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• effect of the burning that took place in the northern portion of the Expansion Area where most of the <br />Sagebrush type occurs and most of the cover samples were located. Burning of graminoids and forbs <br />typically gives a competitive advantage to graminoids because their meristematic tissues are better <br />protected than those of forbs. In a similar pattern, the much greater abundance of snowberry compared <br />to sagebrush in the Expansion Area stands may also relate to the effects of fire; while sagebrush has <br />almost no capacity to root sprout after fire or other destruction of aerial parts, snowberry is a very <br />strong root sprouter (Wasser 1982). <br />Steen Mixed Brush (Figures 6,7) <br />In areas mapped as Steep Mixed Brush, the underlying slopes are 2 to 3(h):1(v) or steeper. These <br />steep sites often correspond with the presence of underlying resistant geologic material, usualy <br />sandstone. When these steep slopes are north- to east-facing, a dense cover of Gambel's oak and <br />serviceberry, usually of substantially reduced stature, and with an elk sedge understory, is typically <br />presenl(Figure 6). <br />On south- to west-facing slopes, the cover may be much more open with relatively little <br />• development of Gambel's oak; when oak is present it is usually dwarfed in stature (Figure 7). Soils on <br />these sites are shallow and droughty and the vegetation reflects this lack of surface moisture. <br />Vegetation cover in general is less, with serviceberry the dominant species along with mountain <br />mahogany ( r o ~rpus montanus). Mountain big sagebrush may be present as scattered individuals, <br />along with bitterbrush (Purshia tridentate), rubber rabbitbrush, and sparse with mainly Montana <br />wheatgrass, bluebunch wheatgrass (AgLpvron spicatuml, and Indian ricegrass (Oryzopsis hymenoides). <br />In some locations, creeping wildrye (E(ymus triticoides) may be conspicuous. Cheatgrass may also be <br />abundant locally. Forbs typical of open habitats such as double bladderpod (Physaria acutifolia), <br />glaucous aster (Aster glaucodes), arrowleaf balsamorhiza, canescent aster (Machaeranthera <br />canescens), and Uintah groundsel (Packers multilobata) occur. <br />Sample Adequacy <br />A summary of sample adequacy calculations for the parameters of cover, production and woody plant <br />stem density is presented in Table 26. As can be seen in Table 26, sample adequacy was achieved in <br />all cases for cover. For production, sample adequacy was achieved nowhere; however, maximum <br />sample size of 50 was taken in all types except the less than one acre Mesic Drainage type (where the <br />minimum sample size of 10.6 exceeded the sample size of five by a surprisingly small amount). For <br />. shrub density, sample adequacy was achieved for all types except Western Wheatgrass/ Alkali <br />18 <br />