Grassland Vegetation Line-Intercept Transects at the Sevilleta National Wildlife Refuge, New Mexico

In 1989, line-intercept transects were installed to evaluate temporal and spatial dynamics across vegetation transition zones. Currently, a 400m transect is sampled at a grassland site (Deep Well) which is dominated by Bouteloua eriopoda (black grama) and, near the southern end of the transect, B. gracilis (blue grama). A second grassland site (Five Points), dominated by B. eriopoda and, to the south, Larrea tridentata (creosote), is also sampled. Both sites are sampled twice a year, in May/June and September/October, and measurements are taken at a one-centimeter resolution. The biannual sampling protocol detects potential responses in both cool and warm season plants as well as pre- and post-monsoon dynamics. Several transects have been discontinued and data archived within SEV200.