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• galls. Generally, this group would be of little importance in a grassland or rangeland <br />ecosystem. Miridae feed on plant juices with a few members of the family being <br />predaceous. The family itself is diverse in host plant selection, but the majority of the <br />species are selective in feeding, limiting themselves to a single species or genus of <br />plants. This host -specificity limits their distribution to areas where a particular host <br />plant grows. <br />Lygaeidae feed both on seeds and plant juices and a few members of this family are <br />predaceous. Cercopidae usually feed on the juices of shrubs, grasses, forbs, and <br />occasionally trees. The family Formicidae varies widely in food habits. Depending on the <br />species, they may be predaceous, phytophagous, fungi -feeders, scavengers, nectar feeders <br />or plant -sap feeders. <br />Although grasshoppers (Acrididae) were few in numbers, it is likely that their populations <br />would increase dramatically in June and July. Grasshoppers were probably scarce because <br />of the early sampling period, and because they eluded the sweep net. Vegetation <br />composition and abundance largely determines grasshopper populations and distribution. <br />• There is some correlation between abundance of certain grasshopper species and the <br />amount of plant cover and a more definite correlation between species of grasshoppers <br />and species of plants in the habitat (Blocker, 1969). This group may have an effect on <br />the success of revegetation depending on the species of plants used in reclamation. <br />Benthic Invertebrates and Periphyton. <br />Periphyton - Streams. Results of taxonomic identifications and relative abundance <br />determinations are provided in Tables 11-19 through 11-27. Important species of <br />periphyton were defined as those organisms comprising at least 5 percent of the total <br />assemblage during either sampling period. One species of green algae and 12 species (plus <br />one genus) of diatoms qualified as important. <br />These taxa, along with their respective pollution tolerance ratings and pertinent <br />ecological notes, are present in Table 11-28. <br />Upper Sage Creek (Site S-1) exhibited the most diverse assemblage of periphyton of any <br />• of the locations sampled. Six taxa of blue-green algae, normally associated with elevated <br />water temperatures and high organic and nutrient concentrations, were found to occur in <br />25 <br />