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Hesperostipa comata - Bouteloua gracilis - Carex filifolia Herbaceous Vegetation | Midwestern Ecology Working Group...
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Name: Hesperostipa comata - Bouteloua gracilis - Carex filifolia Herbaceous Vegetation Reference: Midwestern Ecology Working Group... Description: This needlegrass - grama grass prairie community is common in the northern and central Great Plains of the United States. Stands occur on flat to rolling topography with deep (40-100 cm), sandy loam to loam, coarser-textured soils. They are typically associated with uplands, though they may also occur lower in the landscape, such as coulee and draw bottoms, if soils are sufficiently coarse (usually sandstone-derived). The type is found at elevations ranging from 610-1680 m (2000-5500 feet); average annual precipitation associated with these elevation param ranges from slightly less than 25 cm to over 50 cm (10-20 inches). The vegetation is dominated by moderate to moderately dense medium-tall grasses. <i>Hesperostipa comata (= Stipa comata)</i> is the tallest of the dominant species, sending seed heads to a maximum height of approximately 1 m. The rhizomatous graminoids <i>Bouteloua gracilis</i> and <i>Carex filifolia</i>, the other two dominant/codominant species, do not usually exceed 0.5 m. <i>Calamovilfa longifolia</i> is often found with high cover values on sandier soils, and <i>Koeleria macrantha</i> cover increases on degraded sites. There are regionalized expressions of variability with <i>Carex inops ssp. heliophila</i> surpassing <i>Carex filifolia</i> in Colorado and <i>Calamagrostis montanensis</i> being at least as important as the diagnostic species in north-central Montana. <i>Pascopyrum smithii</i> is consistently present. For woody species, subshrub forms (<i>Artemisia frigida, Gutierrezia sarothrae, Rosa arkansana</i>) have the highest cover and constancy, but their total cover does not sum to more than 5%, except on overgrazed sites. Cover values for forbs are low (the exception being <i>Selaginella densa</i>). Geographic setting influences forb composition to some degree, with <i>Sphaeralcea coccinea, Phlox hoodii, Heterotheca villosa, Gaura coccinea</i>, and <i>Liatris punctata</i> common in the northern areas, and <i>Lygodesmia juncea, Opuntia polyacantha, Artemisia dracunculus</i>, and <i>Ratibida columnifera</i> seeming to increase to the eastern and southern areas.  Accession Code: VB.CC.36975.CEGL002037 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:   Common: Needle-and-Thread - Blue Grama Mixedgrass Prairie   Translated: Needle-and-Thread - Blue Grama - Threadleaf Sedge Herbaceous Vegetation   Scientific: Hesperostipa comata - Bouteloua gracilis - Carex filifolia Herbaceous Vegetation   Code: CEGL002037   UID: ELEMENT_GLOBAL.2.684520 NatureServe Explorer