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CEGL000144 Pinus contorta / Carex rossii Forest
Type Concept Sentence: No Data Available
Common (Translated Scientific) Name: Lodgepole Pine / Ross'' Sedge Forest
Colloquial Name: No Data Available
Hierarchy Level: Association
Type Concept: This association is found mainly between 2155 and 2956 m (7070-9700 feet) elevation in Teton National Park, Yellowstone National Park, the Wind River Mountains, and the Medicine Bow Mountains of northwestern and southeastern Wyoming, and in the north-central Uintah Mountains of northern Utah. This forest occupies gentle slopes on cold sites that are very well-drained. Soils are primarily derived from quartzite parent materials and are gravelly sandy loams to gravelly loams. The overstory canopy is almost exclusively Pinus contorta (30-64%). Small amounts of Picea engelmannii, Abies lasiocarpa, and Pinus albicaulis may be present. Shrubs may be completely absent or present in trace amounts and include species such as Arctostaphylos uva-ursi, Vaccinium cespitosum, Vaccinium scoparium, and Mahonia repens. The herbaceous understory is very depauperate, with Lupinus argenteus, Solidago multiradiata, Sedum lanceolatum, Orthilia secunda, and Pyrola chlorantha present. Poa nervosa, Carex geyeri, and Carex rossii are also common. Carex rossii is the only species to have the highest cover (1-10%) in all stands (100% constancy) and can obtain dominance because all other herbaceous species are sparse. This association is differentiated from similar associations by the clear dominance of Pinus contorta in the overstory canopy.
Diagnostic Characteristics: No Data Available
Rationale for Nominal Species or Physiognomic Features: No Data Available
Classification Comments: Many lower subalpine, spruce-fir and upper montane Douglas-fir forest and woodland stands include Pinus contorta trees in a mixed-conifer canopy. To clarify classification, only stands with tree canopies strongly dominated by Pinus contorta (usually >2/3 tree canopy) are considered to be Pinus contorta woodland and forest associations.
Similar NVC Types: No Data Available
note: No Data Available
Physiognomy and Structure: No Data Available
Floristics: The overstory canopy is almost exclusively Pinus contorta (30-64%). Small amounts of Picea engelmannii, Abies lasiocarpa, and Pinus albicaulis may be present. Shrubs may be completely absent or present in trace amounts and include species such as Arctostaphylos uva-ursi, Vaccinium cespitosum, Vaccinium scoparium, Acer glabrum, Juniperus communis var. montana, and Mahonia repens. The herbaceous understory are very depauperate, with Lupinus argenteus, Solidago multiradiata, Sedum lanceolatum, Orthilia secunda (= Pyrola secunda), and Pyrola chlorantha (= Pyrola virens) present. Poa nervosa, Carex geyeri, and Carex rossii are also common. Carex rossii is the only species to have the highest cover (1-40%) in all stands (100% constancy) and can obtain dominance because all other herbaceous species are sparse. This association is differentiated from similar associations by the clear dominance of Pinus contorta in the overstory canopy.
Dynamics: No Data Available
Environmental Description: This association is found mainly between 2155 and 2956 m (7070-9700 feet) elevation in Teton National Park, Yellowstone National Park, the Wind River Mountains, and the Medicine Bow Mountains of northwestern and southeastern Wyoming, in the north-central Uintah Mountains of northern Utah, and in the Rocky Mountains of Colorado. This forest occupies gentle slopes on cold sites that are very well-drained. Soils are primarily derived from quartzite parent materials and are gravelly sandy loams to gravelly loams. There is little surface rock and bare soil as the litter and duff layer often covers as much as 60% of the ground surface.
Geographic Range: This Rocky Mountain forest association is well-documented from northern Utah, southern Idaho, western and southeastern Wyoming, and northern Colorado. It may also occur in Montana.
Nations: US
States/Provinces: CO, ID, MT, UT, WY
Plot Analysis Summary:
http://vegbank.org/natureserve/ELEMENT_GLOBAL.2.685606
Confidence Level: Moderate
Confidence Level Comments: No Data Available
Grank: G5
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.2 Cool Temperate Forest & Woodland Formation | F008 | 1.B.2 |
| Division | 1.B.2.Nb Rocky Mountain Forest & Woodland Division | D194 | 1.B.2.Nb |
| Macrogroup | 1.B.2.Nb.5 Subalpine Fir - Engelmann Spruce - Whitebark Pine Rocky Mountain Forest Macrogroup | M020 | 1.B.2.Nb.5 |
| Group | 1.B.2.Nb.5.a Lodgepole Pine Rocky Mountain Forest & Woodland Group | G220 | 1.B.2.Nb.5.a |
| Alliance | A3366 Lodgepole Pine Rocky Mountain Forest Alliance | A3366 | 1.B.2.Nb.5.a |
| Association | CEGL000144 Lodgepole Pine / Ross'' Sedge Forest | CEGL000144 | 1.B.2.Nb.5.a |
Concept Lineage: No Data Available
Predecessors: No Data Available
Obsolete Names: No Data Available
Obsolete Parents: No Data Available
Synonomy: = Pinus contorta / Carex rossii Community Type (Steele et al. 1983) [(p.73)]
= Pinus contorta / Carex rossii Habitat Type (Mauk and Henderson 1984) [(p.60)]
= Pinus contorta / Carex rossii Habitat Type (Alexander 1986) [(p.11)]
= Pinus contorta / Carex rossii Plant Association (Johnston 1987) [(p.104)]
= Pinus contorta / Carex rossii Habitat Type (Mauk and Henderson 1984) [(p.60)]
= Pinus contorta / Carex rossii Habitat Type (Alexander 1986) [(p.11)]
= Pinus contorta / Carex rossii Plant Association (Johnston 1987) [(p.104)]
- Alexander, R. M. 1986. Classification of the forest vegetation of Wyoming. Research Note RM-466. USDA Forest Service, Rocky Mountain Forest and Range Experiment Station, Fort Collins, CO. 10 pp.
- 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.
- Cogan, D., K. Varga, and G. Kittel. 2005. USGS-NPS Vegetation Mapping Program: Grand Teton National Park and John D. Rockefeller, Jr. Memorial Parkway. Final Project Report 2002-2005 Vegetation Mapping Project. Technical Memorandum 8260-06-02. USDI Bureau of Reclamation, Denver, CO. 87 pp. plus Appendixes A-F.
- Johnston, B. C. 1987. Plant associations of Region Two: Potential plant communities of Wyoming, South Dakota, Nebraska, Colorado, and Kansas. R2-ECOL-87-2. USDA Forest Service, Rocky Mountain Region. Lakewood, CO. 429 pp.
- Jones, G., and S. Ogle. 2000. Characterization abstracts for vegetation types on the Bighorn, Medicine Bow, and Shoshone national forests. Prepared for USDA Forest Service, Region 2 by the Wyoming Natural Diversity Database, University of Wyoming.
- MTNHP [Montana Natural Heritage Program]. 2002b. List of ecological communities for Montana. Montana Natural Heritage Program, Montana State Library, Helena, MT.
- Mauk, R. L., and J. A. Henderson. 1984. Coniferous forest habitat types of northern Utah. General Technical Report INT-170. USDA Forest Service, Intermountain Forest and Range Experiment Station, Ogden, UT. 89 pp.
- Salas, D., J. Stevens, and K. Schulz. 2005. USGS-NPS Vegetation Mapping Program: Rocky Mountain National Park, Colorado. Technical Memorandum No. 8260-05-02. USDI Bureau of Reclamation, Denver, CO. 161 pp. plus Appendices A-L (733 pp.).
- Steele, R., S. V. Cooper, D. M. Ondov, D. W. Roberts, and R. D. Pfister. 1983. Forest habitat types of eastern Idaho - western Wyoming. General Technical Report INT-144. USDA Forest Service, Intermountain Forest and Range Experiment Station, Ogden, UT. 122 pp.
- Western Ecology Working Group of NatureServe. No date. International Ecological Classification Standard: International Vegetation Classification. Terrestrial Vegetation. NatureServe, Boulder, CO.