Name:
Poa pratensis - Bouteloua dactyloides - Centaurea spp. Great Plains Ruderal Grassland & Shrubland Macrogroup
Reference:
NatureServe Biotics 2019
Description:
This macrogroup is found in the Great Plains from north of the U.S.-Canadian border to extreme northern Mexico. It is dominated by exotic, invasive grasses, forbs, or, in the south, deciduous shrubs. These species can become abundant after significant disturbance, often associated with agricultural activities, or a disruption of natural disturbance regimes. Common disturbances which favor establishment of this macrogroup include long-term, heavy grazing, planting exotic species for livestock forage, plowing land and then abandoning it, and a disruption of the natural fire regime. Vegetation cover varies from low to very high. Abundant species vary greatly in this macrogroup, depending on the geographic location, seed sources, and nature of land use. Common species in the north include <i>Agropyron cristatum, Bromus inermis, Bromus arvensis, Bromus tectorum, Elymus repens</i> (on more moist sites), <i>Phleum pratense, Poa pratensis</i>, and <i>Thinopyrum intermedium</i>. In the south, <i>Bothriochloa ischaemum var. songarica, Bouteloua dactyloides</i> (a native but can be dominant on overgrazed rangeland), <i>Dichanthium annulatum, Pennisetum ciliare</i>, and the shrubs <i>Baccharis neglecta, Crataegus mollis, Crataegus viridis</i>, and <i>Rhus lanceolata</i> can be common. <i>Gutierrezia texana</i> and <i>Amphiachyris dracunculoides</i> are often extremely abundant on overgrazed sites in Texas. Across the range the forbs <i>Ambrosia</i> spp., <i>Artemisia absinthium, Carduus nutans, Centaurea</i> spp., <i>Cirsium arvense, Convolvulus arvensis, Dipsacus fullonum</i>, and <i>Euphorbia esula</i> can be common. This macrogroup also includes native upland shortgrass prairie areas dominated by invasive <i>Prosopis glandulosa</i>. This macrogroup can be found on mesic to dry sites on a variety of soils where disturbance regimes have been altered sufficiently to allow the establishment of the exotic species.
Accession Code:
urn:lsid:vegbank.org:commConcept:40798-{1062513B-DCE4-4BF0-BE71-8D0B45CF7F31}
Plot-observations of this Community Concept:
0
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