Name:
A.1551
Reference:
EcoArt 2002
Description:
This grassland alliance occurs on flats and slopes of mesas and mountains within the Chihuahuan and Sonoran deserts and has been described from extreme southwestern New Mexico and south-central Arizona. Soils are sandy to gravelly silt loams. Vegetation included in this alliance is often distributed in patches and is characterized by a sparse to moderately dense graminoid layer dominated by ~Pleuraphis mutica (= Hilaria mutica)$ with a sparse shrub layer. The herbaceous layer is potentially diverse. Other characteristic graminoids may include species such as the annuals ~Aristida adscensionis, Bouteloua barbata, Chloris virgata, Eragrostis pectinacea, Eriochloa lemmonii$, and ~Panicum hirticaule$, and the perennials ~Bouteloua eriopoda, Cyperus esculentus, Eragrostis intermedia, Muhlenbergia porteri, Panicum obtusum$, and ~Tridens muticus$. The shrub layer consists of clumps and stringers of ~Larrea tridentata$ and ~Prosopis glandulosa$ or ~Prosopis velutina$. Other common shrubs may include ~Parkinsonia microphylla, Fouquieria splendens, Lycium berlandieri, Menodora scabra$, and ~Zinnia acerosa (= Zinnia pumila)$. Scattered forbs include species such as ~Allionia incarnata, Amaranthus palmeri, Hoffmannseggia glauca, Solanum elaeagnifolium, Kallstroemia parviflora$, and ~Talinum aurantiacum$. Scattered cacti, such as ~Opuntia engelmannii, Opuntia imbricata, Opuntia macrorhiza (= Opuntia leptocarpa), Opuntia spinosior$, and ~Echinocereus pectinatus$, may also be present. Diagnostic of this alliance is the ~Pleuraphis mutica$-dominated herbaceous layer with a significant shrub layer (>10% cover), and the lack of flooding.
Accession Code:
VB.CC.1311.A1551
Plot-observations of this Community Concept:
0
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