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the balance. Native perennial cool season grasses accounted for 30.2 percent of total vegetation <br />. cover. Agassiz bluegrass comprised three-fourths of this total. Mountain brome and Montana <br />wheatgrass each contributed two-fifths of the total. The balance was comprised of seven other <br />species. Native perennial (orbs contributed 10.6 percent of total vegetation cover. Together, <br />weedy milkvetch (Astragalus miser var oblongifolius), dwart lupine (Lupinus prunophilus), <br />oneflower wood sunflower (Helianthella uniflora) and James starwart (Pseudostellaria jamesiana) <br />accounted for more than one-half of the total. Nine other species made relatively minor <br />contributions. Introduced annual and biennial (orbs accounted for 1.6 percent of total vegetation <br />cover. Salsify and Hound's tongue each contributed to this total. Moss contributed 0.6 percent of <br />total vegetation cover. <br />Total vegetation cover was 54.0 percent. Standing dead, litter, bare soil, and rock cover valu€s <br />were 5.0, 32.8, 8.0, and 0.2 percent respectively. Species density averaged 22.7 species per 100 <br />sq. m. <br />Herbaceous Production (Table 15) <br />Total herbaceous production was 1,452.5 pounds per acre. <br />Discussion <br />C-imatic Conditions <br />Although precipitation during the second half of the year 2000 was erratic and somewhat <br />below average overall (Figure 6b), the first half of 2001 leading up to the sampling in <br />July was near average. Thus, for the 12 months preceding sampling (Figures 7a and <br />• 7b), the year ranks as among the drier since 1987. However, based on the previous 6 <br />months (Figures 8a and 8b), and the previous 4 months (Figures 9a and 9b), the <br />precipitation leading up to sampling ranks very near the long term average. Added to <br />the appparent moderate warmth in the first half of 2001 (Figure 10), conditions for plant <br />growth based on temperature and precipitation rank very near the statistical average. <br />Cover <br />Observed cover values and derivation of the 2001 herbaceous cover standard are <br />compiled /documented in the table below: <br />