Table 1 — Examples of potential natural vegetation climax classifications in the central 

 Rocky Mountains. Adapted from Hess, K., III. Phyto-edaphic study of habitat types of 

 the Arapaho-Roosevelt National Forests, Colorado. Fort Collins, CO: Colorado State 

 University; 1981. 558 p. Ph.D. Dissertation and 1980 field data collected by the Resources 

 Evaluation Techniques Program, Rocky Mountain Forest and Range Experiment Station, 

 Fort Collins, Colo. 



Part I. Dominated by Woody Vegetation 



Class 



Closed forest 



Woodland 



Shrubland 



Dwarf-shrubland 



Subclass Mainly evergreen forest Mainly evergreen woodland Mainly deciduous shrub 



Mainly deciduous dwarf 

 shrubs 



Group 



Temperate and subpolar 

 needle-leaved 



Needle-leaved 



Cold deciduous 



Cold deciduous 



Formation Evergreen needle-leaved Evergreen needle-leaved 

 forest with conical crowns woodland with rounded 



crowns 



Subalpine or subpolar decid- 

 uous shrubland caespitose 

 dwarf 



Cold deciduous shrubland 



Series Picea engelmannii-Abies 



lasiocarpa (Engelmann 

 spruce-subalpine fir) 



Pinus ponderosa (ponderosa Salix planifolia (planeleaf 

 pine) willow) 



Association Picea engelmannii-Abies Pinus pon- Pinus pon- 



lasiocarpa/Vaccinum derosa/Pur- derosa/Cer- 



scoparium (Engelmann shia triden- cocarpus 



spruce-subalpine fir/grouse tata/Carex montanus/ 



whortleberry ross/7 (pon- Agropyron 



derosa pine/ griffithsii 



antelope bit- (ponderosa 



terbrush/ 

 Ross sedge) 



pine/true 

 mountainma- 

 hogany/Grif- 

 fiths wheat- 

 grass) 



Salix planifo- Salix planifo- 

 lia/Carex lia/Calama- 



scopulorum grostis inex- 

 (planeleaf pansa 



willow/moun- (planeleaf 

 tain sedge) willow/north- 

 ern reed- 

 grass) 



Salix arctica (arctic willow) 



Salix arctica/Geum rossii 

 (arctic willow/golden 

 avens) 



Part II. Dominated by Herbaceous Vegetation 



Class 



Herbaceous vegetation 



Subclass Medium-tall 



Group With a shrub layer 



Formation Shrub layer small-leaved evergreen 



Series Festuca ovina Poa compressa 



(Sheep fescue) (Canadian blue- 



grass) 



Association Festuca ovina/ Poa compressa/ 



Artemisia triden- Artemisia cana 

 tata (sheep fes- (Canadian blue- 

 cue/big sage- grass/silver sage- 



brush) brush) 



Short 



Without a woody 

 layer 



Medium-tall 

 grassland con- 

 sisting mainly of 

 bunch grass 



Deschampsia 

 ceaspitosa (tufted 

 hairgrass) 

 Deschampsia 

 caespitosa/Trifo- 

 Hum parryi (tufted 

 hairgrass/Parry 

 clover) 



With a shrub layer 



Shrub layer broad-leaved deciduous 



Carex rupestris 

 (rock sedge) 



Carex rupestris/ 

 Salix artica (rock 

 sedge/arctic 

 willow) 



Carex rupestris 

 (rock sedge) 



Carex rupestris/ 

 Artemisia scopu- 

 lorum (rock 

 sedge/alpine 

 sagewort) 



Forb vegetation 



Low 



Mainly perennial 

 flowering forbs 

 and ferns 



Silene a caul is 

 (moss silene) 



