2017-02-03_PERMIT FILE - C1980004 (2)

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2.04. 10 Vegetation Information stripped of vegetation by ants occur with a symmetric spacing throughout the vegetation type. Rock is scarce with 0.6 percent cover. See Table 4.5-3. Greasewood Scarcobatus vermiclatus the dominant shrub and provides 24.4 percent cover. Greasewood is known to accumulate salts in its leaves and when they drop to the ground salt accumulates in the soil. Accordingly, plants growing in greasewood shrublands are often saline tolerant. Other common shrubs in this community are: big sagebrush, Artemisia tridentata (3 .2 percent cover), seepweed, Suaeda torreyana (3.2 percent cover), and rubber rabbitbrush, Chiysothamnus nauseous (2 .1 percent cover). Fourwing saltbush, Artiplex canescens contributed a minor (<1 %) amount of cover. Other shrubs sparsely present in the vegetation type but not in the cover transects are: shadscale, Atriplex confertifolia and broom snakeweed, Xanthocephalum sarothrae. Individuals of Utah Juniper, Juniperus osteosperma are sparsely scattered in very low densities throughout the community. Juniper does not contribute to the estimated vegetation cover. The herbaceous understory of this vegetation type is characterized by a number of introduced species which indicate a history of heavy grazing and disturbance by livestock. Cheatgrass Bromus tectorum, an introduced annual grass, is the overwhelmingly dominant species with 29.4 percent cover. Minor graminoids are tall wheatgrass Agropyron elongatum, an introduced perennial (1.5 percent cover), western wheatgrass Agropyron smithii (0.9 percent cover), a native sod forming grass, and Sandberg bluegrass Poa sandbergii (0 .3 percent cover). Other graminoids in this vegetation type but not found in sample transects include: crested wheatgrass Agropyron desertorum, basin wildrye Elymus cinereus, Salina wildrye Elymus salinus, Indian ricegrass Oryzopsis hymenoides, squirreltail Sitanion lonifolium, and sand drop seed Sorobolus cryptandrus. Forb cover is also dominated by introduced "weedy type" annuals, predominantly clasping pepperweed Lepidium perfoliatum (4.1 percent cover) and ceratocephala Ceratocephala testiculata (2.1 percent cover). Hoary aster Machaeranthera canescens is also common forb (1.2 percent cover). Minor forbs are: white -top Cardaria drabs, prickly lettuce Lactuca serriola, and Russian thistle Sa/sola iberica. PR -02 2.04-58 10/12