2008-05-01_REVISION - M1973007SG (5)

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VEGETATION INFORMATION East Side of Academy The vegetation of this area is remarkably uniform and in rather good condition for the most part. In some areas the vegetation is primarily weeds. But, over most of the site, the vegetation is dominated by grass. There are two broad units found on this area. Disturbed areas include land currently being mined, and "native" vegetation forms the other major unit. The former is generally devoid of vegetation but does contain local growths of weeds. However, weeds do not grow well in the sand. The remainder of this side of Academy is occupied by old field or"native" vegetation. The old field vegetation can be divided into two minor units. Actually there are several units present,but the scale of these other units and the differences between them are more of academic importance than of importance to revegetation and reclamation planning. Most of the old field vegetation is a grassland type with a cover of 75%to nearly 100%. There seems to be three primary species. Over most of the area Blue Grama(Bouteloua gracilis) and Scribner Needlegrass (Stipa scribneri) dominate. On the western end of the site (just east of Academy Boulevard) the primary species are Big Bluestem(Andropogon gerardii) and Sand Bluestem (Andropogon hallii). Although in 1992 this vegetation unit was more common, much of it has now been removed. The latter two species also occur in small, dense "patches" over the remainder of the area. Where these "patches" occur, they tend to exclude many of the other species. This pattern indicates that these communities tend to merge into one another along various environmental gradients. As all four dominants are native prairie species, they probably represent remnants from the original prairie in this area, especially the Bluestems. Protection from grazing enhances their presence. However, many introduced species and weeds mixed with these native "climax" species gives the vegetation a disturbed, domesticated character. Other species found in less than dominant numbers include the following. The important point of this listing is that the overall vegetation diversity is fairly low. COMMON NAME BOTANICAL NAME Needle and thread grass Stipa comata Western wheatgrass Agropyron smithii Ring Muhly Muhlenbergia torryei OR Sand Muhly OR M.pungens Hairy Goldenaster Aster sp. Prickly Pear Cactus Opuntia sp. Yucca Yucca glauca Blazing Star Liatris punctata Daniels Sand Pit#2 Amendment (2008) Exhibit I Page 2 of 6