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Artemisia tridentata - Atriplex confertifolia Shrubland | NatureServe Biotics 2019
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Name: Artemisia tridentata - Atriplex confertifolia Shrubland
Reference: NatureServe Biotics 2019
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 (&gt;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 &lt;5% canopy cover) include <i>Atriplex nuttallii, Sarcobatus vermiculatus, Krascheninnikovia lanata</i>, and <i>Ericameria nauseosa</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, Hesperostipa 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: urn:lsid:vegbank.org:commConcept:29902-{59A0C317-EFD5-471F-8F28-967269003BF4}
Plot-observations of this Community Concept: 7
      Party Perspective according to: NatureServe (organization)
Perspective from: 23-Aug-1999 to: ongoing
      Names:   UID: ELEMENT_GLOBAL.2.684500 NatureServe ExplorerNatureServe Explorer logo
  Code: CEGL000993
  Translated: Big Sagebrush - Shadscale Saltbush Shrubland
  Scientific: Artemisia tridentata - Atriplex confertifolia Shrubland
(convergence) and Synonyms:
(similar) CEGL000993
(similar) Artemisia tridentata - Atriplex confertifolia Shrubland
(similar) Artemisia tridentata - Atriplex confertifolia Shrubland