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1 ~• <br />(Springfield 1975). Within thb community, which occurs In level to <br />slightly sloping terrain m the Raton Creek Mine site, there are <br />,no evident changes In community composition with respect to <br />varlatlan In lolls, slope, aspect, water avallab[llty a elevation. <br />However, past management appears to account far the present <br />oondltlan of this community. <br />Mtxh of this area was once occupied by the community of Starkville <br />according to a resident of the area. Today, the vegetation <br />community is dominated by forbs (77% of the total vegetation cover). <br />Three species, Helianthus petiolaris, Kochia americans, and <br />Marrubium wlRare, accowt for 17.3 percent cover, or approximately <br />43 percent of the total vegetation cover. Each of these species is an <br />Invader of disturbed areas. Conversely, species which are thought to <br />dominate this area under undisturbed conditioru, such as blue grams, <br />occur in very low densities. The present condition of the bottomland <br />vegetation type is the result of past disturbance from residential <br />areas, and probably from overgrazing, although no livestock was <br />observed in the area during this survey. <br />Pinyon-]uniper <br />The vegetation community designated as pinyon-juniper occurs within <br />the pinyon-juniper woodland site as defined by the Soil Conservation <br />Service. Species crompositian within this community appears to be <br />similar to the presumed climax condition with a mixture of grasses, <br />forbs, gambol oak, mountain mahogany and pinyon and juniper trees. <br />Total vegetation cover is greater than the normal condition, <br />accounted for by the relatively high cover percentages of gambol oak <br />and. mountain mahogany. Soils within this type appear to be fairly <br />uniform although they become thlmer near the tops of ridges. These <br />areas appear to support relatively higher numbers of pinyon and <br />juniper trees and lesser amounts of gambol oak and mountain <br />mahogany. Grasses and forbs appear to be quite tmiformly <br />distributed throughout the area. <br />~~ <br />234 <br />Revised 5/93 <br />