Common (Translated Scientific) Name: Central Midwest-Interior Limestone - Dolostone Dry Cliff Sparse Vegetation

Colloquial Name: Central Midwest-Interior Dry Limestone - Dolostone Cliff

Hierarchy Level:  Association

Type Concept: This limestone - dolostone dry cliff community type is found throughout the central midwestern-interior United States and southern Ontario, Canada. Stands occur as steep to vertical rock exposures of limestone bedrock. Aspect is variable, but stands are best developed on south- and west-facing slopes. Vegetation is restricted to shelves, cracks and crevices in the rock, generally averaging less than 20%, and typically consisting of vines and ferns. In the Ozarks and Interior Plateau region, ferns include Cheilanthes feei, Argyrochosma dealbata, Pellaea atropurpurea, and Pellaea glabella. Herbaceous forbs and graminoids include Aquilegia canadensis, Stenaria nigricans, Mentzelia oligosperma, Muhlenbergia cuspidata, Sedum pulchellum, and Solidago rugosa ssp. aspera. Lichens include Placidium lachneum, Protoparmeliopsis muralis and Psora russellii. In Ohio, stands contain the ferns Pellaea atropurpurea, and Pellaea glabella, and the forbs Aquilegia canadensis, Arabis laevigata, Heuchera americana, Hydrangea arborescens, and Sedum ternatum. Scattered woody plants across the range include Celastrus scandens, Juniperus virginiana, Parthenocissus quinquefolia, Physocarpus opulifolius, Quercus montana (southward), and Toxicodendron radicans, and farther north, Taxus canadensis, Thuja occidentalis, and Tsuga canadensis.

Diagnostic Characteristics: No Data Available

Rationale for Nominal Species or Physiognomic Features: No Data Available

Classification Comments: Definitions of cliff types remain problematic. A minimum height of 3 m may be practical. Curtis (1959) in Wisconsin suggested that substrate was of secondary importance compared to moisture (shading vs. open) in determining floristic patterns. Furthermore some cliffs are a combination of layers of sandstone, shale and limestone or dolostone, making classification problematic. The combination of moisture and substrate is retained here, but a more systematic rangewide comparison of cliff floras is needed. Tim Nigh (pers. comm. 1996) has suggested that the Missouri type could be named "Aquilegia canadensis - Solidago rugosa ssp. aspera - Pellaea atropurpurea Cliff." Ozark, southern Illinois, and Indiana cliffs may be better placed into a Southeastern/Interior Low Plateau type, separate from a central Midwest type. Limestone cliffs along the Niagara Escarpment in central Ontario/Bruce Peninsula may be different from those in southern Ontario (W. Bakowsky pers. comm. 1998) and from other Great Lakes limestone cliffs, but for now Great Lakes shoreline cliffs are placed in ~Great Lakes Limestone - Dolostone Cliff Sparse Vegetation (CEGL002504)$$. A series of studies in Ontario''s cliffs have led to a series of surprising biological discoveries, including a rich snail fauna, unusual cyanobacteria, and old-growth Thuja occidentalis stands on the cliffs (Larson and Kelly 1991, Larson et al. 1999a, 1999b) [see also ~Thuja occidentalis Cliff Woodland (CEGL002451)$$]. In Kansas, limestone cliffs are particularly common in glaciated northeastern Kansas, on the western side of the Missouri River and perhaps other major rivers/creeks, and probably in the Osage Cuestas. Chalk breaks in west-central Kansas along the Smoky Hill River and associated terrain are cliff-like and probably need to be separated from the eastern cliffs (C. Lauver pers. comm. 1998). In Ohio, where limestone cliffs are found particularly in western Ohio, Lake Erie Islands, and unglaciated bluegrass region, Anderson (1996) cites a number of studies that describe the nonvascular vegetation. In Illinois, see Winterringer and Vestal (1956).

Similar NVC Types: No Data Available

note: No Data Available