Salt Lick Draw

1958

2003

Description:

Plate 364X. Salt Lick Draw 1958 - 2003 Viewed southeast across Salt Lick Draw on the eastside of Boulder Mountain. The original image is part of an old, Parker 3-step range transect. The aspen clone around the photopoint has expanded, as many aspen stands on Boulder Mountain successfully regenerated 30 years ago when mule deer numbers declined, but not before or since due to excessive browsing of aspen suckers, primarily by deer and elk, not cattle (Kay and Bartos 2000). The meadow was heavily grazed by cattle in 2003. To address elk-cattle conflicts, a large, livestock exclosure was built by the Utah Division of Wildlife Resources and the Forest Service in 1990 just below the camera station. Inside-outside comparisons indicate that cattle are removing most of the grasses, while elk and mule deer are repeatedly browsing aspen and willows, and thus, preventing new growth of those plants. The meadow is mostly needle and thread and Kentucky bluegrass.

Photo Information:

U.S. Forest Service photograph (unnumbered) taken on August 5, 1958; retake by Charles E. Kay on August 28, 2003 - - Photo No. 5263-35. Original photograph held in the range files on the Teasdale Ranger District, Dixie National Forest, Teasdale, UT.

Vegetative Community:

Aspen, Dry Meadow

Location:

South West: Section 25, Range 5 East, Township 31 South; UTM 472400 E, 4212700 N; elevation 8,840 ft.

January 2018