Three fence-line comparisons were made to determine the effect of grazing intensity on the density and dispersion of bitterbrush (Purshia tridentata (Pursh) DC.) in a uniform habitat. Bitterbrush density was reduced by heavy grazing but was not affected by moderate use. The large increases in mean area per plant that occurred under heavy grazing did not alter the overall form of random population dispersion. In a comparison of heavy versus moderate use, inclusion of 1-year-old plants on the moderately grazed area (10% of population) caused aggregation of the population. Even though a larger number of 1-year-old plants (22% of population) occurred in the heavily grazed comparison, the population remained random. The contrasting reaction probably resulted from a differential pattern of seedling mortality due to different amounts of herbaceous understory in the two shrub populations. This material was digitized as part of a cooperative project between the Society for Range Management and the University of Arizona Libraries. 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
Scholarly peer-reviewed articles published by the Society for Range Management. Access articles on a rolling-window basis from vol. 1, 1948 up to 5 years from the current year. Formerly Journal of Range Management (JRM). More recent content is available by subscription from SRM.