David A. Charlet and Pat Leary
College of Southern Nevada
Funding and other support for this work:
Nevada Climate Change Infrastructure for Climate Change
Research, Education, and Outreach
Clark County Ecosystem Indicators Project (Southern Nevada
Public Land Management Act)
US Geological Survey
USDA Natural Resource Conservation Service
US Fish and Wildlife Service
Bureau of Land Management
College of Southern Nevada
Wesley E. Niles Herbarium, UNLV

Premier location to study climate change

Paleoclimate proxy data sets:
 Biological: fossil, pollen, woodrat midden
 Geomorphological: pluvial lake shores and basins,
sand dunes, glacial and periglacial features


Presence of all major temperate life-zones
except Humid Transition
Understanding our flora requires the
context of climate change, isolation of
populations, and refugia

Hunt 1967


Plant species have specific tolerances for
conditions and resource availability (e.g.,
temperature, nutrients, water)
Vary one of the conditions (climate), and
the distributions of the plants should
change



To detect changes in vegetation as it
responds to changes in climate, we must
first know where the vegetation is now
We don’t know very well how species are
distributed
We must develop the baseline data
Charlet
Billings (1951)
Merriam (1898)
Alpine
Alpine tundra MZS
Arctic-Alpine
Subalpine
Limber pine-bristlecone pine MZS
Hudsonian
Montane
Yellow pine-White fir MZS
Canadian
Pygmy Conifer
Pinyon-juniper MZS
Upper Sonoran
Sagebrush
Sagebrush-grass
Upper Sonoran
Blackbrush
Creosote-bush
Lower Sonoran
Creosotebush
Creosote-bush
Lower Sonoran
Saltbush
Shadscale
Lower Sonoran
Alpine
Subalpine
Not part of Mojave series
Montane
Pygmy Conifer
Sagebrush
Saltbush
Absolute desert
South Aspect
North Aspect
Nival
Alpine
Subalpine
Pluvial Lake / Montane ?
South Aspect
North Aspect
Alpine
Subalpine
Montane
Pygmy Conifer
Sagebrush
Saltbush
Absolute desert
South Aspect
North Aspect
Alpine
Nival
Alpine
Subalpine
Subalpine
Alpine
Montane
Pygmy Conifer
Sagebrush
Saltbush
Pluvial Lake / Montane ?
Absolute desert / Pluvial Lake
Full Glacial
HA2
Present Day
HØ
Montane
Subalpine
Pygmy Conifer
Sagebrush
Saltbush
Absolute desert
Thermal Max
HA1
Alpine
Alpine
Subalpine
Montane
Pygmy Conifer
Blackbrush
Pluvial Lake / Saltbush
Full Glacial
HA2
Subalpine
Alpine
Montane
Subalpine
Montane
Pygmy Conifer
Blackbrush
Creosotebush
Saltbush
Absolute desert
Present Day
HØ
Pygmy Conifer
Blackbrush
Creosotebush
Saltbush
Absolute desert
Thermal Max
HA1
Precipitation gauge High tensile
Radiation sensor
strength
supports
Passive
solar
design

State of the art
climate
monitoring
stations

State of the art
climate
monitoring
stations
Climate transects
BASELINE DATA

Four types collected at each site

Floristic
 the plant species

Vegetation
 the arrangement and structure of plant species that
dominate the site

Physical
 Location, elevation, aspect, slope, substrate

Photographic
 High resolution, geo-referenced, time-stamped
Mojave Transect
Climate stations
(5)
Distribution of
samples (n = 2007)
Climate monitoring
installations (7):
Vegetation samples
(n = 316)
Floristic
Data
1699
Achnatherum hymenoides
Agave utahensis eborispina
Amelanchier utahensis
1700
Achnatherum hymenoides
Achnatherum parishii
Agave utahensis eborispina
1701
Abies concolor
Achnatherum hymenoides
Achnatherum parishii
1702
Abies concolor
Ageratina herbacea
Amelanchier utahensis
Arceuthobium divaricatum
Artemisia nova
Artemisia tridentata vaseyana
Asclepias asperula
Astragalus calycosus
Astragalus purshii
Berberis fremontii
Bouteloua gracilis
Carex rossii
Castilleja linearifolia
Ceanothus greggii
Chaetopappa ericoides
Chamaescyce fendlerii
Chrysothamnus depressus
Cordylanthus parvifolia
Coryphantha vivipara
Cryptantha flavoculata
Echinocereus triglochidiatus
Elymus elymoides
Ephedra viridis
Eriogonum microthecum simp
Eriogonum umbellatum subarid
Frasera albomarginata
Gilia inconspicua
Glossopetalon spinescens
Gutierrezia sarothrae
Hedeoma drummondii
Hymenoxys cooperi
Juniperus osteosperma
Opuntia phaecantha
Opuntia polyacantha erinacea
Opuntia polyacantha hystricina
Penstemon eatonii
Penstemon palmeri
Phoradendron juniperinum
Physaria kingii
Pinus monophylla
Poa fendleriana
Purshia stansburiana
Sphaeralcea parviflora
Symphoriocarpos longiflorus
Yucca baccata
Amelanchier utahensis
Artemisia dracunculus
Artemisia ludoviciana
Artemisia nova
Artemisia tridentata vaseyana
Astragalus platytropis
Astragalus purshii
Berberis fremontii
Bouteloua gracilis
Brickellia oblongifolia
Calylophus lavanduliferus
Carex rossii
Castilleja lineariifolia
Ceanothus greggii
Cercocarpus intricatus
Cercocarpus ledifolius
Chaetopappa ericoides
Chamaescyce fendlerii
Chenopodium fremontii
Cirsium arizonicum
Cryptantha flavoculata
Dietaria canescens
Echinocereus triglochidiatus
Elymus elymoides
Ephedra viridis
Ericameria nauseosa speciosa
Eriogonum microthecum simpso
Eriogonum umbellatum subaridu
Euphorbia brachycera
Fallugia paradoxa
Galium parishii
Glossopetalon spinescens
Gutierrezia sarothrae
Hedeoma drummondii
Hymenopappus filifolius
Ipomopsis arizonica
Juniperus osteosperma
Linanthus nuttallii
Linum lewisii
Lomatium graveolens alpinum
Mirabilis oxybaphoides
Oenothera caespitosa marginata
Opuntia polyacantha erinacea
Opuntia polyacantha hystricina
Penstemon eatonii
Penstemon linarioides sileri
Phlox condensata
Physaria chambersii
Physaria kingii
Pinus monophylla
Pinus ponderosa
Piptatherum micranthum
Prunus fasciculatum
Pseudoroegneria spicatum
Purshia stansburiana
Salvia dorrii clokeyi
Symphoriocarpos longiflorus
Achnatherum parishii de
Agave utahensis eborispina
Ageratina herbacea
Amelanchier utahensis
Antennaria rosea
Arceuthobium divaricatum
Artemisia dracunculus
Artemisia nova
Astragalus humistratus
Berberis fremontii
Bouteloua gracilis
Carex rossii
Castilleja linearifolia
Cercocarpus intricatus
Cercocarpus ledifolius
Cheilanthes feei
Cirsium arizonicum
Cryptantha flavoculata
Cuniculotinus gramineus
Echinocereus triglochidiatus
Elymus elymoides
Ephedra viridis
Ericameria parryi nevadensis
Glossopetalon spinescens
Hesperostipa comata
Hymenopappus filifolius
Ipomopsis arizonica
Jamesia americana
Juniperus osteosperma
Juniperus scopulorum
Linanthus nuttallii
Linum lewisii
Lomatium graveolens alpinum
Penstemon eatonii
Penstemon linarioides sileri
Petradoria pumila
Philadelphus microphyllus
Phlox condensata
Physocarpus alternans
Pinus longaeva
Pinus monophylla
Pinus ponderosa
Piptatherum micranthum
Pseudoroegneria spicata
Silene verrucunda
Symphoriocarpos longiflorus
Tetradymia canescens
Tetraneuris acaulis
Artemisia dracunculus
Artemisia nova
Artemisia tridentata vaseyana
Boechera perennans
Bouteloua gracilis
Brickellia grandiflora
Bromus anomalus
Carex rossii
Castilleja linearifolia
Cercocarpus ledifolius
Chamaescyce fendlerii
Chrysothamnus depressus
Cirsium arizonicum
Cryptantha cinerea abortiva
Cryptantha flavoculata
Elymus elymoides
Ephedra viridis
Ericameria parryi nevadensis
Eriogonum panamintense
Eriogonum umbellatum subardu
Euphorbia brachycera
Gutierrezia sarothrae
Ipomopsis arizonica
Juniperus osteosperma
Juniperus scopulorum
Linanthus nuttallii
Oenothera caespitosa marginata
Opuntia polyacantha erinacea
Opuntia polyacantha hystricina
Packera multilobata
Pedicularis semibarbata charlest
Penstemon eatonii
Penstemon linarioides sileri
Penstemon rostriflorus
Petradoria pumila
Phlox condensata
Physaria chambersii
Physaria kingii
Pinus monophylla
Pinus ponderosa
Poa fendleriana
Pseudoroegneria spicata
Purshia stansburiana
Rhus trilobata
Ribes cereum
Salvia dorrii clokeyi
Symphoriocarpos longiflorus
Tetradymia canescens
Tetraneuris acaulis
Thelesperma subnudum
Mojave matrix: 2007 samples x 840 species
20
VEGETATION AND FLORISTIC SAMPLES (N = 316) DISTRIBUTED BY LIFE ZONE AND ELEVATION
IN WHITE PINE COUNTY, NEVADA
SALTBUSH
18
N
U
CREOSOTEBUSH
BLACKBRUSH
16
M
B
E
R
O
F
SAGEBRUSH
14
Climate monitoring
installations (7):
12
PYGMY CONIFER
MONTANE
SUBALPINE
10
ALPINE
S
A
M
P
8
2 per. Mov. Avg.
(SALTBUSH)
2 per. Mov. Avg.
6
(SAGEBRUSH)
L
E
4
S
2
3850
3700
3550
3400
3250
3100
2950
2800
ELEVATION (m)
2650
2500
2350
2200
2050
1900
1750
1600
1450
1300
1150
1000
850
700
550
400
250
100
0
100
VEGETATION AND FLORISTIC SAMPLES (N = 2007) DISTRIBUTED BY LIFE ZONE AND ELEVATION
IN CLARK COUNTY, NEVADA
90
N
U
SALTBUSH
80
CREOSOTEBUSH
M
B
70
Climate monitoring
installations (5):
E
R
O
60
F
50
S
40
A
M
P
BLACKBRUSH
SAGEBRUSH
PYGMY CONIFER
MONTANE
SUBALPINE
2 per. Mov. Avg.
(SALTBUSH)
30
L
E
20
S
10
ELEVATION (m)
3850
3700
3550
3400
3250
3100
2950
2800
2650
2500
2350
2200
2050
1900
1750
1600
1450
1300
1150
1000
850
700
550
400
250
100
0
576 NVCS plots (266 in
Great Basin transect, 310
in Mojave transect)



Quantitative cover species
data
Useful for detailed
analysis of species
distributions in a single
landscape feature
1770 “RACE” samples
(1700 in Mojave transect,
70 in Great Basin transect)



Presence/absence species
data
Useful for defining life
zones in a single
landscape feature or
across a region


Presence/Absence
data of groups of
trees and shrubs
Useful for regional
trends

Group
characteristics




Economically
important
Ecologically
important
K – selected species
Long time to
reproductive
maturity, longlived, slow to move


Distance to
“source” has small
effect on diversity
Size of “island”
has large effect
on diversity

“Montane relief”
alone explained 65%
of the variation in
conifer diversity
across the region


Distribution pattern is extinction-driven,
due largely to changing climate over past 2
million years
Examining climate change in our lifetime
requires a finer scale
PRISM
(Parameter-elevation Regressions on Independent Slopes Model)



Quantitative cover species
data
Useful for detailed
analysis of species
distributions in a single
landscape feature
Irradiance values derived from
10m DEM and the highly
complex topography of the
Red Rock Canyon National
Conservation Area
Surficial
Geology
• Scale 1:150,000
• MMU 10 ha
• 47 Mapped Units
• Contains Generalized
Bedrock Geology and
surficial units
• Created by Kyle House
and UNR Geo-Spatial
Lab
Soils Maps
USDA NRCS mapping efforts in
Clark County and White Pine
County are complete


To date, > 1000 unique vegetation
Associations (n = 2340 samples)
Encountered 950 of 4400 taxa in the
region


sampling remains inadequate
Relating environmental variables to
distribution of species
CORNCK_VEG_61_NMS
6_CCD
85_CCD
80_CCD
PRGL
104_CCW
SV
LATR/AMDU
107_CCW
106_CCW
13_SRP
102_CCW
105_CCW
24_SRP
103_CCW
LATR/ATCO
Axis 2
ATPO
58_CCW
8_CCW
7_CCW
34_CCW
59_CCW
54_CCW
% cover
36_CCW
%_COVER
29_CCW
litter
57_CCW
Tree cover
Tree_cv
litter
ATCA
31_CCW
84_CCD
37_CCW
S1_ht Shrub_cv
Riverine
wood
Herb_cv
221_Soil
21_SRP
20_SRP
22_SRP
86_CCD
Shrub sm_rocks
height
Upland
S3_ht
Uhydro
Herb cover
87_CCD
33_CCW
221 soil
Sand
55_CCW
4_CCD
52_CCW
30_CCW
25_CCD
83_CCD
108_CCW
Upland
ATCO
3_CCD
28_CCW
101_CCW
23_SRP
CH
VI
sand
10_CCD
2_CCD
82_CCD
16_CCD
19_CCD
11_CCD
35_CCW
17_CCD
9_CCD
26_CCD
14_CCD
12_CCD
1_CCD
15_CCD
81_CCD
53_CCW
32_CCW
27_CCW
18_CCD
5_CCD
Axis 1
56_CCW

More than 1100 encounters with more
than 50 sensitive rare species in 2340
samples
Photo by Pat Leary


New climate
measurements
Future surveys
can detect
responses to
change