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Exhibit J Vegetation Information Overview of Site: • Vegetation Information The vegetation on and around the Menzer Quarry location is characterized by a vaziety of plant communities forming a complex mosaic. The rough, mountainous topography with ridge lines extending generally along aneast/west direction controls the large scale vegetation patterns. This typt: of topography produces cool and moist north facing slopes while south facing slopes are hot and dry. The less common east facing slopes are transition zones containing vegetation units common to the vegetation found on the north and south aspects, and a few interesting combinations on a small scale. Four main natural vegetation units can be found on the site. Each of these is described below. At the end of this exhibit are a number of tables showing the various relationships between the vegetation units, species composition, and similarity comparisons with Aiken Canyon, a protected area located about a mile or so northeast of this site and in a similar ecological situation. A vegetation map is included in Exhibit C. Due to scale limitations, this map only shows the main units. The small scale variations are too small to map accurately or meaningfully. The map is superimposed on a reduced version of the topographic map and allows a comparison of topography and vegetation units. The vegetation units were mapped from a black and white aerial photograph of the site. This map is vvtually identical to the soil map and shows the intense linkage between vegetation and soils on this site. Included in this exhibit is a section on successional trends evident on the site. The natural vegetation is moderately undisturbed, so the only source of information for describing natural invasion patterns is the quarry itself. Therefore, natural invasion patterns can only be investigated on this site, and then only over a short time period. The information presented in this exhibit is derived from several sources. First, is a stt,dy done by Sam Bamberg in 1985 and used by the Cooley Gravel Company when they operated the quarry and were seeking an amendment. Second, is the survey done in 1995 by plant ecologist, Mark Heffner. And third, is the species list for Aiken Canyon prepared by the Colorado Native Plant Society during a field trip on June 6, 1992. Species Presence The presence lists in the tables included in this exhibit are derived, as previously noted, from three sources. First, is a study done in 1985 for the Cooley Gravel Company. That study concentrated on the Menzer site, but did not cover precisely all the land within this amendment area. The Coo.ey Gravel Company's proposed amendment only partially overlapped the land included in this amendment. That proposed amendment, which was subsequently withdrawn, included a considerable amount of land next to and south of this site. That land is occupied by a similar vegetation, but because portions :>re at a higher elevation than this amendment there are differences as well. Menzer Quarry Amendment Exhibit J Page 1