Vegetation of Lower and Middle Cottonwood Islands Research Natural Area/Area ofCritical Environmental Concern

摘要

Lower and Middle Cottonwood Islands have been designated a Research Natural Area(RNA) and Area of Critical Environmental Concern (ACEC) by the Bureau of Land Management because of their suitability as ecological reference areas and their value for educational and research uses. A thorough vegetation inventory of the islands was conducted to determine what habitats, plant communities, and plant species are represented. This report describes the plant communities found and documents the present physiognomy of each with photographs taken from permanently established photopoints. The communities include a coyote willow community, a hairy goldaster community, a Louisiana sagewort community, a black cottonwood/Idaho fescue community, and ponderosa pine/bluebrunch wheatgrass community.