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

stdcommconcept3451734517

View Community Concepts - Detail

Artemisia tridentata - Atriplex confertifolia Shrubland | Western Ecology Working Group of...
click to update datacart
Name: Artemisia tridentata - Atriplex confertifolia Shrubland Reference: Western Ecology Working Group of... Description: This sagebrush shrubland occurs in the northwestern Great Plains and adjacent basins and mountains of the western United States, especially in badlands regions. Stands occur on shallow to deep soils with a comparably wide range of textures. Soils are derived from sandstone and shale sedimentary formations, including those with a calcareous composition, and they tend to have both high pH (7.6-8.4) and conductivity. This type is apparently not restricted by slope or aspect, occurring on both alluvial fans/terraces and highly eroded badlands with steep slopes (>80%). The known elevational range is from approximately 915-1435 m (3000-4700 feet). The visual aspect of this association, especially where it occurs on badlands and eroded surfaces, is often that of a depauperate shrubland, often with less than 25% cover. <i>Artemisia tridentata ssp. wyomingensis</i> and <i>Atriplex confertifolia</i> constitute from 5-25% combined cover, with <i>Artemisia tridentata</i> strongly dominant. In the Bighorn Basin and Bighorn Sedimentary Mountains Sections of Montana, other shrubs with greater than 50% constancy (but <5% canopy cover) include <i>Atriplex nuttallii, Sarcobatus vermiculatus, Krascheninnikovia lanata</i>, and <i>Ericameria nauseosa (= Chrysothamnus nauseosus)</i>. Subshrubs <i>Eriogonum brevicaule</i> and <i>Eriogonum pauciflorum</i> are relatively constant on a regional basis. There is little consistency to the composition of the herbaceous layer, which varies from site to site across the region. The graminoids constitute the next most abundant component, but their combined cover usually does not exceed 5%; those grasses with the highest constancy are <i>Achnatherum hymenoides (= Oryzopsis hymenoides), Hesperostipa comata (= Stipa comata)</i>, and <i>Aristida purpurea</i>. <i>Phlox hoodii, Sphaeralcea coccinea</i> and <i>Opuntia polyacantha</i> appear to have the highest constancy values, but seldom exceed 1% cover.  Accession Code: VB.CC.34517.CEGL000993 Plot-observations of this Community Concept: 0
	Party Perspective according to: NatureServe (organization) Perspective from: 17-Nov-2014 to: 01-May-2019
	status: accepted This Community's Level: association This Community's Children: [none]		Names:   UID: ELEMENT_GLOBAL.2.684500 NatureServe Explorer   Translated: Big Sagebrush - Shadscale Saltbush Shrubland   Scientific: Artemisia tridentata - Atriplex confertifolia Shrubland   Code: CEGL000993