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r~ <br />r^ <br />O~'1~7[ r <br />' '• <br />~j~~{~ 11 1 '1r • ~ ~ ,~i~~ <br />~ti. y. 1 .'~~~ Z 1.\ ,j. 1,' <br />, <br />~, •t <br />~~. , <br />) ~t ~. <br />' .. 1 ltir <br />I"I,L'IIrC n. hr~hu>I .rriiixtxm tr;rn<lil,vu, in~.idr the frnerJ;lrca at ~encrr'~Lnc in .'~ni~t. <br />"1'he fence treatment at the mines appc:u~ to have generally resulted in incrcaxd shrub density. <br />• :r~crage height arxi cover (Table 9). ll+is is espcxially t+ppan~nt for preferred browse species such as <br />hittrrbmsh (fahlc~s 10 - IS). Since dear, elk and antelope are known to browse shn+b spcciu, this is the <br />r~pectcd result. However, nwny of the unfenced plo~c have modest numbers of shrubs that mould survive <br />ui the long-term. Since browsing is an episodic phenomenon in these habitats, it is likely that flu fencing <br />treatment will bocontc more signilicant with increasing time as the chances tiff destructive browsing <br />events increase with time. Continued monitoring of the plots on a biennial or Iricnnial basis will be <br />" nceded to gauge the we impact of fencing nn shmb establishm~mt over s more ecologically-relevant time <br />frame. <br />"' ll+c clTixt of topuril depth on shrob establishment is dillicult to u.>scss :u Trapper mine due to <br />" low shrub numbers :u+J difficult to assess a Seneca due to unevrn planting vf' shrub species across <br />trcmment plow. However, at Colowyo mine, where shrub establishment wa_s initially high, the <br />_~ intem+ediutc topsoil depth of IS cm (plots 2 and 3) appears to have resulted in t}+c btAst initial shrub <br />establishment ('fable 9). While tlx nn topsoil plots (plots 4 and 5) at Colowyo had the poorest initial <br />. _ shrub establishment, these ploU have shown the greatest inctcaees in shrub establishment in rcccm years. <br />,_ Thcsc results illastmtc the importance of continuexl monitoring of the plots in order to dtzermine the <br />_ cFli~cts of topsoil depth on shrub a~mmunity development. <br />... 'the individual etlects of other treatmenw such as seed mix, seeding method, surface <br />•• manipulations rand mycorrhi~~ irnxulation are di(Ticult to assess due to the lack of a wmplete factorial <br />•- design. In terrru of shrub c:;tablishmcnl, some observations that can be made at this time basal upon <br />results from Colowyo arc that surfae:c mt+nipulations and the use of a seed mix containing low- <br />• - competitive native ti+rbs lacking grasses (plot 2) can result in increax~d shrub establishment and cover <br />"' ("fable 9). Shmh cover in this plot erontaining these tru+tmenu was 16.5% inside the fence and 13.9% <br />"' outside dtc fence in 2(x14. "Il+is plot rcpnscnts the bca results for all of the mutes and trcatmcn~s in the <br />"~ study. 'flte efTect.4 of the mycorrhitn inoculation treatment cannot be evaluated at this time since this <br />treatment wasp only conducted ut '!rapper mine and shrub numbers arc still to low to allow for adexluute <br />• ~:unpling <br />