Print Report
CEGL001751 Bouteloua eriopoda - Pleuraphis jamesii Grassland
Type Concept Sentence: No Data Available
Common (Translated Scientific) Name: Black Grama - James'' Galleta Grassland
Colloquial Name: Black Grama - Galleta Shortgrass Prairie
Hierarchy Level: Association
Type Concept: This desert grassland has been documented from the Colorado Plateau in the upper Rio Puerco watershed in northwestern New Mexico, in north-central Arizona and southeastern Utah, and extends south to central New Mexico and west to the eastern Mojave Desert of California and Nevada. Bouteloua eriopoda and Pleuraphis jamesii dominate the low to moderate herbaceous cover. Associates include low cover of Aristida purpurea, Bouteloua gracilis, Hesperostipa neomexicana, Muhlenbergia porteri, Sporobolus airoides, and Sporobolus cryptandrus. Shrubs are few and scattered and may include Atriplex canescens, Ephedra torreyana, Ephedra viridis, Ericameria nauseosa, and Gutierrezia sarothrae. Stands occur on flat to gently sloping plains, basin floors, mesatops, and less often on steeply sloping mesa sides. Substrates are variable and include loam to clay-loam soils derived from basalt outcrop, shale, clay and sandstone, and coarser textured soils derived from black cinders and sandstone.
Diagnostic Characteristics: No Data Available
Rationale for Nominal Species or Physiognomic Features: No Data Available
Classification Comments: Limited quantitative documentation exists for this type outside of plots taken at Capitol Reef National Park, near the northern end of the association''s range. Evens et al. (2014) and McAuliffe (2016) sampled Bouteloua eriopoda- and Pleuraphis jamesii-codominated stands in the eastern Mojave Desert and northern Sonoran Desert.
Similar NVC Types: No Data Available
note: No Data Available
Physiognomy and Structure: No Data Available
Floristics: This association is characterized by Bouteloua eriopoda and Pleuraphis jamesii (= Hilaria jamesii) codominating an open to moderately dense perennial graminoid layer. Associates include low cover of Aristida purpurea, Bouteloua gracilis, Hesperostipa neomexicana (= Stipa neomexicana), Muhlenbergia porteri, Sporobolus airoides, Sporobolus cryptandrus, and Sporobolus flexuosus. Forb cover and diversity are low. Scattered shrubs and dwarf-shrub may be present, including Atriplex canescens, Ephedra torreyana, Ephedra viridis, Ericameria nauseosa, and Gutierrezia sarothrae (Francis 1986). The presence of Bouteloua eriopoda and Muhlenbergia porteri, and its occurrence at Sevilleta National Wildlife Refuge, suggests that this grassland is transitional to Chihuahuan Desert grasslands that begin over 100 miles to the south.
Dynamics: The distribution of Bouteloua eriopoda centers on the southwestern U.S. and northern Mexico, and Pleuraphis jamesii is characteristic of the Great Basin, indicating that this is a transitional grassland between these regions (Muldavin et al. 1998d). Stands occur as far west as the eastern Mojave Desert of California and Nevada (McAuliffe 2016).
Environmental Description: This Colorado Plateau desert grassland has been documented from the upper Rio Puerco watershed in northwestern New Mexico, in north-central Arizona, and from a single station in southeastern Utah. Elevations range from 1455-1830 m (4770-6000 feet) at the southern end of the range and at 1275 m on a south-facing slope in Utah. Stands occur on flat to gently sloping plains, basin floors, or steeply sloping mesa sides. Substrates are variable and include weakly developed Entisols and Entisol-Mollisol complexes often with loam to clay-loam soils derived from basalt outcrop, shale, clay and sandstone, and coarser textured soils derived from black cinders and sandstone.
Geographic Range: This association is known from the Colorado Plateau in the upper Rio Puerco watershed in northwestern New Mexico, Wupatki National Monument and Petrified Forest National Park in north-central Arizona and scattered small sites at Capitol Reef National Park in southeastern Utah. It extends south to central New Mexico in the transition zone with the northern Chihuahuan Desert and west into the eastern Mojave Desert of California and Nevada. It may also be found in Mexico.
Nations: MX?,US
States/Provinces: AZ, CA, CO, NM, NV, UT
Plot Analysis Summary:
http://vegbank.org/natureserve/ELEMENT_GLOBAL.2.689262
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 | A1287 James'' Galleta Grassland Alliance | A1287 | 3.B.1.Ne.1.c |
| Association | CEGL001751 Black Grama - James'' Galleta Grassland | CEGL001751 | 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: = Bouteloua eriopoda - Pleuraphis jamesii Grassland (Evens et al. 2014)
< Bouteloua eriopoda - Pleuraphis jamesii shrub-steppe (McAuliffe 2016)
? Gutierrezia sarothrae / Bouteloua eriopoda - Hilaria jamesii Plant Community (Francis 1986)
= Hilaria jamesii - Bouteloua eriopoda PA (Muldavin et al. 1998d)
< Bouteloua eriopoda - Pleuraphis jamesii shrub-steppe (McAuliffe 2016)
? Gutierrezia sarothrae / Bouteloua eriopoda - Hilaria jamesii Plant Community (Francis 1986)
= Hilaria jamesii - Bouteloua eriopoda PA (Muldavin et al. 1998d)
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