There are approximately 43,700 acres of wet meadows on National Forests in the Southwest. Three sites (meadow, transition, and dry forest) influence herbage production and plant composition. Average per acre production for a 3-year period was 2,690 lb, 1,330 lb, and 170 lb in the meadow, transition and surrounding dry forest sites, respectively, for two areas studied. Deer and elk spent more time in the adjacent forest edge than in the meadow, but time spent in the meadow may be more important for quantity and quality of forage.

Forages produced on some high northwestern ranges were analyzed for selenium concentration to determine the hazard of white muscle disease (WMD) in calves and lambs. The selenium concentration in 94 forage samples ranged from 0.01 to 0.78 ppm, of which 20 samples contained more than 0.10 ppm. The remaining 74 samples contained less than 0.10 ppm and 59 of those contained less than 0.05 ppm. Approximately 90% of the summer ranges studied produce forage containing less than 0.10 ppm selenium. Thus, the hazard of WMD on these northwestern ranges may be high. Ranchers should work individually and in groups to ascertain losses from the disease and minimize them by injecting the animals with selenium.

Native plants growing on phosphorus-deficient soils in south Florida responded favorably to cross-chopping and fertilizing with ground rock phosphate. Availability of soil phosphate remained high throughout the 5-year study. Chopping effectively controlled saw palmetto and reduced the density of pineland threeawn, while increasing herbage yields, availability, and utilization. Rock phosphate increased herbage yields, raised nutrient levels, and improved palatability of most native plants. These practices offer practical opportunities for improving Florida rangelands.

The state of range management knowledge in relation to goals of society was considered by a Forest Service committee, and an enlarged concept of "range" was developed to include both ecological characteristics and land use. Range can contribute to better living conditions by providing stability to rural communities and regional economies and a high-quality environment, with optimum fish, wildlife, and recreational opportunities. Important range research needs are to: analyze ecosystems, inventory range resources, coordinate management and use, improve resources, maintain and improve environmental quality, and analyze social and economic aspects of resource use.

The effect of grazing on the hydrology of salt-desert type rangeland has been studied near Grand Junction, Colorado for the past 14 years. Measurements of precipitation, runoff, erosion, and vegetation have been made in four pairs of watersheds. One of each pair has been grazed by cattle and sheep as is normal in the region, and the other has not been used since the beginning of the study. Measurements made 10 years apart show that all four grazed watersheds have had a slight increase in the amount of bare soil and rock and a decrease in ground cover; cover on ungrazed watersheds has remained essentially unchanged. Runoff in the ungrazed watersheds has been about 30 percent less than in the grazed watersheds and sediment yield has been about 45 percent less. The greatest change in each of the relationships occurred about 3 years after livestock were excluded from one watershed of each of the pairs. Preliminary studies indicate that within areas of similar physiography, runoff is directly related to the percentage of bare soil present on a watershed.

The dry weight composition of foodplants was estimated by a microscope technique for esophageal samples from steers, fecal samples of steers and fecal samples from sheep fed on the esophageal samples. Perennial species of foodplants forming more than 5% of the diets could be identified and quantified by the analysis of 100 microscope fields at 125 power magnification. The diagnostic features of fragile forbs were not as prominent in feces as they are in non-digested plants.

Seeds of crested wheatgrass (Agropyron desertorum [Fisch. ex Link] Schult.), planted at a depth of 1 inch, germinated well because of relatively constant and favorable moisture conditions. These seeds rapidly synthesized hexose phosphate, uridine diphosphate hexose, nicotinamide adenine dinucleotide, adenosine diphosphate, adenosine triphosphate, and other phosphate esters. Synthesis began 2 to 4 weeks before germination was observed. In contrast, seeds on the soil surface failed to germinate because of generally unfavorable and rapidly fluctuating moisture conditions. Adenosine triphosphate, the principal phosphate ester formed in these seeds during brief periods of precipitation, was broken down during periods of drought. Although these measurements include only a few of the biochemical reactions that occur in seeds, they contribute to an understanding of the environmental conditions that promote or retard germination processes and help explain the reasons for success or failure of seedings on semiarid rangelands.

Climate is only one of several forces that promote rangelands but it is often predominant. Climatic factors that favor the development of grass include the occurrence of extremes, recurring drought, prolonged periods of heat and cold, high winds, and perhumid conditions. Most of the grasslands of Canada fall within Köppen's climatic type "middle latitude dry" and summer drought plays a major role in their existence. There are other grasslands which evolve under quite different climatic regimes. These are much less extensive and with some climate is not the dominant cause. With one grassland form, however, climate does play a more direct role and the factors involved are almost the antithesis of those which have produced the vast rangelands of the semiarid Canadian west.

Prairie potholes or sloughs are depressions of glacial origin that occur north of the Missouri River in the prairie region of the United States and Canada. Potholes provide valuable wetland habitat for migratory water-fowl and are widely used for stock-water supplies. Differences in climate, geology, topography, ground-water hydrology, and land use create wide variations in pothole hydrology. Plants in and adjacent to potholes are useful indicators of water permanence, depth, and salinity-variables that are important in wetland management.