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CEGL007210 Fagus grandifolia - Quercus alba - Liquidambar styraciflua / Magnolia grandiflora / Smilax pumila Forest
Type Concept Sentence: No Data Available
Common (Translated Scientific) Name: American Beech - White Oak - Sweetgum / Southern Magnolia / Sarsaparilla-vine Forest
Colloquial Name: East Gulf Coastal Plain Rich Beech - White Oak Forest
Hierarchy Level: Association
Type Concept: This association includes mesic mixed hardwood forests of the Gulf Coastal Plain east of the Mississippi River. Within this region, examples are found within the range of Magnolia grandiflora, and stands typically include a diagnostic component of this species. Stands of this association contain a canopy dominated by Fagus grandifolia and Quercus alba, with Nyssa sylvatica, Liquidambar styraciflua, and Quercus hemisphaerica (more prevalent on upper slopes). The more-or-less open subcanopy contains Magnolia grandiflora, Magnolia macrophylla, Ostrya virginiana, Liriodendron tulipifera, Acer rubrum, and Cornus florida. Shrubs and woody vines are relatively sparse; shrubs include Aesculus pavia, Arundinaria gigantea, Hamamelis virginiana, Vaccinium elliottii, Ilex decidua, Symplocos tinctoria, Asimina parviflora, and Hypericum hypericoides. Woody vines include Vitis rotundifolia, Gelsemium sempervirens, and Toxicodendron radicans. The herbaceous stratum includes Smilax pumila, Polystichum acrostichoides, Mitchella repens, Arisaema triphyllum, Aristolochia serpentaria, Hexastylis arifolia var. callifolia?, Euphorbia corollata, Scutellaria elliptica, Dichanthelium boscii, Chasmanthium sessiliflorum, Carex spp., Dioscorea villosa, and the epiphyte Pleopeltis polypodioides.
Diagnostic Characteristics: No Data Available
Rationale for Nominal Species or Physiognomic Features: No Data Available
Classification Comments: This type was originally based on the work of Monk et al. (1989), but the association concept has since been narrowed considerably. This association has been documented from steep slopes of loess-derived soils in the Homochitto National Forest of Mississippi where it grades upslope into forests on upper slopes and ridges which contain Quercus falcata, Quercus stellata, Pinus taeda, and Juniperus virginiana. Stands have also been attributed to this type in Alabama and north Florida (NatureServe Ecology unpubl. data). Some stands in the Talladega National Forest, Oakmulgee Ranger District, are clearly related to this type, but do not contain any Magnolia grandiflora and have dense shrub layers composed of Illicium floridanum. They are placed here tentatively, but may be worthy of separate recognition.
Similar NVC Types: No Data Available
note: No Data Available
Physiognomy and Structure: No Data Available
Floristics: This association differs from genuine beech-magnolia forests (of farther south or of more mesic environments) by having Magnolia grandiflora, if present at all, confined to the lower woody strata and not present in the canopy. Typical stands of this association contain a canopy dominated by Fagus grandifolia and Quercus alba, with Nyssa sylvatica, Liquidambar styraciflua, and Quercus hemisphaerica (this more prevalent on upper slopes). The more-or-less open subcanopy contains Magnolia grandiflora, Magnolia macrophylla, Ostrya virginiana, Liriodendron tulipifera, Acer rubrum, and Cornus florida. Shrubs and woody vines are relatively sparse; the shrub stratum may be more diverse than the herbaceous one. Shrubs include Aesculus pavia, Arundinaria gigantea, Hamamelis virginiana, Vaccinium elliottii, Ilex decidua, Symplocos tinctoria, Asimina parviflora, and Hypericum hypericoides. Woody vines include Vitis rotundifolia, Gelsemium sempervirens, and Toxicodendron radicans. The herbaceous stratum includes Smilax pumila, Polystichum acrostichoides, Mitchella repens, Arisaema triphyllum, Aristolochia serpentaria, Hexastylis arifolia var. callifolia?, Euphorbia corollata, Scutellaria elliptica, Dichanthelium boscii, Chasmanthium sessiliflorum, Sanguinaria canadensis, Trillium sp., Carex spp., Dioscorea villosa, and the epiphyte Pleopeltis polypodioides (= Polypodium polypodioides).
Dynamics: No Data Available
Environmental Description: These forests are found in ravines, slopes, and other sheltered, shaded, concave environments of the Coastal Plain. In some areas this association grades up into forests dominated or codominated by Quercus hemisphaerica, or which contain Quercus falcata, Quercus stellata, Pinus taeda, and Juniperus virginiana.
Geographic Range: This forest is known from the East Gulf Coastal Plain and Upper East Gulf Coastal Plain of the southeastern United States. Its possible status assignment to the South Atlantic Coastal Plain is questionable.
Nations: US
States/Provinces: AL, FL, GA, LA, MS, SC, TN
Plot Analysis Summary:
http://vegbank.org/natureserve/ELEMENT_GLOBAL.2.683102
Confidence Level: Moderate
Confidence Level Comments: No Data Available
Grank: G4
Greasons: No Data Available
| Type | Name | Database Code | Classification Code |
|---|---|---|---|
| Class | 1 Forest & Woodland Class | C01 | 1 |
| Subclass | 1.B Temperate & Boreal Forest & Woodland Subclass | S15 | 1.B |
| Formation | 1.B.1 Warm Temperate Forest & Woodland Formation | F018 | 1.B.1 |
| Division | 1.B.1.Na Southeastern North American Forest & Woodland Division | D006 | 1.B.1.Na |
| Macrogroup | 1.B.1.Na.3 American Beech - Southern Magnolia - White Oak Forest Macrogroup | M008 | 1.B.1.Na.3 |
| Group | 1.B.1.Na.3.b American Beech - Southern Sugar Maple - White Oak Forest Group | G166 | 1.B.1.Na.3.b |
| Alliance | A2059 American Beech - White Oak - Water Oak Coastal Plain Forest Alliance | A2059 | 1.B.1.Na.3.b |
| Association | CEGL007210 American Beech - White Oak - Sweetgum / Southern Magnolia / Sarsaparilla-vine Forest | CEGL007210 | 1.B.1.Na.3.b |
Concept Lineage: No Data Available
Predecessors: No Data Available
Obsolete Names: No Data Available
Obsolete Parents: No Data Available
Synonomy: < IA8d. Southern Mixed Hardwood Forest (Allard 1990)
< Southern Mixed Hardwood Forest (type 7) (Monk et al. 1989)
< Southern Mixed Hardwood Forest (type 7) (Monk et al. 1989)
- Allard, D. J. 1990. Southeastern United States ecological community classification. Interim report, Version 1.2. The Nature Conservancy, Southeast Regional Office, Chapel Hill, NC. 96 pp.
- FNAI [Florida Natural Areas Inventory]. 2010a. Guide to the natural communities of Florida: 2010 edition. Florida Natural Areas Inventory, Tallahassee, FL. 228 pp. [https://fnai.org/naturalcommguide.cfm]
- GNHP [Georgia Natural Heritage Program]. 2018. Unpublished data. Georgia Natural Heritage Program, Wildlife Resources Division, Georgia Department of Natural Resources, Social Circle.
- Hatch, S. L., K. N. Gandhi, and L. E. Brown. 1990. Checklist of the vascular plants of Texas. Texas Agricultural Experiment Station, Texas A&M University System, College Station. 158 pp.
- Monk, C. D., D. W. Imm, R. L. Potter, and G. G. Parker. 1989. A classification of the deciduous forest of eastern North America. Vegetatio 80:167-181.
- NatureServe Ecology - Southeastern United States. No date. Unpublished data. NatureServe, Durham, NC.
- Nelson, J. B. 1986. The natural communities of South Carolina: Initial classification and description. South Carolina Wildlife and Marine Resources Department, Division of Wildlife and Freshwater Fisheries, Columbia, SC. 55 pp.
- Peet, R. K., T. R. Wentworth, M. P. Schafale, and A.S. Weakley. No date. Unpublished data of the North Carolina Vegetation Survey. University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill.
- Southeastern Ecology Working Group of NatureServe. No date. International Ecological Classification Standard: International Vegetation Classification. Terrestrial Vegetation. NatureServe, Durham, NC.
- Thomas, R. D., and C. M. Allen. 1996. Atlas of the vascular flora of Louisiana. Volume II: Dicotyledons Acanthaceae - Euphorbiaceae. Louisiana Department of Wildlife and Fisheries, Natural Heritage Program, Baton Rouge, LA. 213 pp.