Print Report
CEGL006524 Carex (oligosperma, exilis) - Chamaedaphne calyculata Shrub Acidic Peatland
Type Concept Sentence: No Data Available
Common (Translated Scientific) Name: (Few-seed Sedge, Coastal Sedge) - Leatherleaf Shrub Acidic Peatland
Colloquial Name: Few-seed Sedge - Leatherleaf Fen
Hierarchy Level: Association
Type Concept: This association forms sedge-shrub lawns in weakly minerotrophic peatlands of northern New England and adjacent Canada. It occurs on wet flats and peat-accumulating depressions at low to moderate elevations, generally over acidic bedrock or till. The peat substrate is constantly saturated, and pH is usually in the 4.0-5.4 range. The vegetation is dominated by an expanse of low to mid-sized sedges mixed with dwarf ericad shrubs, with sedges usually more abundant. Trees and tall shrubs are sparse or absent. The bryophyte layer is continuous. Chamaedaphne calyculata and Andromeda polifolia var. glaucophylla are the most typical dwarf-shrubs, and are often overtopped by the sedges. Other shrubs include Kalmia polifolia, Kalmia angustifolia, Myrica gale, Ilex mucronata, Vaccinium oxycoccos, Vaccinium macrocarpon, and (occasionally, northward) Betula pumila. Graminoid species include Carex oligosperma, Carex exilis, Carex michauxiana, Carex utriculata, Carex chordorrhiza, Eriophorum spp. (most typically Eriophorum angustifolium), Rhynchospora alba, Trichophorum cespitosum, and Scheuchzeria palustris. Other herbaceous associates include Solidago nemoralis, Oclemena nemoralis, Drosera intermedia, Drosera rotundifolia, Pogonia ophioglossoides, and Maianthemum trifolium. The bryophyte layer is characterized by a mixture of species, with characteristic peatmosses including Sphagnum angustifolium, Sphagnum fallax, Sphagnum magellanicum, Sphagnum papillosum, Sphagnum pulchrum, Sphagnum recurvum, and Sphagnum rubellum. This association is differentiated from ~Chamaedaphne calyculata / Eriophorum virginicum / Sphagnum rubellum Acidic Peatland (CEGL006513)$$, which can be floristically similar, by the increased cover of sedges and decreased cover of shrubs.
Diagnostic Characteristics: No Data Available
Rationale for Nominal Species or Physiognomic Features: No Data Available
Classification Comments: Comparison of this type (CEGL006524), described from the Northeast, and ~Carex oligosperma - Carex pauciflora - Eriophorum vaginatum / Sphagnum spp. Acidic Peatland (CEGL005256)$$, described from the Midwest, along with information from adjacent Canada, is needed to determine if they should remain separate types.
Similar NVC Types: No Data Available
note: No Data Available
Physiognomy and Structure: No Data Available
Floristics: The vegetation is dominated by an expanse of low to mid-sized sedges mixed with dwarf ericad shrubs, with sedges usually more abundant. Trees and tall shrubs are sparse or absent. The bryophyte layer is continuous. Chamaedaphne calyculata and Andromeda polifolia var. glaucophylla (= Andromeda glaucophylla) are the most typical dwarf-shrubs, and are often overtopped by the sedges. Other shrubs include Kalmia polifolia, Kalmia angustifolia, Myrica gale, Ilex mucronata (= Nemopanthus mucronatus), Vaccinium oxycoccos, Vaccinium macrocarpon, and (occasionally, northward) Betula pumila. Graminoid species include Carex oligosperma, Carex exilis, Carex michauxiana, Carex utriculata, Carex chordorrhiza, Eriophorum spp. (most typically Eriophorum angustifolium), Rhynchospora alba, Trichophorum cespitosum (= Scirpus cespitosus), and Scheuchzeria palustris. Other herbaceous associates include Solidago nemoralis, Oclemena nemoralis (= Aster nemoralis), Drosera intermedia, Drosera rotundifolia, Pogonia ophioglossoides, and Maianthemum trifolium (= Smilacina trifolia). The bryophyte layer is characterized by a mixture of species, with characteristic peatmosses including Sphagnum angustifolium, Sphagnum fallax, Sphagnum magellanicum, Sphagnum papillosum, Sphagnum pulchrum, Sphagnum recurvum, and Sphagnum rubellum.
Dynamics: No Data Available
Environmental Description: This association forms sedge-shrub lawns in weakly minerotrophic peatlands of northern New England and adjacent Canada. It occurs on wet flats and peat-accumulating depressions at low to moderate elevations, generally over acidic bedrock or till. The peat substrate is constantly saturated, and pH is usually in the 4.0-5.4 range.
Geographic Range: This weakly minerotrophic peatland occurs in northern New England.
Nations: CA,US
States/Provinces: ME, NH, NY, QC?, VT
Plot Analysis Summary:
http://vegbank.org/natureserve/ELEMENT_GLOBAL.2.685752
Confidence Level: Low
Confidence Level Comments: No Data Available
Grank: GNR
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.1 Leatherleaf - Small Cranberry - Few-seed Sedge Bog & Acidic Fen Macrogroup | M876 | 2.C.2.Na.1 |
| Group | 2.C.2.Na.1.a Leatherleaf - Few-seed Sedge - Bog Laurel Boreal Bog & Acidic Fen Group | G748 | 2.C.2.Na.1.a |
| Alliance | A4398 Leatherleaf / Woolly-fruit Sedge Poor Fen Alliance | A4398 | 2.C.2.Na.1.a |
| Association | CEGL006524 (Few-seed Sedge, Coastal Sedge) - Leatherleaf Shrub Acidic Peatland | CEGL006524 | 2.C.2.Na.1.a |
Concept Lineage: No Data Available
Predecessors: No Data Available
Obsolete Names: No Data Available
Obsolete Parents: No Data Available
Synonomy: = Carex oligosperma - Chamaedaphne calyculata sedge - shrub heath / moss lawn (Types 5 and 7) (Anderson and Davis 1997)
< Extremely poor fen (Damman and French 1987)
< Extremely poor fen (Damman and French 1987)
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- CDPNQ [Centre de données sur le patrimoine naturel du Québec]. No date. Unpublished data. Centre de données sur le patrimoine naturel du Québec, Québec.
- Damman, A. W. H., and T. W. French. 1987. The ecology of peat bogs of the glaciated northeastern United States: A community profile. USDI Fish & Wildlife Service Biological Report 85(7.16). 100 pp.
- 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.
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- Lubinski, S., K. Hop, and S. Gawler. 2003. Vegetation Mapping Program: Acadia National Park, Maine. Report produced by U.S. Department of the Interior, U.S. Geological Survey, Upper Midwest Environmental Sciences Center, and Maine Natural Areas Program in conjunction with M. Story (NPS Vegetation Mapping Coordinator) NPS, Natural Resources Information Division, Inventory and Monitoring Program, and K. Brown (USGS Vegetation Mapping Coordinator), USGS, Center for Biological Informatics and NatureServe. [http://biology.usgs.gov/npsveg/ftp/vegmapping/acad/reports/acadrpt.pdf]
- Northern Appalachian Ecology Working Group. 2000. Northern Appalachian / Boreal Ecoregion community classification (Review Draft). The Nature Conservancy, Eastern Conservation Science Center, Boston, MA. 117 pp. plus appendices.
- Sperduto, D. D., W. F. Nichols, and N. Cleavitt. 2000a. Bogs and fens of New Hampshire. New Hampshire Natural Heritage Inventory, Concord, NH.
- 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.