Shallow Stony, 4000-6000 feet

Description

State 1 Narrative:
State 1 represents shrub steppe with no invasive or exotic weed species. Each functional, structural group would have one or more native species. Communities with a dominance of annual grasses have never been seen on Mountain Shallow Stony.

The Reference Community 1.1 is dominated by a trio of native bunchgrasses – prairie, junegrass, Idaho fescue and bluebunch wheatgrass. Forbs are prominent but mountain big sagebrush is a minor component in the Reference Community.


At-risk Communities:
Communities appear to resist invasion by invasive weeds.


Transitions from State to State:
There are no transitions form the Reference State to another state. Invasive species are not as competitive as they are at lower elevations.

Recovery:
Recovery is not necessary for Shallow Stony, 4,000-6,000 feet as there is no experience with invasive species on this site.

If invasive species were to establish dominance, this condition would be considered non-reversible. Due to a short growing season, shallow soil depth, surface rock and rock within the soil profile, and the equipment limitations thereof, seeding is not practical for the Shallow Stony 4000-6000 feet ecological site.

Restoration of native grasses and sedges, sagebrush, native forbs and the soil biotic crust would be very problematic at best on this ecological site. Seeds must germinate. Seedlings and plugged plants need soil moisture and time to become established. In most years, seeds and plugs may not have a chance as site conditions on shallow stony sites can change quickly. Drying winds and bright sun can turn a snowy or muddy site into a hard crust before plants are established. So, the timing of all recovery efforts would have an extremely narrow window of opportunity on Shallow Stony, 4,000-6,000 feet. Perhaps the only avenue for recovery would be to plant plugs of native species which is a very costly and risky proposition.

Submodel