Photo: Amanda Malachesky

Before Europeans arrived in California, grasslands looked very different then they do today. Perennial bunch grasses dominated grassland ecosystems. Bunch grasses can live up to 100 years, and are adapted to semi-arid summer conditions and geology that is unique to California ecosystems. Each year new shoots are formed out of a common fibrous root system. These bunch grasses, with their large and well-developed root systems, are excellent at holding soil on to hillsides.

Perennial grass species exist in patches in the Mattole, but have been largely supplanted by introduced annual grasses from Europe and Asia. Annual grasses complete their life cycle in one year. In the Mattole, this generally means winter and spring vegetative growth, followed by seed production in early summer. Annuals are essentially dormant through the driest parts of the late summer and fall. Because they die and dry up in the fall, annual grasslands pose a higher fire risk than perennial grasslands.

Research suggests that grasslands historically covered around 25% of the Mattole watershed. These grasslands are important economically, particularly for cattle and sheep ranching, and other agricultural operations.

Last year, the Mattole Restoration Council completed a project comparing the extent of grasslands in 1950 and 1998. According to this research, more than a third of the Mattole's grassland's have disappeared since 1950, primarily due to fire suppression which allows fir and brush to encroach on the prairie edges. To see the full report, look at centerfold of Newsletter #19.