Rangeland Ecology & Management

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Species composition on reclaimed ski runs compared with unseeded areas
Author
Van Ommeren, R. J.
Publisher
Society for Range Management
Publication Year
2001-05-01
Body

The cover of native and non-native introduced plants was compared between seeded (reclaimed) ski runs and adjacent or nearby unseeded (control) areas at a managed ski area in northern Arizona to determine the potential effects of revegetation efforts on plant species composition of the area. Although vegetative cover was similar, plant species richness was significantly lower on reclaimed ski runs compared with control areas. At 3 of 4 sites, the number of plant species was more than 2-fold greater in control areas, although species richness was similar between control and reclaimed areas at 1 site. The proportion of native species was more than 3-fold greater in control areas compared with reclaimed ski runs. The proportion of non-native species was more than 5-fold greater on reclaimed ski runs than in control areas. Although sites differed substantially in time since seeding, no evidence was found at 3 of the 4 sites for either an invasion of non-native species into the native plant community, or significant re-establishment of native species in reclaimed areas. Relatively high biomass of native species on a reclaimed ski run at 1 site appeared to be tied to a low level of initial disturbance and favorable conditions for growth. Results suggested that minimizing initial soil disturbance, retaining topsoil, and maintaining islands or patches of natural vegetation within cleared areas promoted the re-establishment of native species on ski runs. The Journal of Range Management archives are made available by the Society for Range Management and the University of Arizona Libraries. Contact lbry-journals@email.arizona.edu for further information. Migrated from OJS platform August 2020

Language
en
Resource Type
Text
Document Type
Journal Issue/Article
Digital Object Identifier (DOI)
10.2307/4003252
Additional Information
Van Ommeren, R. J. (2001). Species composition on reclaimed ski runs compared with unseeded areas. Journal of Range Management, 54(3), 307-311.
IISN
0022-409X
OAI Identifier
oai:repository.arizona.edu:10150/643874
Journal Volume
54
Journal Number
3
Journal Pages
307-311
Journal Name
Journal of Range Management
Keywords
sowing
disturbed soils
skiing
topsoil
soil degradation
ground cover
grasslands
reclamation
species diversity
introduced species
botanical composition
Arizona
disturbance
reclamation
ski runs
non-native species
richness