The vegetative communities in the subalpine meadows of Hunts
Cove, Mt. Jefferson, and some of the major environmental factors
affecting them were studied in the summer of 1971. Hunts Cove is in
the subalpine Tsuga mertensiana parkland of the Central Oregon High
Cascades. Habitats within the Cove vary considerably; elevation
changes from 1500 m to 1900 m; water regime ranges from bogs and
seeps to desert; snowlie varies as much as two months at different
points in the same year.
Estimates of vegetative cover and frequency were taken on 300
quadrats. Snow lie was monitored on a weekly basis. Soils were collected
and analyzed.
Eleven meadow communities were distinguished. They are:
A. The short sedge communities, 1) Carex nigricans-Aster and
2) Carex nigricans-Polytrichum on late snowfree, poorly drained sites;
B. Bryophyte, on very late snowfree, damp, shaded soil; C. Heath
communities on well drained sites, 1) Phyllodoce-Cassiope on
exposed late snowfree slopes, 2) Vaccinium deliciosum on moderately
late snowfree slopes and 3) Potentilla-Carex nigricans on very
late snowfree sites with rodent activity; D. Senecio lush herb on mesic
warm sites; E. Hydric communities, 1) Eleocharis-Aulacomnium
occurring in stagnant water, 2) Carex rostrata-Sphagnum in freely
moving water, 3) Carex scopulorum in seeps and bogs with permanent
water supply, probably an edaphic climax, and 4) Carex sitchensis in
swamps flooded during meltoff.
These communities were arrayed in a floristic ordination and the
position of all hydric, lush herb, and short sedge sample plots was
found to parallel snowfree dates. Well drained heath communities
became snowfree in the order expected from other studies.
Comparison of the communities with other studies from the
Northwest suggests Phyllodoce-Cassiope, Vaccinium deliciosum and
the Carex nigricans communities to be parts of a consistent vegetative
pattern extending north into Southern B. C. / Graduation date: 1973
| Identifer | oai:union.ndltd.org:ORGSU/oai:ir.library.oregonstate.edu:1957/35040 |
| Date | 22 February 1973 |
| Creators | Campbell, Alcetta Gilbert |
| Contributors | Chilcote, Willliam W. |
| Source Sets | Oregon State University |
| Language | en_US |
| Detected Language | English |
| Type | Thesis/Dissertation |
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