Login | Datasets | Logout
Jump to... Home PLOT search PLANT search COMMUNITY search Simple search Manage datasets Tutorial About FAQ ------- Site map VegBranch Data dictionary ERD

stdcommconcept1806518065

View Community Concepts - Detail

Grayia spinosa Shrubland Alliance | Western Ecology Working Group of...
click to update datacart
Name: Grayia spinosa Shrubland Alliance Reference: Western Ecology Working Group of... Description: Vegetation in this alliance occurs throughout the lower to middle elevations (600-1600 m) of the Great Basin and the eastern Mojave Desert, usually on mountain slopes or alluvial fans bordering intermountain basins. The climate is arid to semi-arid with precipitation ranging from 15-30 cm annually. Winter precipitation dominates in the western area, with summer rain becoming more important eastward. Soils are highly variable, but are generally coarse-textured and well-drained, and often alkaline. The vegetation is more drought-tolerant than Artemisia tridentata-dominated communities and typically occurs where local climate or salty soils create high moisture stress. This alliance is characterized by a sparse to moderately dense shrub layer of Grayia spinosa. Other shrub species are species of Mojavean or Great Basin affinities. Species found in southern stands include Menodora spinescens, Picrothamnus desertorum (= Artemisia spinescens), Ephedra nevadensis, Atriplex confertifolia, Atriplex canescens, Coleogyne ramosissima, and Larrea tridentata. Occasionally, scattered individuals of Yucca brevifolia may be emergent through the shrub layer. The herbaceous layer in these xeric southern stands is typically sparse with Achnatherum speciosum (= Stipa speciosa), Pleuraphis jamesii (= Hilaria jamesii), Achnatherum hymenoides (= Oryzopsis hymenoides), Navarretia spp., and Eriogonum spp. being common associates. Northward, and at higher elevations, the Mojavean element drops out, and common shrub associates include Artemisia nova, Artemisia tridentata, Ephedra viridis, Chrysothamnus spp., and Prunus andersonii. Herbaceous associates include Elymus elymoides, Poa secunda, Stipa spp., and Festuca spp.  Accession Code: VB.CC.18065.GRAYIASPINOSASH Plot-observations of this Community Concept: 0
	Party Perspective according to: NatureServe (organization) Perspective from: 26-Nov-1997 to: 01-May-2019
	status: accepted This Community's Level: Alliance This Community's Children: [none]		Names:   Scientific: Grayia spinosa Shrubland Alliance   Translated: Spiny Hop-sage Shrubland Alliance   UID: HIGHER_CLASS_UNIT.2.125626 NatureServe Explorer   Code: A.1038