Print Report
CEGL001765 Bouteloua hirsuta - Bouteloua radicosa Grassland
Type Concept Sentence: No Data Available
Common (Translated Scientific) Name: Hairy Grama - Purple Grama Grassland
Colloquial Name: Hairy Grama - Purple Grama Grassland
Hierarchy Level: Association
Type Concept: This is a sparse desert grassland that is restricted in its distribution to the ''Borderlands'' of southwestern New Mexico and probably southeastern Arizona and northern Mexico. It occupies sites on moderately steep (15%), rocky, bouldery slopes and convex ridges in the lower foothills of the Animas Mountains. Elevation is roughly 1680-1770 m. Substrate is described as gravelly silt loam with much surface rock and gravel, together averaging 60%. Parent material is rhyolite. Stands have a relatively sparse herbaceous layer (<20% cover) of predominately perennial, medium-tall grasses, and may have a significant shrub component. Bouteloua hirsuta, Bouteloua radicosa, and Bouteloua curtipendula are the most abundant grasses with cover varying from 2-6% each. Shrubs include Ericameria laricifolia and Nolina microcarpa. Many forbs occur in trace amounts. The most common are Eriogonum wrightii and Dalea spp. This is a floristically diverse association, with over 30 species, and includes a component of Madrean species not commonly found together.
Diagnostic Characteristics: No Data Available
Rationale for Nominal Species or Physiognomic Features: No Data Available
Classification Comments: This association is a sparse desert grassland with scattered shrubs (often less than 25% total vegetation cover and less than 10% shrub cover). It may be better classified as a sparse vegetation type.
Similar NVC Types: No Data Available
note: No Data Available
Physiognomy and Structure: No Data Available
Floristics: This is a sparse desert grassland, which may have a small shrub component. Shrubs include the evergreen Ericameria laricifolia, and Nolina microcarpa, together with less than 10% cover. The herbaceous layer is sparse, totaling <20% cover, with perennial grasses being predominant. Bouteloua hirsuta, Bouteloua radicosa and Bouteloua curtipendula, are the most abundant, with cover varying from 2-6% each. Many forbs occur in trace amounts. This is a diverse association, with over 30 species, which includes a component of Madrean species not commonly found together.
Dynamics: No Data Available
Environmental Description: This association occurs in the lower foothills zone of an isolated desert mountain range. Most of the annual precipitation occurs during the summer months as the result of convectional thunderstorms and during winter as occasional rains. Late spring and early summer are typically dry. Summers are hot, and winters can have periods of cold weather and occasional snows. This association occupies sites on moderately steep, rocky, bouldery slopes and convex ridges. Elevation is roughly 1675 to 1770 m (5500-5800 feet). Soil is described as gravelly silt loam, with much surface rock and gravel, together averaging 60%.
Geographic Range: This sparse desert grassland is restricted to the ''Borderlands'' of southwestern New Mexico and probably southeastern Arizona and northern Mexico.
Nations: MX?,US
States/Provinces: AZ?, MXCHH?, NM
Plot Analysis Summary:
http://vegbank.org/natureserve/ELEMENT_GLOBAL.2.689219
Confidence Level: Low - Poorly Documented
Confidence Level Comments: No Data Available
Grank: G2
Greasons: No Data Available
| Type | Name | Database Code | Classification Code |
|---|---|---|---|
| Class | 3 Desert & Semi-Desert Class | C03 | 3 |
| Subclass | 3.A Warm Desert & Semi-Desert Woodland, Scrub & Grassland Subclass | S06 | 3.A |
| Formation | 3.A.2 Warm Desert & Semi-Desert Scrub & Grassland Formation | F015 | 3.A.2 |
| Division | 3.A.2.Na North American Warm Desert Scrub & Grassland Division | D039 | 3.A.2.Na |
| Macrogroup | 3.A.2.Na.3 Black Grama - Bullgrass - Tobosa Grass Chihuahuan Semi-Desert Grassland Macrogroup | M087 | 3.A.2.Na.3 |
| Group | 3.A.2.Na.3.a Black Grama - Chino Grama - Bush Muhly Semi-Desert Grassland Group | G490 | 3.A.2.Na.3.a |
| Alliance | A3205 Sotol species / Sideoats Grama - Curly-leaf Muhly Foothill Desert Grassland Alliance | A3205 | 3.A.2.Na.3.a |
| Association | CEGL001765 Hairy Grama - Purple Grama Grassland | CEGL001765 | 3.A.2.Na.3.a |
Concept Lineage: No Data Available
Predecessors: No Data Available
Obsolete Names: No Data Available
Obsolete Parents: No Data Available
Synonomy: = Bouteloua hirsuta - Bouteloua radicosa PA (Muldavin et al. 1998a)
= Bouteloua hirsuta - Bouteloua radicosa PA (Bourgeron et al. 1993b)
= Bouteloua hirsuta - Bouteloua radicosa PA (Bourgeron et al. 1995a)
= Bouteloua hirsuta - Bouteloua radicosa PA (Bourgeron et al. 1993b)
= Bouteloua hirsuta - Bouteloua radicosa PA (Bourgeron et al. 1995a)
- Bourgeron, P. S., L. D. Engelking, H. C. Humphries, E. Muldavin, and W. H. Moir. 1993b. Assessing the conservation value of the Gray Ranch: Rarity, diversity and representativeness. Unpublished report prepared for The Nature Conservancy by the Western Heritage Task Force, Boulder, CO. (Volume I and II).
- Bourgeron, P. S., L. D. Engelking, H. C. Humphries, E. Muldavin, and W. H. Moir. 1995a. Assessing the conservation value of the Gray Ranch: Rarity, diversity and representativeness. Desert Plants 11(2-3):3-68.
- 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.
- Muldavin, E., V. Archer, and P. Neville. 1998a. A vegetation map of the Borderlands Ecosystem Management Area. Final report submitted to USDA Forest Service, Rocky Mountain Experiment Station, Flagstaff, AZ, by the New Mexico Natural Heritage Program, University of New Mexico, Albuquerque, NM. 58 pp.
- NHNM [Natural Heritage New Mexico]. No date. Unpublished data on file. Natural Heritage New Mexico, University of New Mexico, Albuquerque.
- Reid, M. S., L. S. Engelking, and P. S. Bourgeron. 1994. Rare plant communities of the conterminous United States, Western Region. Pages 305-620 in: D. H. Grossman, K. L. Goodin, and C. L. Reuss, editors. Rare plant communities of the conterminous United States, an initial survey. The Nature Conservancy, Arlington, VA.
- Western Ecology Working Group of NatureServe. No date. International Ecological Classification Standard: International Vegetation Classification. Terrestrial Vegetation. NatureServe, Boulder, CO.