unforested; the patchy coniferous forests are dominated by 

 Douglas fir. On the east side at upper elevations, Engelmann 

 spruce and subalpine fir forests are common. The tree line in 

 the Bridgers is generally around 9,000 ft. and is somewhat 

 lower on the east side of the crest. The highest elevations 

 in the range support an alpine flora. Limestone loving plants 

 (e.g. Petrophyton caespitosum and Telesonix jamesii) 

 constitute another conspicuous element. Due to its close 

 proximity to Montana State University in Bozeman, the Bridgers 

 are relatively well botanized, with many specimens from the 

 range deposited at the University's herbarium (MONT). 



2. Crazy Mountains 



This is another isolated range, also in the northern part 

 of the GNF. Land ownership in the Crazies, unlike the 

 continuous Gallatin National Forest tracts of the Bridgers, is 

 a checkerboard pattern of National Forest and private 

 sections. The northern part of the range, which was not 

 surveyed, lies on the Lewis and Clark National Forest. 



The Crazy Mountains are geologically unique in Montana, 

 composed of resistant igneous intrusions and "hard baked 

 sedimentary rocks" (Alt and Hyndman 1986) . The igneous rocks 

 in the northern part of the range are rich in sodium and 

 potassium, but alkali metals are less abundant in the large 

 Big Timber Stock in the southern part of the range where this 

 survey was centered. The Crazies, like the Bridgers, were 

 shaped by isolated mountain glaciers during the Pleistocene, 

 and some small glaciers persist today. The Crazies are higher 

 than the Bridgers, rising to over 11,000 ft. on Crazy Peak. 



Habitat types which were surveyed included coniferous 

 forests, montane to alpine meadows, seep areas, and most 

 common of all, sparsely-vegetated rock faces, slides, and 

 boulder fields. The most highly developed alpine flora was 

 seen in the basin of Sunlight Lake, where patches of tundra 

 occur within the otherwise continuous rocky landscape. In 

 contrast to the pristine alpine habitat around Sunlight Lake, 

 the rest of the Sweet Grass Creek drainage, from the montane 

 zone near Eagle Park to the alpine around Glacier Lake, is 

 heavily impacted by cattle grazing. In addition, lakeshore 

 habitat in some easily accessed basins in the Big Timber Creek 

 drainage (e.g. Granite/Blue Lakes and Twin Lakes) has been 

 degraded by heavy recreational use. The Crazies have not been 

 well botanized in the past, however Klaus Lackschewitz has 

 done some collecting in the range. 



3. Hyalite Canyon 



This canyon is in the northern part of the Gallatin 

 Mountains, just south of Bozeman. The Gallatins are a 

 volcanic range; the Hyalite volcanics consist of andesite and 

 breccia (Chadwick 1982) . The Hyalite drainage is mostly 



