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CEGL005104 Cladium mariscoides - (Carex lasiocarpa, Hypericum kalmianum, Oligoneuron riddellii, Eleocharis elliptica) Fen
Type Concept Sentence: No Data Available
Common (Translated Scientific) Name: Smooth Sawgrass - (Woolly-fruit Sedge, Kalm''s St. John''s-wort, Riddell''s Goldenrod, Elliptic Spikerush ) Fen
Colloquial Name: Smooth Sawgrass Wet Prairie
Hierarchy Level: Association
Type Concept: This sawgrass wet prairie community is found in sandy regions of the Lake Erie lakeplain of northwestern Ohio, and may occur elsewhere on the lakeplain in adjacent regions of the United States and Canada. Stands occur in low-lying, sandy areas where the groundwater is at or near the surface for much of the year. Soils are typically a muck over sand. Stands are seasonally flooded, and water depth may vary in spring from several centimeters to almost 0.5 m. The dominant species include Carex lasiocarpa and/or Cladium mariscoides. Carex sartwellii and occasionally Calamagrostis canadensis, Calamagrostis stricta, or Carex stricta may be locally dominant. Stand composition is quite variable, and other species include Carex atherodes, Carex buxbaumii, Carex cryptolepis, Carex pellita, Coreopsis tripteris, Eleocharis elliptica, Euthamia gymnospermoides, Gentiana andrewsii, Hypericum kalmianum, Liatris spicata, Lobelia kalmii, Lythrum alatum, Prenanthes racemosa, Sorghastrum nutans, and Oligoneuron riddellii. Scattered shrubs such as Salix petiolaris may occur. The wettest areas tend to favor Sagittaria graminea, Proserpinaca palustris, Carex sartwellii, Iris versicolor, and Dulichium arundinaceum. Shrubs, including Salix discolor, Salix petiolaris, Ilex verticillata, Physocarpus opulifolius, Cornus amomum, and the non-native Frangula alnus, may increase in drier areas.
Diagnostic Characteristics: No Data Available
Rationale for Nominal Species or Physiognomic Features: No Data Available
Classification Comments: This type may grade into wet prairies, such as ~Spartina pectinata - Carex spp. - Calamagrostis canadensis - Lythrum alatum - (Oxypolis rigidior) Wet Meadow (CEGL002224)$$. Great Lakes shoreline stands classified as interdunal wetlands, or ~Dasiphora fruticosa / Cladium mariscoides - Juncus arcticus ssp. littoralis - (Rhynchospora capillacea) Fen (CEGL005105)$$, may resemble this type. Lakeplain wet sand prairies, ~Spartina pectinata - Carex spp. - Calamagrostis canadensis Lakeplain Wet Meadow (CEGL005109)$$, should also be compared (Comer et al. 1995b). This type may have occurred historically in southern Ontario on the Bothwell and Norfolk sandplains and at Dunwich Prairie, but they have been extirpated (W. Bakowsky pers. comm. 2000).
Similar NVC Types: No Data Available
note: No Data Available
Physiognomy and Structure: No Data Available
Floristics: The dominant species include Carex lasiocarpa and/or Cladium mariscoides. Carex sartwellii and occasionally Calamagrostis canadensis, Calamagrostis stricta, or Carex stricta may be locally dominant. Stand composition is quite variable, and other species include Carex atherodes, Carex buxbaumii, Carex cryptolepis, Carex pellita, Coreopsis tripteris, Eleocharis elliptica, Euthamia gymnospermoides (= Euthamia remota), Gentiana andrewsii, Hypericum kalmianum, Liatris spicata, Lobelia kalmii, Lythrum alatum, Prenanthes racemosa, Sorghastrum nutans, and Oligoneuron riddellii (= Solidago riddellii). Scattered shrubs such as Salix petiolaris may occur. The wettest areas tend to favor Sagittaria graminea, Proserpinaca palustris, Carex sartwellii, Iris versicolor, and Dulichium arundinaceum. Shrubs, including Salix discolor, Salix petiolaris, Ilex verticillata, Physocarpus opulifolius, Cornus amomum, and the non-native Frangula alnus (= Rhamnus frangula), may increase in drier areas (Schneider and Cochrane 1997).
Dynamics: Seasonal flooding coupled with fires during dry periods maintain the herbaceous dominance of these stands (Schneider and Cochrane 1997). In the absence of fire, these stands could succeed to shrub swamps or Quercus palustris woodlands.
Environmental Description: Stands occur in low-lying, sandy areas where the groundwater is at or near the surface for much of the year. Soils are typically a muck over sand. Stands are seasonally flooded, and water depth may vary in spring from several centimeters to almost 0.5 m. (Schneider and Cochrane 1997).
Geographic Range: This twig-rush wet prairie community is in the oak openings region of northwest Ohio, and may occur elsewhere in adjacent regions of the United States and Canada.
Nations: CA,US
States/Provinces: IN, MI?, OH, ON
Plot Analysis Summary:
http://vegbank.org/natureserve/ELEMENT_GLOBAL.2.685728
Confidence Level: Low - Poorly Documented
Confidence Level Comments: No Data Available
Grank: G2?
Greasons: No Data Available
| Type | Name | Database Code | Classification Code |
|---|---|---|---|
| Class | 2 Shrub & Herb Vegetation Class | C02 | 2 |
| Subclass | 2.C Shrub & Herb Wetland Subclass | S44 | 2.C |
| Formation | 2.C.2 Temperate to Polar Bog & Fen Formation | F016 | 2.C.2 |
| Division | 2.C.2.Na North American Bog & Fen Division | D029 | 2.C.2.Na |
| Macrogroup | 2.C.2.Na.2 Shrubby cinquefoil - Woolly-fruit Sedge / Star Campylium Moss Alkaline Fen Macrogroup | M877 | 2.C.2.Na.2 |
| Group | 2.C.2.Na.2.b Shrubby-cinquefoil / Dioecious Sedge - Smooth Sawgrass Alkaline Fen Group | G183 | 2.C.2.Na.2.b |
| Alliance | A3704 Shrubby-cinquefoil / Riddell''s Goldenrod - Big Bluestem Graminoid Fen Alliance | A3704 | 2.C.2.Na.2.b |
| Association | CEGL005104 Smooth Sawgrass - (Woolly-fruit Sedge, Kalm''s St. John''s-wort, Riddell''s Goldenrod, Elliptic Spikerush ) Fen | CEGL005104 | 2.C.2.Na.2.b |
Concept Lineage: No Data Available
Predecessors: No Data Available
Obsolete Names: No Data Available
Obsolete Parents: No Data Available
Synonomy: = Cladium mariscoides - (Carex lasiocarpa, Hypericum kalmianum, Oligoneuron riddellii, Eleocharis elliptica) Herbaceous Vegetation (Faber-Langendoen 2001)
- Comer, P. J., D. A. Albert, H. A. Wells, B. L. Hart, J. B. Raab, D. L. Price, D. M. Kashian, R. A. Corner, and D. W. Schuen. 1995a. Michigan''s native landscape, as interpreted from the General Land Office Surveys 1816-1856. Michigan Natural Features Inventory, Lansing, MI. 78 pp. plus digital map.
- 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.
- Kost, M. A., D. A. Albert, J. G. Cohen, B. S. Slaughter, R. K. Schillo, C. R. Weber, and K. A. Chapman. 2007. Natural communities of Michigan: Classification and description. Report No. 2007-21, Michigan Natural Features Inventory, Lansing. 314 pp. [http://web4.msue.msu.edu/mnfi/reports/2007-21_Natural_Communites_of_Michigan_Classification_and_Description.pdf]
- Midwestern Ecology Working Group of NatureServe. No date. International Ecological Classification Standard: International Vegetation Classification. Terrestrial Vegetation. NatureServe, Minneapolis, MN.
- ONHD [Ohio Natural Heritage Database]. No date. Vegetation classification of Ohio and unpublished data. Ohio Natural Heritage Database, Division of Natural Areas and Preserves, Ohio Department of Natural Resources, Columbus.
- Schneider, G. J., and K. E. Cochrane. 1997. Plant community survey of the Lake Erie drainage. A final report to The Nature Conservancy, Great Lakes Program (Chicago, IL) and The Ohio Chapter (Columbus, OH), and the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency - Great Lakes National Program Office (Chicago, IL). 158 pp.