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Guide to common northern rangeland plant communities and their management

Description

Native rangelands (forests, shrub lands and meadows) in northern Alberta are important sources of forage for livestock. When properly managed, they can provide ongoing grazing, wildlife habitat,... More ≫

Description

Native rangelands (forests, shrub lands and meadows) in northern Alberta are important sources of forage for livestock. When properly managed, they can provide ongoing grazing, wildlife habitat, harvestable timber, recreational areas and healthy watersheds. This book describes some of the common northern rangeland plant communities and can be used to: identify the native plant communities on your rangeland; estimate how each community can be grazed; and recognize when a community is overgrazed. This guide can be used in combination with Northern Range Plants and the Rangeland Health Assessment for Grassland, Forest and Tame Pasture Field Workbook.

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Range plant community types and carrying capacity for the subalpine subregion. Fourth approximation

Description

The Subalpine subregion is a Rocky Mountain altitudinal vegetation zone. The valley bottoms of the region are used for recreational horseback riding and commercial trail riding operations. As... More ≫

Description

The Subalpine subregion is a Rocky Mountain altitudinal vegetation zone. The valley bottoms of the region are used for recreational horseback riding and commercial trail riding operations. As well, in the southern part of the subregion, extensive areas of the subalpine are used to forage cattle. However, there is little information available on how grazing influences the plant community. To help develop range management prescriptions for the province, carrying capacity guides are being developed, including a plant classification system, for each natural and subregion in the province. This guide represents an analysis of the Alpine subregion, identifying over 100 plant community types. The dominant plant species, canopy cover, environmental conditions, response to grazing, forage production and carrying capacity are outlined for each type. This is a revision of the 1st, 2nd and 3rd approximations of the supalpine guide.

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Guide to range plant community types and carrying capacity for the Peace River parkland subregion in Alberta. First approximation

Description

The Peace River Parkland accounts for under one per cent of the province. The vegetation in the region is a mosaic and is dominated by forests of aspen and white spruce, wetlands and small remnant... More ≫

Description

The Peace River Parkland accounts for under one per cent of the province. The vegetation in the region is a mosaic and is dominated by forests of aspen and white spruce, wetlands and small remnant grasslands on the uplands and on valley slopes. The vegetative communities in this subregion provide summer range for livestock, primary habitat for wildlife, productive watersheds, timber and recreational areas. However, there is little information available on how grazing influences the plant community. To help develop range management prescriptions for the province, carrying capacity guides are being developed, including a plant classification system, for each natural and subregion in the province. This guide represents an analysis of the Peace River Parkland subregion, identifying some 66 plant community types. The dominant plant species, canopy cover, environmental conditions, forage production and carrying capacity are outlined for each type.

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Guide to range plant community types and carrying capacity for the dry and central mixedwood subregions in Alberta. 6th approximation

Description

The Dry and Central Mixedwood subregions cover nearly 40 per cent of the province. The vegetative communities in these subregions are important because they provide summer range for livestock,... More ≫

Description

The Dry and Central Mixedwood subregions cover nearly 40 per cent of the province. The vegetative communities in these subregions are important because they provide summer range for livestock, prime habitat for many species of wildlife, productive watersheds, recreational areas and timber production. However, there is limited information on their ecology and succession under the influence of livestock grazing. This guide provides a framework that can be used to easily group the vegetative community types. It is hoped the classification systems presented can be used to assess the ecology of the sites and develop integrated management plans within each region. This edition is a revision of the 5th approximation of the Range Plant Community Types and Carrying Capacity for the Dry and Central Mixedwood.

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Range plant community types and carrying capacity for the subalpine and alpine subregions. Third approximation

Description

The Subalpine subregion is a Rocky Mountain altitudinal vegetation zone. The valley bottoms of the region are used for recreational horseback riding and commercial trail riding operations. As... More ≫

Description

The Subalpine subregion is a Rocky Mountain altitudinal vegetation zone. The valley bottoms of the region are used for recreational horseback riding and commercial trail riding operations. As well, in the southern part of the subregion, extensive areas of the subalpine are used to forage cattle. However, there is little information available on how grazing influences the plant community. To help develop range management prescriptions for the province, carrying capacity guides are being developed, including a plant classification system, for each natural and subregion in the province. This guide represents an analysis of the Alpine subregion, identifying over 100 plant community types. The dominant plant species, canopy cover, environmental conditions, response to grazing, forage production and carrying capacity are outlined for each type.

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Plant community types of sand dunes and sand plains in selected areas of the boreal natural region

Description

This study focused on the inventory of natural and semi-natural plant communities. Unique or recurring plant communities were identified in the field and inventoried using standard provincial... More ≫

Description

This study focused on the inventory of natural and semi-natural plant communities. Unique or recurring plant communities were identified in the field and inventoried using standard provincial ecological site and vegetation forms. The concepts for potential plant communities were first developed in the field by tabulating the percent ground cover of dominant species within each stratum for each stand sampled. This preliminary grouping of stands with similar characteristics helped to identify potential communities and to direct sampling efforts. A range of site positions and ecological conditions were investigated in search of unique or recurring plant communities. Field data was then analysed using PC-ORD (Version 4.25) to statistically determine grouping of plant communities using Detrended Correspondence Analysis and agglomerative cluster analysis. The results were critically reviewed and final plant communities were then classified according to The International Classification of...

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Range plant community types and carrying capacity for the Lower Foothills subregion of Alberta. Fourth approximation

Description

The “Green Area” lands of the Lower Foothills subregion are classic examples of multiple use land. They provide summer range for livestock, primary habitat for wildlife, productive watersheds,... More ≫

Description

The “Green Area” lands of the Lower Foothills subregion are classic examples of multiple use land. They provide summer range for livestock, primary habitat for wildlife, productive watersheds, timber and recreational areas. However, there is little information available on how grazing influences the plant community. To help develop range management prescriptions for the province, carrying capacity guides are being developed, including a plant classification system, for each natural and subregion in the province. This guide represents an analysis of the Lower Foothills subregion, identifying over 120 plant community types. The dominant plant species, canopy cover, environmental conditions, response to grazing, forage production and carrying capacity are outlined for each type.

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Range plant community types and carrying capacity for the montane subregion. Sixth approximation

Description

The Montane subregion is one of the most diverse subregions in the province of Alberta, with a mosaic of different vegetative communities. This diversity means that these lands are valued for a... More ≫

Description

The Montane subregion is one of the most diverse subregions in the province of Alberta, with a mosaic of different vegetative communities. This diversity means that these lands are valued for a multitude of uses, including summer range for livestock. However, there is little information available on how grazing influences the plant community. To help develop range management prescriptions for the province, carrying capacity guides are being developed, including a plant classification system, for each natural and subregion in the province. This guide represents an analysis of the Montane subregion, identifying 141 plant community types. The dominant plant species, canopy cover, environmental conditions, response to grazing, forage production and carrying capacity are outlined for each type. This edition is a revision of the 2nd, 3rd, 4th and 5th approximations of the Range plant community types and carrying capacity for the Montane subregion.

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Guide to range plant community types and carrying capacity for the dry and central mixedwood subregions in Alberta. 5th approximation

Description

The Dry and Central Mixedwood subregions cover nearly 40 per cent of the province. The vegetative communities in these subregions are important because they provide summer range for livestock,... More ≫

Description

The Dry and Central Mixedwood subregions cover nearly 40 per cent of the province. The vegetative communities in these subregions are important because they provide summer range for livestock, prime habitat for many species of wildlife, productive watersheds, recreational areas and timber production. However, there is limited information on their ecology and succession under the influence of livestock grazing. This guide provides a framework that can be used to easily group the vegetative community types. It is hoped the classification systems presented can be used to assess the ecology of the sites and develop integrated management plans within each region. This edition is a revision of the 4th approximation of the Range Plant Community Types and Carrying Capacity for the Dry and Central Mixedwood Pub. No. T/058

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Survey and analysis of plant community types of Writing-on-Stone Provincial Park : final report

Description

A fundamental strategy in the preservation of functional ecosystems is to identify and preserve a full compliment of habitat types, which in return support a diversity of animals, plants, and... More ≫

Description

A fundamental strategy in the preservation of functional ecosystems is to identify and preserve a full compliment of habitat types, which in return support a diversity of animals, plants, and other life forms. Vegetation is an integral component of habitat and provides a relatively easy means of inventory and monitoring of ecosystem health both spatially and temporally. The current study, in Writing-on-Stone Provincial Park, focuses on the identification of unique riparian and coulee plant associations, or plant community type. Alberta Sustainable Resource Development contracted Wildlands Ecological to complete an inventory of natural/semi-natural plant communities, statistically analyse the data, and describe potential plant community or association types.

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