Print Report
CEGL005072 Corylus americana - Salix humilis / Schizachyrium scoparium Sand Shrubland
Type Concept Sentence: No Data Available
Common (Translated Scientific) Name: American Hazelnut - Prairie Willow / Little Bluestem Sand Shrubland
Colloquial Name: Hazelnut Sand Barrens
Hierarchy Level: Association
Type Concept: This hazelnut sand barrens type is found in the tallgrass prairie-forest border region of Illinois and Indiana in the United States. Stands occur on dune slopes and sandy ridges of glacial lakeplains. The vegetation may contain scattered grubs of Quercus velutina and copses of Sassafras albidum interspersed with sand prairie or sand barrens vegetation. Dominant species in the shrub layer include Corylus americana and Salix humilis. Dominant herbaceous species include Schizachyrium scoparium and Sorghastrum nutans. Other characteristic species include Asclepias amplexicaulis, Lupinus perennis, Opuntia humifusa, Phlox bifida, and Staphylea trifolia. Open patches of sand may occur, and mosses and lichens may be common.
Diagnostic Characteristics: No Data Available
Rationale for Nominal Species or Physiognomic Features: No Data Available
Classification Comments: This type is primarily known through historical records, and few stands remain today. This type may be expected on drier, finer-textured and sandy soils. There are serious classification difficulties in applying the concept of this type, as it falls between the black oak barrens type, ~Quercus velutina - Quercus ellipsoidalis - (Quercus alba) / Schizachyrium scoparium - Lupinus perennis Wooded Grassland (CEGL002492)$$, which can be quite scrubby, and open dry sand prairies, ~Schizachyrium scoparium - Danthonia spicata - Carex pensylvanica - (Viola pedata) Sand Grassland (CEGL002318)$$, or sand barrens, ~Schizachyrium scoparium - Carex muehlenbergii - Lithospermum caroliniense - Opuntia humifusa Sand Grassland (CEGL005099)$$. It remains to be determined how necessary a shrubby sand prairie or sand barrens category is. Type may occur in the Kankakee Sands area of Illinois. The type may also share some features with open shrub prairie types in ~Corylus americana - Malus ioensis - Ceanothus americanus Central Shrubland Alliance (A4208)$$, but those types are typically not as dry, nor on sand; thus overall floristics suggest leaving this association in with other sand prairies.
Similar NVC Types: No Data Available
note: No Data Available
Physiognomy and Structure: No Data Available
Floristics: The vegetation may contain scattered grubs of Quercus velutina and copses of Sassafras albidum interspersed with sand prairie or sand barrens vegetation. Dominant species in the shrub layer include Corylus americana and Salix humilis. Dominant herbaceous species include Schizachyrium scoparium and Sorghastrum nutans. Other characteristic species include Asclepias amplexicaulis, Lupinus perennis, Opuntia humifusa, Phlox bifida, and Staphylea trifolia. Open patches of sand may occur, and mosses and lichens may be common (Steffen and Anderson 1997).
Dynamics: Droughts and fires interact to maintain the open, scrubby nature of this type (Steffen et al. 1997).
Environmental Description: Stands occur on dune slopes and sandy ridges of glacial lakeplains.
Geographic Range: This type is found in the tallgrass prairie-forest border region of Illinois and Indiana in the United States.
Nations: US
States/Provinces: IL, IN
Plot Analysis Summary:
http://vegbank.org/natureserve/ELEMENT_GLOBAL.2.685284
Confidence Level: Low
Confidence Level Comments: No Data Available
Grank: G1?
Greasons: No Data Available
| Type | Name | Database Code | Classification Code |
|---|---|---|---|
| Class | 2 Shrub & Herb Vegetation Class | C02 | 2 |
| Subclass | 2.B Temperate & Boreal Grassland & Shrubland Subclass | S18 | 2.B |
| Formation | 2.B.2 Temperate Grassland & Shrubland Formation | F012 | 2.B.2 |
| Division | 2.B.2.Nb Central North American Grassland & Shrubland Division | D023 | 2.B.2.Nb |
| Macrogroup | 2.B.2.Nb.1 Big Bluestem - Indiangrass - Dense Blazingstar Tallgrass Prairie Macrogroup | M054 | 2.B.2.Nb.1 |
| Group | 2.B.2.Nb.1.c Big Bluestem - Indiangrass - Porcupine Grass Tallgrass Prairie Group | G333 | 2.B.2.Nb.1.c |
| Alliance | A4047 Little Bluestem - Indiangrass Central Sand & Gravel Grassland Alliance | A4047 | 2.B.2.Nb.1.c |
| Association | CEGL005072 American Hazelnut - Prairie Willow / Little Bluestem Sand Shrubland | CEGL005072 | 2.B.2.Nb.1.c |
Concept Lineage: No Data Available
Predecessors: No Data Available
Obsolete Names: No Data Available
Obsolete Parents: No Data Available
Synonomy: = Corylus americana - Salix humilis / Schizachyrium scoparium Shrubland (Faber-Langendoen 2001)
= Sand Shrubland - dry-mesic (Steffen and Anderson 1997)
= Sand Shrubland - dry-mesic (Steffen and Anderson 1997)
- Faber-Langendoen, D., editor. 2001. Plant communities of the Midwest: Classification in an ecological context. Association for Biodiversity Information, Arlington, VA. 61 pp. plus appendix (705 pp.).
- Homoya, M. A., J. Aldrich, J. Bacone, L. Casebere, and T. Post. 1988. Indiana natural community classification. Indiana Natural Heritage Program, Indianapolis, IN. Unpublished manuscript.
- Hop, K., S. Lubinski, J. Dieck, J. Drake, and S. Menard. 2009. National Park Service Vegetation Inventory Program: Indiana Dunes National Lakeshore, Indiana. USDI U.S. Geological Survey, La Crosse, WI, and NatureServe, St. Paul, MN. 312 pp.
- Midwestern Ecology Working Group of NatureServe. No date. International Ecological Classification Standard: International Vegetation Classification. Terrestrial Vegetation. NatureServe, Minneapolis, MN.
- Steffen, J., and J. Anderson. 1997. Chicago Wilderness community classification system (draft). Chicago Wilderness Biodiversity Council, Chicago, IL.
- White, J., and M. Madany. 1978. Classification of natural communities in Illinois. Pages 311-405 in: Natural Areas Inventory technical report: Volume I, survey methods and results. Illinois Natural Areas Inventory, Urbana, IL.