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ERO Resources <br />U <br />Sagebrush-Nheatgrass/Sagebrush Complex <br />This complex is dominated by the Big Sagebrush-~eatgrass vegetation <br />type. Big sagebrush areas that exhibit high cover values are inclusions <br />in the type resulting fros surface disturbance. The dense sagebrush <br />stands are postclimaxes formed as the end result of overgrazing and <br />maintained by the erosional cyoles established by overgrazing t0aubermire <br />1942, Costello 19441. Soils underlying the dense sagebrush inclusions <br />tend to be somewhat deeper than those charaoterizirg the sagebrush- <br />wheatgrass type. The deeper soils tend to favor not only the persistence <br />of sagebrush, but also the post-climax increases in this species due to <br />sheep grazing and traffic. The deeper soils are favorable to the <br />sagebrush because of higher available soil moisture conditiorre. In <br />addition, the sagebrush inclusions sometimes demonstrate more coarse soils <br />than the adjacent sagebrush-wheatgrass sites. The sanxiy soils have lower <br />available soil moisture characteristics at the surface. Subsequently, the <br />• sites do not favor herbaceous growth initially. The increased <br />environmental adversities created by grazing and animal traffic, and <br />perpetuated as cycling erosional events are additional deterrents to any <br />development in the herb layer. Rabbitbrush is common in the sandy soil <br />areas and is a reliable indicator of the presence of the dense wgebrush <br />inclusions. <br />Sagebrush-Wheatgrass/l+lestern Wheatgrass Complex <br />This lateral gradient interrupts the overall gradient on sides lopes IMap <br />128, Pocked . The Big Sagebrush-Hheatgrass vegetation type is the major <br />component of thic complex. The western wheatgrass inclusions are patchy <br />and apparently somewhat restricted by soil characteristics. Nestern <br />wheatgracs has been reduced or eliminated from many sites on which it was <br />formerly common. The small sites this species now occupies act like <br />refuges for the remainder of much of the population. Soil depth and <br />texture are important determining factors in the complex. The grass <br />• <br />II.F-22 <br />