evolution of locally-adapted ecotypes and species, and (3) large 

 environmental gradients will allow species to persist during 

 periods of climatic stress or change. Protection of the Line 

 Creek Plateau will help preserve biological diversity by securing 

 connectivity among major wildlands ecosystems in the Rocky 

 Mountains. 



Principal Distinguishing Features 



Alpine Communities 



The Line Creek Plateau occurs on the eastern edge of the 

 range, separated from the wilderness area to the west by the 

 Beartooth Highway. This plateau supports large pristine 

 representations of many of the common alpine plant communities 

 found throughout the Beartooth Mountains, but it is more 

 accessible than most other parts of the range that occur in the 

 wilderness. The Salix qlauca / Deschampsia cespitosa and Festuca 

 idahoensis / Geum rossii community types considered rare in the 

 Beartooth Range and the rest of Montana (Cooper and Lesica 1992) 

 are common on the Line Creek Plateau. Alpine communities occur 

 between 9,300 and 10,500 ft. Classification of alpine community 

 types is based on Cooper and Lesica (1992) and data acguired in 

 1993 using ECODATA methodology. 



(1) Festuca idahoensis / Geum rossii c.t. 



Warm slopes with well-developed soil at elevations near 

 timberline support herbaceous vegetation dominated by Festuca 

 idahoensis , Aqropyron caninum , Poa rupicola and Koeleria 

 cristata . Common forb species include Geum rossii , Lupinus 

 arqenteus , Solidaqo multiradiata , and Aqoseris glauca . This 

 community was not described by Johnson and Billings (1962) but 

 similar vegetation in southwest Montana was described by Cooper 

 and Lesica (1992) and classified as the alpine grassland 

 physiognomic type. Southwest Montana communities have Potentilla 

 diversif olia as a dominant forb; Geum rossii was not present. 

 Potkin and Munn (1987) described a Festuca ovina c.t. from the 

 Wind River Range alpine zone that is similar to this type. Their 

 F. ovina is probably a small form of F\_ idahoensis . 



(2) Carex elynoides c.t. 



Gravelly, poorly developed soils of upper slopes, ridge 

 crests and other wind-exposed areas were dominated by Geum 

 rossii , Carex rupestris , Kobresia bellardii and Poa rupicola as 

 well as many cushion-forming species such as Arenaria obtusiloba , 

 Silene acaulis and Trif olium parryi . Luzula spicata , Festuca 

 ovina and Lupinus arqenteus were other common species. Similar 

 turf communities dominated by either C^ rupestris or C_^ elynoides 

 have been described for southwest Montana (Cooper and Lesica 



