Common (Translated Scientific) Name: Red Chokeberry - Common Winterberry - Catberry / Cinnamon Fern Acidic Peatland

Colloquial Name: Allegheny Mountains Chokeberry - Winterberry Peatland

Hierarchy Level:  Association

Type Concept: This successional shrubland occurs on saturated, temporarily flooded, or semipermanently flooded acidic peatlands in the Allegheny Mountains region of West Virginia and Maryland, at elevations between 770 and 1210 m. It is a small-patch type that occupies flat to gently sloping land (0-2°) in headwater basins. Where conditions are favorable, individual stands may be as large as 12 ha. It is part of the natural disturbance mosaic of beaver-influenced vegetation types at high elevations in the Alleghenies, and also occurs on formerly forested peatlands that were logged or burned within the last 120 years. It is probably more widespread now than in the past, when forests covered much of its current habitat. Where natural succession is unhindered, some stands will likely recover to forested peatlands of high conservation value, although the recovery rate is slow (perhaps a century) in these frost-pocket habitats. Hummock-and-hollow microtopography is well-developed, with rounded peat-covered hummocks formed over woody stem clusters, decayed wood, and roots. Bedrock may be sandstone or, less commonly, limestone. Soil texture is moderately to very poorly drained peat, with a depth greater than one meter, although in earlier successional stands the peat may be only a few centimeters thick. Mean soil pH is 3.8. The unvegetated surface is predominantly litter, with an average of 5% standing water. This community may occur with either tall-shrub or short-shrub physiognomy, depending on the age of the stand. The shrub species favor hummock tops and typically include Aronia melanocarpa, Aronia arbutifolia, Viburnum nudum var. cassinoides, Vaccinium myrtilloides, Rhododendron maximum, Hypericum densiflorum, Ilex verticillata, Ilex mucronata, and Kalmia latifolia. Less frequent, but sometimes locally abundant, shrub species are Vaccinium corymbosum, Alnus incana ssp. rugosa, Vaccinium angustifolium, and Gaylussacia baccata. Dwarf-shrub species with high constancy include Rubus hispidus, Vaccinium oxycoccos, and Vaccinium macrocarpon. The herbaceous layer typically occupies hollows and the sides of hummocks. Species with high cover and constancy are Eriophorum virginicum, Solidago uliginosa, Carex folliculata, and Osmunda cinnamomea var. cinnamomea. Species with lower constancy that are sometimes abundant include Symplocarpus foetidus, Drosera rotundifolia var. rotundifolia, Gentiana linearis, Rhynchospora alba, Carex stipata, Juncus effusus, Lycopodium obscurum, Carex trisperma var. trisperma, Pteridium aquilinum, Gaultheria procumbens, Carex canescens, Carex gynandra, and Juncus brevicaudatus. Nonvascular plants are abundant, dominated by Sphagnum spp. and often including high cover by Polytrichum spp. Mean species richness of all vascular plants and any nonvascular plants with cover >1% is 21 taxa per 400 m2.

Diagnostic Characteristics: No Data Available

Rationale for Nominal Species or Physiognomic Features: No Data Available

Classification Comments: Sixty-three plots (10 occurrences) represent this type, which was classified as part of a 2004-2006 study of high-elevation wetlands in West Virginia''s Allegheny Mountains region (Byers et al. 2007). This type clusters well together considering that it is a fairly broad group. The ordination shows a fairly good grouping in the saturated, Sphagnum-rich portion of species space. The type has been adequately sampled throughout its range in West Virginia, and nine plots have been sampled in Maryland.

Similar NVC Types: No Data Available

note: No Data Available