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CEGL001593 Dasylirion wheeleri / Bouteloua curtipendula Shrub Grassland
Type Concept Sentence: No Data Available
Common (Translated Scientific) Name: Common Sotol / Sideoats Grama Shrub Grassland
Colloquial Name: No Data Available
Hierarchy Level: Association
Type Concept: On White Sands Missile Range this is a major community of the Oscura, San Andres, and San Augustine mountains. This type occurs on steep rocky scarps and dip slopes at various aspects, but is more frequently found on warmer exposures. Elevations range from 1550 to 1980 m (5100-6500 feet). Substrates are derived from limestone, sandstone, granite and rhyolite. Soils are shallow and rocky, but surface soil characteristics vary with parent material. On limestone, soils tend to be finer textured, thus potentially hindering infiltration. Granitic soils, by contrast, are usually coarse and well-drained, which creates a relatively more mesic environment. This Chihuahuan Desert grassland is characterized by a diverse mix of bunchgrasses. Bouteloua curtipendula is well-represented and dominant, while Bouteloua eriopoda, Aristida purpurea, Bouteloua hirsuta, and Eragrostis intermedia are common to well-represented and may codominate. In the shrub layer, Dasylirion wheeleri is well-represented and a conspicuous indicator. Other desert indicators include Parthenium incanum, Fouquieria splendens, Aloysia wrightii, Mimosa aculeaticarpa var. biuncifera, and Viguiera stenoloba. Of the 75 forbs known from this association, Artemisia ludoviciana, Eriogonum wrightii, Melampodium leucanthum, Machaeranthera pinnatifida var. pinnatifida, Notholaena standleyi, Trixis californica, and Bahia absinthifolia are the most constant.
Diagnostic Characteristics: No Data Available
Rationale for Nominal Species or Physiognomic Features: No Data Available
Classification Comments: This is a widespread community on lower, exposed rocky scarp faces and dipslopes of mountains and foothills. Sideoats Grama/Sacahuista communities (Muldavin et al. 2000b) have a similar floristic composition, but have higher grass cover and gentler slopes. The community structure of a diverse shrub layer combined with a diverse herbaceous layer is a common attribute of desert grasslands on rocky slopes. The surface roughness of the rocky substrate provides moisture and microhabitats for a variety of plants in shaded crevices and cracks (Noy-Meir 1973). Fire may also be important and may shift relative cover and dominance of species away from shrubs. Although fuel load is low overall on the rocky slopes, Dasylirion wheeleri is a major spreading agent of the fire: burning plants break loose, fall down slopes and light spot fires below.
Similar NVC Types: No Data Available
note: No Data Available
Physiognomy and Structure: No Data Available
Floristics: No Data Available
Dynamics: No Data Available
Environmental Description: No Data Available
Geographic Range: No Data Available
Nations: MX?,US
States/Provinces: NM
Plot Analysis Summary:
http://vegbank.org/natureserve/ELEMENT_GLOBAL.2.689891
Confidence Level: Low - Poorly Documented
Confidence Level Comments: No Data Available
Grank: GNR
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 | CEGL001593 Common Sotol / Sideoats Grama Shrub Grassland | CEGL001593 | 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 curtipendula - Dasylirion wheeleri PA (Muldavin et al. 1994a)
= Bouteloua curtipendula - Dasylirion wheeleri PA (Muldavin and Mehlhop 1992)
= Dasylirion wheeleri / Bouteloua curtipendula PA (Muldavin et al. 1998a)
= Sideoats Grama/Common Sotol PA (Muldavin et al. 2000b) [(Bouteloua curtipendula/Dasylirion wheeleri; BOUCUR/DASWHE)]
= Bouteloua curtipendula - Dasylirion wheeleri PA (Muldavin and Mehlhop 1992)
= Dasylirion wheeleri / Bouteloua curtipendula PA (Muldavin et al. 1998a)
= Sideoats Grama/Common Sotol PA (Muldavin et al. 2000b) [(Bouteloua curtipendula/Dasylirion wheeleri; BOUCUR/DASWHE)]
- 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., P. Mehlhop, and E. DeBruin. 1994a. A survey of sensitive species and vegetation communities in the Organ Mountains of Fort Bliss. Volume III: Vegetation communities. Report prepared for Fort Bliss, Texas, by New Mexico Natural Heritage Program, Albuquerque.
- 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.
- Muldavin, E., Y. Chauvin, and G. Harper. 2000b. The vegetation of White Sands Missile Range, New Mexico: Volume I. Handbook of vegetation communities. Final report to Environmental Directorate, White Sands Missile Range. New Mexico Natural Heritage Program, University of New Mexico, Albuquerque. 195 pp. plus appendices
- Muldavin, E., and P. Mehlhop. 1992. A preliminary classification and test vegetation map for White Sands Missile Range and San Andreas National Wildlife Refuge, New Mexico. University of New Mexico, New Mexico Natural Heritage Program.
- Noy-Meir, I. 1973. Desert ecosystems: Environment and producers. Annual Review of Ecology and Systematics 4:25-51.
- Western Ecology Working Group of NatureServe. No date. International Ecological Classification Standard: International Vegetation Classification. Terrestrial Vegetation. NatureServe, Boulder, CO.