Ecological site R030XB106NV

R030XA002NV	LIMESTONE HILL 5-7 P.Z.
R030XA006NV	SHALLOW LIMESTONE SLOPE 5-7 P.Z.
R030XA066NV	CALCAREOUS LOAM 5-7 P.Z.
R030XB105NV	BOULDERY LIMESTONE SLOPE 5-7 P.Z.

R030XA006NV	SHALLOW LIMESTONE SLOPE 5-7 P.Z. CORA & ATCO dominant shrubs
R030XB010NV	LOAMY SLOPE 5-7 P.Z. PLRI3 minor spp., if present
R030XB125NV	CHANNERY HILL 3-5 P.Z. Much less productive site
R030XB123NV	LIMESTONE SLOPE 5-7 P.Z. ATCO rare to absent
R030XB111NV	GRAVELLY LIMESTONE SLOPE 5-7 P.Z. Less productive site
R030XA002NV	LIMESTONE HILL 5-7 P.Z. Much less productive site

Tree	Not specified
Shrub	(1) Atriplex confertifolia
Herbaceous	(1) Pleuraphis rigida

Landforms	(1) Hill (2) Mountain slope
Elevation	3200 – 4000 ft
Slope	30 – 50 %

Frost-free period (average)	240 days
Freeze-free period (average)
Precipitation total (average)	10 in

Drainage class	Well drained

Ecological dynamics

Please refer to group concept R030XB123NV to view the provisional STM.

As ecological condition deteriorates, wolfberry and shadscale increase perennial herbaceous plants decrease. Following wildfire, snakeweed and desertrue greatly increase. Species likely to invade this site are annual forbs and grasses.

Fire Ecology:
Shadscale communities are usually unaffected by fire because of low fuel loads, although a year of exceptionally heavy winter rains can generate fuels by producing a heavy stand of annual forbs and grasses. The mean fire return interval for shadscale communities range from 35 to 100 years. Increased presence of non-native annual grasses, such as cheatgrass, can alter fire regimes by increasing fire frequency under wet to near-normal summer moisture conditions. Winterfat is either killed or top-killed by fire, depending on fire severity. Severe fire can kill the perennating buds located several inches above the ground surface and thus kills the plant. In addition, severe fire usually destroys seed on the plant. Low-severity fire scorches or only partially consumes the aboveground portions of winterfat and thus does not cause high mortality. Fire typically destroys aboveground parts of Anderson wolfberry, but the degree of damage to the plant depends on fire severity. Fire most likely top-kills big galleta. Big galleta sprouts from rhizomes following fire. Damage to big galleta from fire varies, depending on whether big galleta is dormant when burned. If big galleta is dry, damage may be severe. However, when plants are green, fire will tend to be less severe and damage may be minimal, with big galleta recovering quickly. Bush muhly regenerates following fire from soil-stored seed. Fire probably top-kills bush muhly. Burning causes at least short-term decline of bush muhly. Recovery time is thought to vary considerably and is probably dependent on postfire weather and competition.

State and transition model

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Ecosystem states

1. Reference Plant Community

State 1 submodel, plant communities

1.1. Reference Plant Community

State 1
Reference Plant Community

Community 1.1
Reference Plant Community

This reference plant community is dominated by big galleta grass and shadscale. Winterfat and wolfberry species are important plants associated with this site.
Potential vegetative composition is about 65% grasses, 10% annual and perennial forbs, and 25% shrubs. Approximate ground cover (basal and crown) is 15 to 25 percent.

Figure 3. Annual production by plant type (representative values) or group (midpoint values)

Table 5. Annual production by plant type

Plant type	Low (lb/acre)	Representative value (lb/acre)	High (lb/acre)
Grass/Grasslike	455	585	715
Shrub/Vine	175	225	275
Forb	70	90	110
Total	700	900	1100

Additional community tables

Table 6. Community 1.1 plant community composition

Group	Common name	Symbol	Scientific name	Annual production ()	Foliar cover (%)
Grass/Grasslike
1	Primary Perennial Grasses			495–720
	big galleta	PLRI3	Pleuraphis rigida	450–585	–
	bush muhly	MUPO2	Muhlenbergia porteri	45–135	–
2	Secondary Perennial Grasses			18–90
	Indian ricegrass	ACHY	Achnatherum hymenoides	5–27	–
	desert needlegrass	ACSP12	Achnatherum speciosum	5–27	–
	threeawn	ARIST	Aristida	5–27	–
	slim tridens	TRMU	Tridens muticus	5–27	–
3	Annual Grasses			1–27
Forb
4	Perennial forbs			18–45
5	Annual forbs			1–45
Shrub/Vine
6	Primary shrubs			81–279
	shadscale saltbush	ATCO	Atriplex confertifolia	45–135	–
	winterfat	KRLA2	Krascheninnikovia lanata	18–72	–
	water jacket	LYAN	Lycium andersonii	9–36	–
	peach thorn	LYCO2	Lycium cooperi	9–36	–
7	Secondary shrubs			45–135
	burrobush	AMDU2	Ambrosia dumosa	9–45	–
	Torrey's jointfir	EPTO	Ephedra torreyana	9–45	–
	pricklypear	OPUNT	Opuntia	9–45	–
	Mojave woodyaster	XYTO2	Xylorhiza tortifolia	9–45	–
	Joshua tree	YUBR	Yucca brevifolia	9–45	–
	Mojave yucca	YUSC2	Yucca schidigera	9–45	–

Location 1: Clark County, NV
Township/Range/Section	T24S R57E S26
General legal description	Low elevation mountain sideslopes three to four miles northeast of Sandy, Clark County, Nevada.

Rangeland health reference sheet

Interpreting Indicators of Rangeland Health is a qualitative assessment protocol used to determine ecosystem condition based on benchmark characteristics described in the Reference Sheet. A suite of 17 (or more) indicators are typically considered in an assessment. The ecological site(s) representative of an assessment location must be known prior to applying the protocol and must be verified based on soils and climate. Current plant community cannot be used to identify the ecological site.

Author(s)/participant(s)
Contact for lead author
Date	09/04/2026
Approved by
Approval date
Composition (Indicators 10 and 12) based on	Annual Production

Indicators

Number and extent of rills:
Presence of water flow patterns:
Number and height of erosional pedestals or terracettes:
Bare ground from Ecological Site Description or other studies (rock, litter, lichen, moss, plant canopy are not bare ground):
Number of gullies and erosion associated with gullies:
Extent of wind scoured, blowouts and/or depositional areas:
Amount of litter movement (describe size and distance expected to travel):
Soil surface (top few mm) resistance to erosion (stability values are averages - most sites will show a range of values):
Soil surface structure and SOM content (include type of structure and A-horizon color and thickness):
Effect of community phase composition (relative proportion of different functional groups) and spatial distribution on infiltration and runoff:
Presence and thickness of compaction layer (usually none; describe soil profile features which may be mistaken for compaction on this site):
Functional/Structural Groups (list in order of descending dominance by above-ground annual-production or live foliar cover using symbols: >>, >, = to indicate much greater than, greater than, and equal to):

Dominant:

Sub-dominant:

Other:

Additional:
Amount of plant mortality and decadence (include which functional groups are expected to show mortality or decadence):
Average percent litter cover (%) and depth ( in):
Expected annual annual-production (this is TOTAL above-ground annual-production, not just forage annual-production):
Potential invasive (including noxious) species (native and non-native). List species which BOTH characterize degraded states and have the potential to become a dominant or co-dominant species on the ecological site if their future establishment and growth is not actively controlled by management interventions. Species that become dominant for only one to several years (e.g., short-term response to drought or wildfire) are not invasive plants. Note that unlike other indicators, we are describing what is NOT expected in the reference state for the ecological site:
Perennial plant reproductive capability:

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Natural ResourcesConservation Service

Ecological site R030XB106NV

GRAVELLY SLOPE 5-7 P.Z.

Last updated: 2/26/2025 Accessed: 09/04/2026

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Ecological site concept

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Table 1. Dominant plant species

Natural Resources
Conservation Service

Last updated: 2/26/2025
Accessed: 09/04/2026