Preliminary Classification of Native Wheat Grass (Agropyron spp.) Community Types in Alberta Prepared for: Alberta Natural Heritage Information Centre Alberta Environment Edmonton, Alberta Prepared by: K. Vujnovic J. Bentz Geowest Environmental Consultants Ltd. Suite 203, 4209 - 99 Street Edmonton, Alberta T6E 5V7 April, 2001 Preliminary Classification of Native Agropyron Community Types in Alberta EXECUTIVE SUMMARY Biological diversity is under threat and declining, both within Alberta and Canada, as well as around the world. Alberta’s natural regions and the biodiversity they contain are affected by human activities and natural influences, including urban growth, agriculture, large-scale industrial activities such as forest harvesting and petroleum extraction, and climate change. The Canadian Biodiversity Strategy was developed to sustain and promote biological diversity in Canada and to help combat this decline. Alberta Natural Heritage Information Centre (ANHIC) collects, evaluates and makes available information on elements of natural biodiversity in Alberta, including flora, fauna and natural plant communities. A preliminary tracking list of natural plant community elements is currently under development. However, ANHIC requires more information on plant community types in Alberta to better define their characteristics and species composition and to determine their distribution and provincial ranking. In support of ANHIC, Alberta Environment contracted Geowest Environmental Consultants Ltd. to produce a synopsis of historical data on native Agropyron (wheat grass) plant community types and to create a preliminary provincial classification of these community types. The following specific project objectives were identified: • review and compilation of existing information from various sources (including existing field plot data, published literature, unpublished reports, consultations with knowledgeable individuals, etc.) on native Agropyron community types in Alberta; • development of a comprehensive preliminary classification of Agropyron plant communities for each alliance or major vegetation type; • cross-referencing of the proposed Agropyron community types to the community types described in other Alberta studies, and in adjacent provinces and states; • evaluation and assignment of a preliminary provincial ranking to each community type; • identification of knowledge gaps; • completion of a community characterization abstract for each community type, for inclusion in the ANHIC database; and • production of a summary report. The classification was based on an exhaustive literature review of relevant Agropyron community types identified previously within Alberta and in other geographic jurisdictions including Saskatchewan, British Columbia, Montana, Washington, Colorado, Idaho and Utah. As well, cluster and ordination analyses were completed of 416 selected plots from the Ecological Site Inventory System (ESIS) electronic database provided by Alberta Environment, Resource Data Division. The classification was based on the attributes of the vegetation as well as environmental site factors. Procedures outlined in the publication International Classification of Ecological Communities: Terrestrial Vegetation of the United States: Volume 1 - The National Geowest Environmental Consultants Ltd. Page i Preliminary Classification of Native Agropyron Community Types in Alberta Classification System: Development, Status, and Applications (Grossman et al. 1998) were followed. The preliminary classification of Agropyron community types based on the literature review and the cluster analysis of the ESIS database identified 39 potential Agropyron dominated/codominated community types within Alberta. These were grouped into four Herbaceous Alliances. Within the Agropyron spicatum Alliance, five communities were identified: Agropyron spicatum; Agropyron spicatum - Festuca campestris; Agropyron spicatum - Elymus innovatus - Aster conspicuous; Agropyron spicatum - Carex obtusata; and, Agropyron spicatum - Festuca idahoensis; Within the Agropyron trachycaulum Alliance, 11 communities were identified: Agropyron trachycaulum; Agropyron trachycaulum - Stipa spp.; Agropyron trachycaulum - Carex atherodes; Agropyron trachycaulum - Carex praegracilis - Fragaria virginiana; Agropyron trachycaulum - Distichlis stricta; Agropyron trachycaulum - Koeleria macrantha; Agropyron trachycaulum - Festuca ovina - Poa palustris - Equisetum arvense; Agropyron trachycaulum - Hierochloe odorata; Agropyron trachycaulum - Elymus innovatus - Thalictrum venulosum; Poa interior - Agropyron trachycaulum; and, Hordeum jubatum - Agropyron trachycaulum - Distichlis stricta. Within the Agropyron dasystachyum Alliance, 11 communities were identified: Agropyron dasystachyum; Agropyron dasystachyum - Calamovilfa longifolia; Agropyron dasystachyum - Agropyron smithii; Agropyron dasystachyum - Koeleria macrantha - Artemisia frigida; Agropyron dasystachyum - Poa pratensis; Agropyron dasystachyum - Muhlenbergia cuspidata; Agropyron dasystachyum - Artemisia dracunculus - Artemisia frigida; Agropyron dasystachyum - Antennaria nitida; Agropyron dasystachyum - Stipa comata; Agropyron dasystachyum - Agropyron subsecundum; and, Juniperus horizontalis - Arctostaphylos uva-ursi / Agropyron dasystachyum - Elymus innovatus. Within the Agropyron smithii Alliance, 12 communities were identified: Agropyron smithii; Agropyron smithii - Artemisia ludoviciana; Agropyron smithii - Artemisia frigida; Agropyron smithii - Artemisia tilesii - Artemisia frigida; Agropyron smithii - Bouteloua gracilis; Agropyron smithii - Hordeum jubatum; Agropyron smithii - Pyrrocoma uniflora; Agropyron smithii - Atriplex nuttallii; Agropyron smithii - Stipa comata - Bouteloua gracilis; Carex stenophylla - Agropyron smithii; Distichlis stricta - Agropyron smithii; and, Koeleria macrantha - Agropyron smithii. All proposed Agropyron community types were described and assigned a preliminary provincial ranking. Knowledge gaps were identified and strategies to address these gaps were provided. Community characterization abstracts were also compiled for each of the proposed community types. The information in this report can be used to update the preliminary community tracking list by including new community types, as well as by changing ranking for those communities that are currently on the list. It can also be used to decide which community types need further studies and to prioritize these studies. Finally, this preliminary classification of Agropyron communities in Alberta is a part of a larger project to classify and describe the vegetation of Alberta within a North American context. Geowest Environmental Consultants Ltd. Page ii Preliminary Classification of Native Agropyron Community Types in Alberta ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS We wish to thank Lorna Allen (Alberta Natural Heritage Information Centre, Alberta Environment), Keith Ainsley (Resource Data Division, Alberta Environment), Arthur Schwarz (University of Alberta), Mike Willoughby (Land and Forest Service, Alberta Environment), and Russell Wells (Resource Data Division, Alberta Environment) for assistance throughout the project. We are also grateful to Dragomir Vujnovic for his assistance in report preparation. Dennis O’Leary, Jim Squarok and Terry Lang (Geowest Environmental Consultants Ltd.) also contributed to the succesful completion of this project. Geowest Environmental Consultants Ltd. Page iii Preliminary Classification of Native Agropyron Community Types in Alberta TABLE OF CONTENTS Page EXECUTIVE SUMMARY.................................................................................................................i ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS..............................................................................................................iii TABLE OF CONTENTS.................................................................................................................. v LIST OF TABLES.......................................................................................................................... vii LIST OF FIGURES ......................................................................................................................viii LIST OF APPENDICES ...............................................................................................................viii 1. INTRODUCTION...................................................................................................................... 1 1.1 Background Information ......................................................................................... 1 1.2 Project Objectives.................................................................................................... 3 2. METHODS................................................................................................................................. 5 2.1 Collection of Background Information ................................................................... 5 2.2 Development of Comprehensive Classification...................................................... 5 2.2.1 Vegetation Data Analyses and Classification.............................................. 7 2.2.2 Ordination of Agropyron Community Types Identified by Cluster Analysis...................................................................................... 9 2.3 Cross referencing of proposed Agropyron community types with the literature and analysis of plot data ..........................................................................................