Biological soil crusts in grazed and ungrazed Wyoming sagebrush steppe

Biological soil crusts are regarded as an indicator of healthy landscapes. To understand the response of biological soil crusts to grazing in northern sagebrush steppe, we examined nine Artemisia-dominated sites in Wyoming where livestock have been excluded for 32–45 years. Using two common sampling methods (20 m line transects and 0.25 m2 quadrats) we determined biological soil crust cover and richness inside and outside exclosures. Total biological soil crust cover did not differ inside and outside the exclosures at any of the nine sites, regardless of monitoring method. Cover of biological soil crusts using the transect method ranged from 2% to 8% inside and 1% to 6% outside the exclosure. Cover of biological...

Categories: Publication; Types: Citation, Journal Citation; Tags: Journal of Arid Environments, lichen, moss, quadrat, rangeland exclosures, All tags... sandy loam soils, transect, Fewer tags