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the overall population distribution. So long as that trend continues, it is only a matter of time before <br />cottonwood will limit willow to primarily open areas as seen in the much older vegetation in <br />Exclosures 3 and particularly 5. Thus Exclosure 1 appears to be reflecting the earlier days of a <br />development pattern that could sensibly lead to a strong cottonwood dominance as seen in the three <br />oldest exclosures. <br />But an overall conclusion to the study is that without regulating grazing in the riparian <br />corridor none of this development could have possibly occurred because cattle were almost <br />completely limiting the development to a highly stunted form of early development that could never <br />move beyond that stage. Without the removal of grazing the entire riparian corridor would have <br />eventually died out because regeneration and development of a rich and diverse growth as is seen in <br />Exclosure 1 would have been impossible. Without that, the old forest could not be replaced. <br />EXCLOSURE 2 <br />Gen era! Description for 2011: This exclosure is located about a mile, as the stream flows, <br />north and downstream from Exclosure 1. It is located in a large embayment off the main channel and <br />most of it is drier than Exclosure 1. There is a very large and highly productive wetland just to the <br />west of the exclosure and the eastern edge of that wetland encroaches into the western side of the <br />exclosure. That wetland contains very few woody plants and is mostly composed of rushes, <br />bullrushes, a few sedges, and a minor amount of wetland grasses and forbs. <br />The soil here is decidedly more sandy than Exclosure 1, but over most of the site Juncus <br />balticus is still at least moderately abundant. In 2009, Equisetum sp. also showed a large gain in <br />presence while it had been scarce in previous years. It is apparent there is a fairly good groundwater <br />support, but in some of the more elevated mounds the distance to groundwater diminishes just <br />enough that there is less growth in the pure sand. Cattle impact here had been severe in the past as <br />the cattle frequently grazed in the wetland to the west where there is good forage and available water. <br />Most of the larger woody plants were heavily browsed by the cattle. Those had a good root system, <br />but little top growth. In 2006 (the first year of this study) there were a fair abundance of smaller <br />cottonwoods and willows that showed only minor to moderate browsing impact. <br />In 2007, herbaceous growth increased dramatically over the entire area. But woody growth <br />also made considerable progress with a great deal of recovery from previous browsing impacts. Leaf <br />density on the trees and shrubs increased dramatically and with the additional food producing tissues <br />growth of new shoots as well as existing shoots increased some. However, growth was not as <br />prominent as might be expected as the plants were undoubtedly putting a lot of energy into <br />producing more short branches and leaves. <br />In 2008, the overall vegetation development trends seen in 2007 continued, but at a <br />somewhat less dramatic pace. In part this reduced development rate was due to the rapid recovery in <br />2011 Annual Report Coal Creek Wetland Mitigation Permit DA 198811488 Page 9 <br />