Wheatgrass - Sandhill Muhly Grassland Alliance | A1262 | 3.B.1.Ne.1.c |
| Association | CEGL001666 Bluebunch Wheatgrass - Cushion Plants Grassland | CEGL001666 | 3.B.1.Ne.1.c |
Concept Lineage: No Data Available
Predecessors: No Data Available
Obsolete Names: No Data Available
Obsolete Parents: No Data Available
Synonomy: ? Agropyron spicatum / cushion plant community type (DeVelice and Lesica 1993)
- Bourgeron, P. S., and L. D. Engelking, editors. 1994. A preliminary vegetation classification of the western United States. Unpublished report. The Nature Conservancy, Western Heritage Task Force, Boulder, CO. 175 pp. plus appendix.
- Coles, J., D. Cogan, D. Salas, A. Wight, G. Wakefield, J. Von Loh, and A. Evenden. 2008a. Vegetation classification and mapping project report, Dinosaur National Monument. Natural Resource Technical Report NPS/NCPN/NRTR-2008/112. National Park Service, Fort Collins, CO. 814 pp.
- Cooper, S. V., C. Jean, and B. L. Heidel. 1999. Plant associations and related botanical inventory of the Beaverhead Mountains Section, Montana. Unpublished report to the Bureau of Land Management. Montana Natural Heritage Program, Helena. 235 pp.
- DeVelice, R. L., and P. Lesica. 1993. Plant community classification for vegetation on BLM lands, Pryor Mountains, Carbon County, Montana. Unpublished report by Montana Natural Heritage Program, Helena, MT. 78 pp.
- Friesen, B. A., S. Blauer, K. Landgraf, J. Von Loh, J. Coles, K. Schulz, A. Tendick, A. Wight, G. Wakefield, and A. Evenden. 2010. Vegetation classification and mapping project report, Fossil Butte National Monument. Natural Resource Technical Report NPS/NCPN/NRTR--2010/319. National Park Service, Fort Collins, CO. 552 pp. [http://biology.usgs.gov/npsveg/fobu/foburpt.pdf]
- MTNHP [Montana Natural Heritage Program]. 2002b. List of ecological communities for Montana. Montana Natural Heritage Program, Montana State Library, Helena, MT.
- Stevens, J. E., D. S. Jones, and K. J. Benner. 2015. Vegetation classification and mapping project report: Bighorn Canyon National Recreation Area. Natural Resource Report NPS/GRYN/NRR--2015/1070. National Park Service, Fort Collins, CO. 350 pp.
- WNDD [Wyoming Natural Diversity Database]. No date. Unpublished data on file. Wyoming Natural Diversity Database, University of Wyoming, Laramie, WY.
- Western Ecology Working Group of NatureServe. No date. International Ecological Classification Standard: International Vegetation Classification. Terrestrial Vegetation. NatureServe, Boulder, CO.