Mendi Gore Playa Research Natural Area

Vale District , BLM

Northern Basin and Range Ecoregion

Cell(s):

• Black sagebrush/bunchgrass community complex
• Winterfat playa

Access to playa by small road east of U.S. Highway 95; black sagebrush community accessed by hiking trails to south; accessible spring to fall when dry.

The 60 ha RNA occupies a small enclosed basin near Basque Station on Highway 95 in Malheur County, Oregon, north of McDermitt, Nevada. Topography in the RNA is a flat playa and gentle, rolling foothills. Soils are clays in the playa and shallow loams over basalt in the foothills. Elevation ranges from 1400 to 1460 m. The temperate desert climate is characterized by cold, moist winters and hot, dry summers. Annual precipitation averages 20 to 25 cm. The dry lakebed in the basin is dominated by an almost pure stand of winterfat (Krascheninnikovia lanata). The surrounding foothills support extensive stands of black sagebrush (Artemisia nova) with a variety of bunchgrasses in the understory. Past and current disturbance occurs as light to moderate livestock grazing in summer.