Classification of the plant communities of Craters of the Moon National Monument and Preserve, Idaho

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Work on the vegetation map for Craters of the Moon National Monument and Preserve was initiated in May 2006. Craters of the Moon National Monument and Preserve lies on the Upper Snake River Plain in south central Idaho. The area encompasses sparse, vegetated lava and cinder cones; sagebrush steppe; grasslands; wetlands; and montane shrublands, woodlands, and forest. Three data sets were selected to augment field data collected specifically for the mapping project. Together with data collected in 2006, 1,241 vegetation samples were identified for plant community classification analyses. Initial plant community groups were identified using hierarchical cluster analysis. Plant community groups were successively partitioned to optimize within-group homogeneity, between-group difference, and the number of groups using indicator species analysis and multi-response permutation procedures. Decisions regarding the identification of plant associations within the data were informed by cross-walking candidate community groupings to the National Vegetation Classification. Classification and regression tree analysis (recursive partitioning) were employed in the development of dichotomous keys and the evaluation of cluster analysis results. Ninety-three plant communities are identified as occurring within the study area. One plant community is classified at the alliance level; the remainder are classified at the association level. Nearly 50% of the associations identified within the Monument and Preserve are currently listed in the National Vegetation Classification. Minor name-changes are proposed. The classification largely corresponds to vegetation types identified by Day and Wright (1985). Associations described but not recognized by the National Vegetation Classification include: 1) semi-natural vegetation (18 associations) and 2) plant communities (21 associations) that have not been described previously at the association level. Plant associations that should be considered for inclusion in the National Vegetation Classification are listed. A dichotomous key to the classification is presented. Summaries of stand composition are provided.

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ELECTRONIC FILE - Ecology

SWAP (2/19/2016) citation:
Rust SK, Wolken P. 2008. Classification of the plant communities of Craters of the Moon National Monument and Preserve, Idaho. Fort Collins (CO): National Park Service. 22 p. Natural Resource Technical Report NPS/UCBN/NRTR – 2008/096