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CEGL000592 Populus tremuloides / Lonicera involucrata Forest
Type Concept Sentence: No Data Available
Common (Translated Scientific) Name: Quaking Aspen / Twinberry Honeysuckle Forest
Colloquial Name: No Data Available
Hierarchy Level: Association
Type Concept: This subalpine riparian aspen forest association is widespread in the south-central Colorado Rocky Mountains. Sites are cool and wet and reported from southerly to northeasterly aspects. Elevations range from 2990 to 3110 m (9800-10,200 feet). Stands occur on lower slopes, benches, and flats along streams and in swales near springs and seeps. Slopes are gentle to moderate (<30%) and may be undulating, possibly because of slumping when soils are saturated. Litter and duff cover the forest floor. The vegetation is characterized by Populus tremuloides dominating the nearly closed tree canopy and a dense (about 80% cover) short-shrub layer (1-2 m tall) dominated or codominated by Lonicera involucrata. Conifers (Abies lasiocarpa and Picea engelmannii) and Populus balsamifera may be present as subcanopy and understory species but are not abundant and make up less that 25% or the total tree canopy. Salix monticola and Rosa woodsii are typically abundant and consistent shrub species. The herbaceous layer is relatively depauperate (about 15%) and composed of mesic forbs and graminoids such as Aconitum columbianum, Calamagrostis canadensis, Carex siccata, Fragaria virginiana, Maianthemum stellatum, Mertensia ciliata, and Thalictrum alpinum. These forests typically have high plant diversity (about 37 species per plot). Diagnostic of this aspen forest association is the dense short-shrub layer dominated by Lonicera involucrata.
Diagnostic Characteristics: No Data Available
Rationale for Nominal Species or Physiognomic Features: No Data Available
Classification Comments: This association has not been previously described. More survey and classification work are needed to verify its full range and relationships with similar aspen forests associations.
Similar NVC Types: No Data Available
note: No Data Available
Physiognomy and Structure: No Data Available
Floristics: The vegetation is characterized by Populus tremuloides dominating the nearly closed tree canopy and a dense (about 80% cover) short-shrub layer (1-2 m tall) dominated or codominated by Lonicera involucrata. Conifers (Abies lasiocarpa and Picea engelmannii) and Populus balsamifera may be present as subcanopy and understory species but are not abundant and make up less that 25% or the total tree canopy. Salix monticola and Rosa woodsii are typically abundant and consistent shrub species. The herbaceous layer is relatively depauperate (about 15%) and composed of mesic forbs and graminoids such as Aconitum columbianum, Calamagrostis canadensis, Carex siccata (= Carex foenea), Fragaria virginiana, Maianthemum stellatum, Mertensia ciliata, and Thalictrum alpinum. These forests typically have high plant diversity (about 37 species per plot). Diagnostic of this aspen forest association is the dense short-shrub layer dominated by Lonicera involucrata.
Dynamics: Some stands of this aspen forest association have Abies lasiocarpa and Picea engelmannii present, which may indicate that without disturbance, it may succeed to a spruce-fir forest.
Environmental Description: This subalpine riparian aspen forest association is widespread in the south-central Colorado Rocky Mountains. Sites are cool and wet and reported from southerly to northeasterly aspects. Elevations range from 2990 to 3110 m (9800-10,200 feet). Stands occur on lower slopes, benches, and flats along streams and in swales near springs and seeps. Slopes are gentle to moderate (<30%) and may be undulating, possibly because of slumping when soils are saturated. Litter and duff cover the forest floor.
Geographic Range: This aspen forest association is widespread in the south-central Colorado Rocky Mountains.
Nations: US
States/Provinces: CO
Plot Analysis Summary:
http://vegbank.org/natureserve/ELEMENT_GLOBAL.2.685611
Confidence Level: Low - Poorly Documented
Confidence Level Comments: No Data Available
Grank: G3
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.d Quaking Aspen Rocky Mountain Forest & Woodland Group | G222 | 1.B.2.Nb.5.d |
| Alliance | A2036 Quaking Aspen Rocky Mountain Forest & Woodland Alliance | A2036 | 1.B.2.Nb.5.d |
| Association | CEGL000592 Quaking Aspen / Twinberry Honeysuckle Forest | CEGL000592 | 1.B.2.Nb.5.d |
Concept Lineage: No Data Available
Predecessors: No Data Available
Obsolete Names: No Data Available
Obsolete Parents: No Data Available
Synonomy: = Populus tremuloides / Lonicera involucrata Community Type (Powell 1988a)
- 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.
- CNHP [Colorado Natural Heritage Program]. 2006-2017. Tracked natural plant communities. Colorado Natural Heritage Program, Colorado State University, Fort Collins. [https://cnhp.colostate.edu/ourdata/trackinglist/plant_communities/]
- Powell, D. C. 1988a. Aspen community types of the Pike and San Isabel national forests in south-central Colorado. Report R2-ECOL-88-01. USDA Forest Service, Rocky Mountain Region, Denver, CO. 254 pp.
- Western Ecology Working Group of NatureServe. No date. International Ecological Classification Standard: International Vegetation Classification. Terrestrial Vegetation. NatureServe, Boulder, CO.