Rocky Mountain Research Station

Title: Southwestern Grassland Ecology

Author: Ford, Paulette L.; Potter, Deborah U.; Pendleton, Rosemary; Pendleton, Burton; Robbie, Wayne A.; Gottfried, Gerald J.

Date: 2004

Source: In: Finch, Deborah M., Editor. 2004. Assessment of grassland ecosystem conditions in the Southwestern United States. Volume 1. Gen. Tech. Rep. RMRS-GTR-135-vol. 1. Fort Collins, CO: U.S. Department of Agriculture, Forest Service, Rocky Mountain Research Station. p. 18-48

Station ID: GTR-RMRS-135

Description: This chapter provides a brief overview, and selected in-depth coverage, of the factors and processes that have formed, and continue to shape, our Southwestern grasslands. In general, this chapter looks at how distributions of grasslands are regulated by soils and climate, and modified by disturbance (natural and/or anthropogenic). The attendant ecological components of grasslands will vary according to climate, soil, and other biotic factors including competition, predation, and mutualism. A shifting equilibrium typically exists between grasslands, deserts, and shrublands in the Southwest, such that changes in the severity or frequency of disturbance events (such as grazing, fire, or drought) can cause a change from one community type to another.

Individual papers from this publication

Keywords: grasslands, ecological assessment, Southwestern United States, ecosystem conditions, Arizona, New Mexico, Texas, Oklahoma

View and Print this Publication (3.5 MB)

Publication Notes: 

• We recommend that you also print this page and attach it to the printout of the article, to retain the full citation information.
• This article was written and prepared by U.S. Government employees on official time, and is therefore in the public domain.
• You may send email to rschneider@fs.fed.us to request a hard copy of this publication. (Please specify exactly which publication you are requesting and your mailing address.)

 Get the latest version of the Adobe Acrobat reader or Acrobat Reader for Windows with Search and Accessibility

Citation

Ford, Paulette L.; Potter, Deborah U.; Pendleton, Rosemary; Pendleton, Burton; Robbie, Wayne A.; Gottfried, Gerald J.  2004.  Southwestern Grassland Ecology.   In: Finch, Deborah M., Editor. 2004. Assessment of grassland ecosystem conditions in the Southwestern United States. Volume 1. Gen. Tech. Rep. RMRS-GTR-135-vol. 1. Fort Collins, CO: U.S. Department of Agriculture, Forest Service, Rocky Mountain Research Station. p. 18-48.