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13 



could facilitate seed dispersal. 



G. POPULATION ECOLOGY 



1. BIOLOGICAL INTERACTIONS 



a. COMPETITION: Based on observations of known 

 populations in Canada (where sites had low 

 herbaceous vegetation cover) , Brunton (1986) 

 felt that E. qigantea was a poor competitor. 

 However, in Montana, many sites had very high 

 herbaceous vegetation cover (see photographs, 

 Section V, pp. 37-42) . It is the belief of the 

 author that this species is tolerant of 

 interspecific competition, and instead is 

 limited by chemical, edaphic, or hydrological 

 factors at sites where it occurs. For several 

 subpopulations (Bond Creek (008)) where 

 overstory shading was high, the number of 

 flowering stems was reduced; thus, this species 

 may not flower well in such habitats. 



b. HERBIVORY: The Montana populations are quite 



localized, and grazing does not currently appear 

 to have affected them. There is no 

 documentation on the effects of insect predation 

 or disease in this species (Brunton, 1986) . 



H. LAND OWNERSHIP (MONTANA) 



1. The land ownership for the 10 currently known 



populations in Montana is given below. The exact 

 locations are provided in Table 1, pp. 5-6. 



a. U.S. Forest Service (Flathead National Forest): 



Swan Lake Ranger District 



Cilly Creek (002) 



Swan Lake (005) 



Bond Creek (008) 



Lower Fatty Creek Road (Oil) 



b. Department of State Lands: 



Krause Basin Road (009) 

 Echo Lake (006) 



c. Private Land: 



Nimrod Warm Springs (001) 

 Bluewater Spring (003) 



