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CEGL001895 Festuca brachyphylla - Geum rossii var. turbinatum Alpine Turf
Type Concept Sentence: No Data Available
Common (Translated Scientific) Name: Alpine Fescue - Ross'' Avens Alpine Turf
Colloquial Name: No Data Available
Hierarchy Level: Association
Type Concept: This association occurs in alpine dry turf and upper subalpine parks in the southern Rocky Mountains. Sites are upland and relatively xeric. Stands occur on all aspects of gentle to moderate-gradient slopes. Soils on are well-drained sandy loams. Cover of rock and bare soil is generally low and litter is high. Vegetation is characterized by a relatively open (disturbed) to moderately dense or dense short herbaceous layer dominated by Festuca brachyphylla with Geum rossii codominant. Associated species include Achillea millefolium, Artemisia scopulorum, Carex rossii, Carex rupestris, Erigeron pinnatisectus, Erigeron simplex, Lupinus lepidus, Lupinus sericeus, Minuartia obtusiloba, Phlox multiflora, Polygonum bistortoides, Pseudocymopterus montanus, Solidago simplex and Trisetum spicatum. The exotic Taraxacum officinale is often prevalent in many sites.
Diagnostic Characteristics: No Data Available
Rationale for Nominal Species or Physiognomic Features: No Data Available
Classification Comments: Although Festuca brachyphylla is a common associate in many alpine tundra communities, there is relatively little known about communities dominated by it. Currently there are two alpine and one subalpine associations classified that share many characteristic species. Alpine associations are determined by relative abundance of Trisetum spicatum and Geum rossii, because both are often present. More survey and classification work are needed to fully characterized this association.
Similar NVC Types: No Data Available
note: No Data Available
Physiognomy and Structure: No Data Available
Floristics: Vegetation of this association is characterized by a relatively open (disturbed) to moderately dense or dense short herbaceous layer dominated by Festuca brachyphylla with Geum rossii codominant. Associated species include Achillea millefolium, Artemisia scopulorum, Carex rossii, Carex rupestris, Erigeron pinnatisectus, Erigeron simplex, Lupinus lepidus, Lupinus sericeus, Minuartia obtusiloba, Phlox multiflora, Polygonum bistortoides, Pseudocymopterus montanus, Solidago simplex, and Trisetum spicatum.
Dynamics: Festuca brachyphylla-dominated vegetation colonized an area of wind-disturbed Kobresia alpine turf in New Mexico (Andrews 1983). Disturbance may be important in creating habitat for this type.
Environmental Description: This association occurs in alpine dry turf and upper subalpine parks in the southern Rocky Mountains and high plateaus of the Colorado Plateau. Elevation ranges from 3460-3790 m (11,360-12,440 feet) in northern New Mexico. Sites are upland and relatively xeric. Stands occur on all aspects of gentle to moderate-gradient slopes. Soils on are well-drained sandy loams derived from sedimentary (sandstone) and igneous (granite basalt) parent materials. Cover of rock and bare soil is generally low and litter is high.
Geographic Range: This alpine turf association occurs in the southern Rocky Mountains from northern New Mexico and Colorado.
Nations: US
States/Provinces: CO, NM
Plot Analysis Summary:
http://vegbank.org/natureserve/ELEMENT_GLOBAL.2.685917
Confidence Level: Low
Confidence Level Comments: No Data Available
Grank: GUQ
Greasons: No Data Available
| Type | Name | Database Code | Classification Code |
|---|---|---|---|
| Class | 4 Polar & High Montane Scrub, Grassland & Barrens Class | C04 | 4 |
| Subclass | 4.B Temperate to Polar Alpine & Tundra Vegetation Subclass | S12 | 4.B |
| Formation | 4.B.1 Temperate & Boreal Alpine Tundra Formation | F037 | 4.B.1 |
| Division | 4.B.1.Nb Western North American Alpine Tundra Division | D043 | 4.B.1.Nb |
| Macrogroup | 4.B.1.Nb.2 Eight-petal Mountain-avens - Blackroot Sedge - Moss Campion Alpine Tundra Macrogroup | M099 | 4.B.1.Nb.2 |
| Group | 4.B.1.Nb.2.b Blackroot Sedge - Bellardi Bog Sedge - Cushion Phlox Alpine Turf & Fell-field Group | G314 | 4.B.1.Nb.2.b |
| Alliance | A3155 Blackroot Sedge - Curly Sedge - Bellardi Bog Sedge Rocky Mountain Alpine Turf Alliance | A3155 | 4.B.1.Nb.2.b |
| Association | CEGL001895 Alpine Fescue - Ross'' Avens Alpine Turf | CEGL001895 | 4.B.1.Nb.2.b |
Concept Lineage: No Data Available
Predecessors: No Data Available
Obsolete Names: No Data Available
Obsolete Parents: No Data Available
Synonomy: ? Festuca idahoensis (ovina) / Trisetum spicatum Community Type (Tweit and Houston 1980) [alpine grassland dominated by Festuca brachyphylla and Trisetum spicatum and relatively low cover of Geum rossii.]
? Festuca-Lupinus Plant Community (Hall 1971) [Aquarius Plateau, subalpine park 3170 m (10,400 feet) in southwestern Utah. It lacks many of the alpine species.]
= Wind disturbed alpine turf (Andrews 1983) [open stand codominated by Festuca brachyphylla, Potentilla pulcherrima, Trisetum spicatum, and Dasiphora fruticosa ssp. floribunda. Stand disturbed and open canopy may not be typical of type.]
? Festuca-Lupinus Plant Community (Hall 1971) [Aquarius Plateau, subalpine park 3170 m (10,400 feet) in southwestern Utah. It lacks many of the alpine species.]
= Wind disturbed alpine turf (Andrews 1983) [open stand codominated by Festuca brachyphylla, Potentilla pulcherrima, Trisetum spicatum, and Dasiphora fruticosa ssp. floribunda. Stand disturbed and open canopy may not be typical of type.]
- Andrews, T. 1983. Subalpine meadow and alpine vegetation of the upper Pecos River. Report RM-51. USDA Forest Service, Southwestern Region, Albuquerque, NM.
- 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.
- Hall, H. H. 1971. Ecology of a subalpine meadow of the Aquarius Plateau, Garfield and Wayne counties, Utah. Unpublished dissertation, Brigham Young University, Provo, UT.
- 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.).
- Tweit, S., and K. Houston. 1980. Grassland and shrubland habitat types of the Shoshone National Forest. USDA Forest Service, Rocky Mountain Region, Shoshone National Forest.
- Western Ecology Working Group of NatureServe. No date. International Ecological Classification Standard: International Vegetation Classification. Terrestrial Vegetation. NatureServe, Boulder, CO.