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CEGL006322 Diapensia lapponica Dwarf-shrubland
Type Concept Sentence: No Data Available
Common (Translated Scientific) Name: Pincushion Plant Dwarf-shrubland
Colloquial Name: Windswept Alpine Ridge
Hierarchy Level: Association
Type Concept: These alpine barrens are found on extremely exposed areas above treeline on the highest peaks of the northern Appalachian Mountains. They occur on relatively flat, windswept areas where snow cover is slight or absent, at elevations of 1220 to 1675 m (4000-5500 feet). The soils are minimally developed, well-drained gravels, where frost heaving and winter freezing is characteristic. Dwarf-shrub cushion plants are the dominant feature of the vegetation, which is often less than 10 cm high; herbs and lichens are sparse. Between the plants, the ground cover is bare gravel. The dominant shrub is Diapensia lapponica forming low domes. Associated shrubs, in compact mats, include Vaccinium uliginosum and Empetrum nigrum, and, at the higher elevations, Rhododendron lapponicum, Loiseleuria procumbens, and Arctostaphylos alpina. Herbs include Juncus trifidus, Carex bigelowii, Solidago multiradiata, Minuartia groenlandica, and Agrostis mertensii. This association is differentiated from co-occurring alpine vegetation (primarily ~Vaccinium uliginosum - Rhododendron lapponicum / Juncus trifidus Dwarf-shrubland (CEGL006298)$$) by the greater dominance of Diapensia, which in most cases has higher cover than any other shrub species.
Diagnostic Characteristics: No Data Available
Rationale for Nominal Species or Physiognomic Features: No Data Available
Classification Comments: No Data Available
Similar NVC Types: No Data Available
note: No Data Available
Physiognomy and Structure: No Data Available
Floristics: Dwarf-shrub cushion plants are the dominant feature of the vegetation, which is often less than 10 cm high; herbs and lichens are sparse. Between the plants, the ground cover is bare gravel. The dominant shrub is Diapensia lapponica forming low domes. Associated shrubs, in compact mats, include Vaccinium uliginosum and Empetrum nigrum, and, at the higher elevations, Rhododendron lapponicum, Loiseleuria procumbens, and Arctostaphylos alpina. Herbs include Juncus trifidus, Carex bigelowii, Solidago multiradiata, Minuartia groenlandica, and Agrostis mertensii.
Dynamics: No Data Available
Environmental Description: These alpine barrens are found on extremely exposed areas above treeline on the highest peaks of the northern Appalachian Mountains. They occur on windswept areas where snow cover is slight or absent, at elevations of 1220 to 1675 m (4000-5500 feet). The soils are minimally developed, well-drained gravels, where frost heaving and winter freezing is characteristic.
Geographic Range: No Data Available
Nations: CA,US
States/Provinces: ME, NH, NY, QC?, VT
Plot Analysis Summary:
http://vegbank.org/natureserve/ELEMENT_GLOBAL.2.685539
Confidence Level: Moderate
Confidence Level Comments: No Data Available
Grank: G2G3
Greasons: No Data Available
| Type | Name | Database Code | Classification Code |
|---|---|---|---|
| Class | 4 Polar & High Montane Scrub, Grassland & Barrens Class | C04 | 4 |
| Subclass | 4.B Temperate to Polar Alpine & Tundra Vegetation Subclass | S12 | 4.B |
| Formation | 4.B.1 Temperate & Boreal Alpine Tundra Formation | F037 | 4.B.1 |
| Division | 4.B.1.Na Eastern North American Alpine Tundra Division | D042 | 4.B.1.Na |
| Macrogroup | 4.B.1.Na.1 Eastern North American Alpine Tundra Macrogroup | M131 | 4.B.1.Na.1 |
| Group | 4.B.1.Na.1.d <i>Vaccinium uliginosum - Diapensia lapponica - Carex bigelowii</i> Temperate Alpine Tundra Group | G909 | 4.B.1.Na.1.d |
| Alliance | A1120 Pincushion Plant - Mixed Alpine Dwarf-shrubland Alliance | A1120 | 4.B.1.Na.1.d |
| Association | CEGL006322 Pincushion Plant Dwarf-shrubland | CEGL006322 | 4.B.1.Na.1.d |
Concept Lineage: No Data Available
Predecessors: No Data Available
Obsolete Names: No Data Available
Obsolete Parents: No Data Available
Synonomy: = Diapensia (Bliss 1963)
? Alpine exposed ridge shrubland (NAP pers. comm. 1998)
? Alpine exposed ridge shrubland (NAP pers. comm. 1998)
- Bliss, L. C. 1963. Alpine plant communities of the Presidential Range, New Hampshire. Ecology 44:678-697.
- CDPNQ [Centre de données sur le patrimoine naturel du Québec]. No date. Unpublished data. Centre de données sur le patrimoine naturel du Québec, Québec.
- Eastern Ecology Working Group of NatureServe. No date. International Ecological Classification Standard: International Vegetation Classification. Terrestrial Vegetation. NatureServe, Boston, MA.
- Edinger, G. J., D. J. Evans, S. Gebauer, T. G. Howard, D. M. Hunt, and A. M. Olivero, editors. 2014a. Ecological communities of New York state. Second edition. A revised and expanded edition of Carol Reschke''s ecological communities of New York state. New York Natural Heritage Program, New York State Department of Environmental Conservation, Albany, NY.
- Gawler, S. C. 2002. Natural landscapes of Maine: A guide to vegetated natural communities and ecosystems. Maine Natural Areas Program, Department of Conservation, Augusta, ME.
- Gawler, S. C., and A. Cutko. 2010. Natural landscapes of Maine: A classification of vegetated natural communities and ecosystems. Maine Natural Areas Program, Department of Conservation, Augusta.
- NAP [Northern Appalachian-Boreal Forest Working Group]. 1998. Northern Appalachian-Boreal Working group discussions. The Nature Conservancy, Boston, MA.
- Sperduto, D. D., and C. V. Cogbill. 1999. Alpine and subalpine vegetation of the White Mountains, New Hampshire. New Hampshire Natural Heritage Inventory, Concord, NH. 25 pp. plus figures.
- Sperduto, D. D., and W. F. Nichols. 2004. Natural communities of New Hampshire: A guide and classification. New Hampshire Natural Heritage Bureau, DRED Division of Forests and Lands, Concord. 242 pp.
- Thompson, E. H., and E. R. Sorenson. 2005. Wetland, woodland, wildland: A guide to the natural communities of Vermont. The Nature Conservancy and the Vermont Department of Fish and Wildlife. University Press of New England, Hanover, NH. 456 pp.