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CEGL000055 Picea sitchensis / Cornus sericea / Lysichiton americanus Swamp Forest
Type Concept Sentence: No Data Available
Common (Translated Scientific) Name: Sitka Spruce / Red-osier Dogwood / Yellow Skunk-cabbage Swamp Forest
Colloquial Name: No Data Available
Hierarchy Level: Association
Type Concept: This mid-seral to climax association occurs on floodplains of rivers and creeks near the Pacific Ocean, from the central coast of Oregon north to Washington. Soils are anoxic silt loams and mucky peats and are subject to daily freshwater tidal inundation and seasonal riparian flooding also. Stands are laced with dendritic tidal creeks and sloughs that enable daily tidal flooding into the interior of stands. Behind barely perceptible natural levees along the margins of tidal channels, topography is flat with local microrelief caused by logs, stumps, and buttressed roots of spruce trees. Picea sitchensis and Alnus rubra are the most frequent tree species on natural levees or on large woody debris, with a nearly impenetrable shrub layer dominated by Cornus sericea, Rubus spectabilis, Rosa nutkana, and Rubus ursinus. Thuja plicata is present but not abundant, and conditions appear to be too wet for this species to thrive. The somewhat sparse herb layer is dominated by Lysichiton americanus, Athyrium filix-femina, Carex obnupta, and/or Impatiens capensis. Spruce trees up to 450 years old have been documented in these stands. Diverse microtopography enables a high species diversity, with up to 9 species of trees, 20 shrubs, and 25 herbs recorded from plots. Stands are also characterized by an unusual mix of wetland species with more typically riparian or upland species such as Populus balsamifera ssp. trichocarpa, Fraxinus latifolia, Oemleria cerasiformis, Physocarpus capitatus, Acer circinatum, and Rubus parviflorus.
Diagnostic Characteristics: No Data Available
Rationale for Nominal Species or Physiognomic Features: No Data Available
Classification Comments: There is some potential confusion because Kunze (1994) does recognize this as a separate type but lumps it with Picea sitchensis - Alnus rubra / Rubus spectabilis / Carex obnupta. This may be identical but it is hard to tell from her description, and she does not display plot data. She also has a Picea sitchensis - Alnus rubra / Lysichiton americanus community type that is clearly different and not associated with tidal surge plains.
Similar NVC Types: No Data Available
note: No Data Available
Physiognomy and Structure: No Data Available
Floristics: No Data Available
Dynamics: No Data Available
Environmental Description: No Data Available
Geographic Range: This association extends from the central coast of Oregon north to southwestern Washington.
Nations: US
States/Provinces: OR, WA
Plot Analysis Summary:
http://vegbank.org/natureserve/ELEMENT_GLOBAL.2.683705
Confidence Level: Moderate
Confidence Level Comments: No Data Available
Grank: G2
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.3 Temperate Flooded & Swamp Forest Formation | F026 | 1.B.3 |
| Division | 1.B.3.Ng Vancouverian Flooded & Swamp Forest Division | D193 | 1.B.3.Ng |
| Macrogroup | 1.B.3.Ng.1 Vancouverian Flooded & Swamp Forest Macrogroup | M035 | 1.B.3.Ng.1 |
| Group | 1.B.3.Ng.1.e Western Hemlock - Red Alder / Yellow Skunk-cabbage Swamp Forest Group | G853 | 1.B.3.Ng.1.e |
| Alliance | A4285 Western Hemlock - Sitka Spruce / American Skunk-cabbage Swamp Forest Alliance | A4285 | 1.B.3.Ng.1.e |
| Association | CEGL000055 Sitka Spruce / Red-osier Dogwood / Yellow Skunk-cabbage Swamp Forest | CEGL000055 | 1.B.3.Ng.1.e |
Concept Lineage: No Data Available
Predecessors: No Data Available
Obsolete Names: No Data Available
Obsolete Parents: No Data Available
Synonomy: = Picea sitchensis / Cornus sericea / Lysichiton americanus Association (Christy 2004)
= Picea sitchensis / Cornus sericea / Lysichiton americanus (McCain and Christy 2005) [15 plots]
= Picea sitchensis / Cornus sericea / Lysichiton americanus (McCain and Christy 2005) [15 plots]
- Bourgeron, P. S., and L. D. Engelking, editors. 1994. A preliminary vegetation classification of the western United States. Unpublished report. The Nature Conservancy, Western Heritage Task Force, Boulder, CO. 175 pp. plus appendix.
- Christy, J. A. 2004. Native freshwater wetland plant associations of northwestern Oregon. Oregon Natural Heritage Information Center, Oregon State University, Portland, OR.
- Christy, J. A., and J. A. Putera. 1993. Lower Columbia River Natural Area Inventory, 1992. Oregon Natural Heritage Program, Portland. 75 pp.
- Eilers, H. P. 1975a. Plants, plant communities, net production and tide levels: The ecological biogeography of the Nehalem salt marshes, Tillamook County, Oregon. Ph.D. dissertation, Oregon State University, Corvallis. 352 pp.
- Eilers, P. 1984. Low elevation/high salinity intertidal marshes on sandy substrate estuarine aquatic ecosystem Cell #24. Unpublished document located at Oregon Natural Heritage Program, Portland, OR.
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- McCain, C., and J. A. Christy. 2005. Field guide to riparian plant communities in northwestern Oregon. Technical Paper R6-NR-ECOL-TP-01-05. USDA Forest Service, Pacific Northwest Region, Portland. 357 pp.
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- WNHP [Washington Natural Heritage Program]. 2018. Unpublished data files. Washington Natural Heritage Program, Department of Natural Resources, Olympia, WA.
- Western Ecology Working Group of NatureServe. No date. International Ecological Classification Standard: International Vegetation Classification. Terrestrial Vegetation. NatureServe, Boulder, CO.
- Wiedemann, A. M. 1984. The ecology of Pacific Northwest coastal sand dunes: A community profile. USDI Fish and Wildlife Service Report FWS/OBS-84/04. 130 pp.