Status and distribution of Chihuahuan Desert Grasslands in the United States and Mexico (Evaluacion del estado y distribucion de los pastizales del Desierto Chihuahuense en los Estados Unidos y Mexico)

Abstract

Grasslands comprise a small part of the Chihuahuan Desert but are vital to the biological diversity of the ecoregion. Characteristic grasses of the Chihuahuan Desert are tobosa (Pleuraphis mutica) and black grama (Bouteloua eriopoda) but other common species include alakali sacaton (Sporobolus airoides), big alkali sacaton (S. wrightii), mesa dropseed (S. flexuosus), blue grama (B. gracilis), sideoats grama (B. curtipendula), hairy grama (B. hirsuta), slender grama (B. filiformis), chino grama (B. brevista), spruce top grama (B. chondrosioides), bush muhly (Muhlenbergia porteri), several three awns (Aristida spp.), and fluff grass (Dasyochloa pulchela) (Johnson 1974, Dinerstein et al. 2000). Many of the sites discussed in this paper and in greater detail in Dinerstein et al. (2000), contain large, contiguous tracts of grassland that support critical ecological processes, numerous endemic species and high plant and animal diversity.

Parent Publication

• Grasslands ecosystems, endangered species, and sustainable ranching in the Mexico-U.S. borderlands: Conference proceedings

Citation

Desmond, Martha; Montoya, Jennifer Atchley. 2006. Status and distribution of Chihuahuan Desert Grasslands in the United States and Mexico (Evaluacion del estado y distribucion de los pastizales del Desierto Chihuahuense en los Estados Unidos y Mexico). In: Basurto, Xavier; Hadley, Diana, eds. 2006. Grasslands ecosystems, endangered species, and sustainable ranching in the Mexico-U.S. borderlands: Conference proceedings. RMRS-P-40. Fort Collins, CO: U.S. Department of Agriculture, Forest Service, Rocky Mountain Research Station. p. 17-25