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r~ <br />~~ <br />n <br />U <br />The original vegetation of the Pikeview Quarry was essentially <br />• composed of two fairly distinct types which are delineated visually by <br />topography. Relatively level areas and south facing slopes in the <br />quarry area were inhabited by shrublands of primarily Oakbrush with an <br />understory of generally drought resistant grasses. North-facing slopes <br />were inhabited by a forest of Douglas Fir and Ponderosa Pine with an <br />understory of Junipers and shrubs, along with scattered grasses and <br />evergreen sub-shrubs. <br />Areas of future operation are scattered about the boundaries <br />of the current operation, All areas where future operations will occur <br />are found in the various communities already described. <br />Plant community patterns at the Pikeview Quarry are determined <br />by an interaction of a large number of factors. Initial drainage and <br />• erosion patterns to a large extent determined which of two complex <br />successional models would dominate. Each model has acted in its own <br />fashion to produce two very complex communities that overlap considerably <br />in the composition but are distinctive in their ecological functioning. <br />The initial erosion patterns were probably determined by a number of <br />different events that were largely acting together in a probabilistic <br />fashion much as the vegetation today behaves. Care must be exercised <br />in reclaiming the site to induce appropriate successional models on <br />the proper plots of land. Once set in action, each model should be able <br />to basically sustain its own development, although the actual direction <br />may be more determined by pure probability than the series of lineal <br />stages encountered in simple environments where causal arguments and <br />models are much more operative. <br /> <br /> <br />P-J-4 <br />