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a result of growth of existing plants as well as the establishment of <br />new individuals. <br />In the areas seeded in 1988, total vegetation cover decreased from <br />33.6 percent in 1990 to 19.1 percent in 1991. Litter and rock cover <br />increased from 33.6 percent to 54.7 percent and bare soil decreased from <br />33.1 percent to 26.1 percent. Most of these differences are likely <br />related to the cattle grazing that occurred on the site. Mean cover for <br />all perennial grasses was 11.6 percent lees in 1991. Forage utilization <br />on the reclaimed areas was estimated to have been between 40 and 60 <br />percent throughout the entire reclaimed area. Utilization may have been <br />somewhat higher in the areas seeded in 1988. <br />When the data from the two areas are combined (Table 6), the cover <br />trends are mostly influenced by the changes that occurred in the areas <br />seeded in 1988. It ie interesting to note that the overall changes in <br />the vegetation appear in the data ae differences in total vegetation <br />cover and in cover by litter and rock. Cover by bare soil and total <br />ground cover are nearly the same for 1990 and 1991. Total vegetation <br />cover is approximately 12 percent lower in 1991 compared with 1990, and <br />litter and rock cover ie approximately 13 percent greater in 1991 <br />compared with 1990. Grazing removed approximately one-third of the <br />plant cover, but did little to alter the total ground cover and cover by <br />bare soil. At a 50 percent level of utilization, it is not likely that <br />the vegetation on the reclaimed areas was permanently damaged. It ie <br />likely that the greases will readily rebound to the cover levels <br />measured in 1990, if grazing is excluded from the site in 1992. <br />Both areas showed decreases in the mean number of species per <br />transact. For the two areas combined, the mean number of species per <br />