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CEGL001941 Ligusticum filicinum - Delphinium x occidentale Meadow
Type Concept Sentence: No Data Available
Common (Translated Scientific) Name: Fernleaf Licorice-root - Duncecap Larkspur Meadow
Colloquial Name: No Data Available
Hierarchy Level: Association
Type Concept: This mesic tall-forb meadow association occurs in mid- to upper-subalpine sites in the mountains of northwestern Wyoming. Elevations range from 1981 to 3109 m (6500-10,200 feet). Stands may be located on gentle to moderately steep slopes (2-60%) oriented to any aspect but often occur on lee slopes where snow collects and melts later in the spring. Soils are derived from a variety of sources, including loess, limestone, shale, siltstone, glacial till and colluvium. Soil textures are generally silt loam or silty clay loam. The vegetation is characterized by Ligusticum filicinum with between 3 and 60% cover. Delphinium x occidentale, Pedicularis bracteosa, Senecio crassulus, and/or Osmorhiza occidentalis are the most consistent codominant species. Other tall-forb species present in some stands include Geranium viscosissimum, Lupinus argenteus, Eucephalus engelmannii, and Symphyotrichum foliaceum. Grasses are much less abundant and diverse than forbs in this association but may include Elymus trachycaulus, Bromus carinatus, and Melica spectabilis. Scattered shrubs may be present, including Salix spp., Ribes lacustre, or Vaccinium scoparium. Disturbance by gophers appears to be necessary to maintaining forb dominance in these subalpine meadows.
Diagnostic Characteristics: No Data Available
Rationale for Nominal Species or Physiognomic Features: No Data Available
Classification Comments: Delphinium x occidentale is present in fewer than half the sampled plot assigned to this association. Dominance by Ligusticum filicinum is the diagnostic characteristic of this association.
Similar NVC Types: No Data Available
note: No Data Available
Physiognomy and Structure: No Data Available
Floristics: This mesic tall-forb association is common in meadows in the mountains of northwestern Wyoming. Total vegetation cover is high for an herbaceous type, ranging from a low of around 60% to nearly 100%. Ligusticum filicinum is dominant to abundant, with between 3 and 60% cover. Delphinium x occidentale, Pedicularis bracteosa, Senecio crassulus, and/or Osmorhiza occidentalis are the most consistent codominant species. Other tall-forb species present in some stands include Geranium viscosissimum, Lupinus argenteus, Eucephalus engelmannii, and Symphyotrichum foliaceum. Grasses are much less abundant and diverse than forbs in this association but may include Elymus trachycaulus, Bromus carinatus, and Melica spectabilis. Scattered shrubs may be present, including Salix spp., Ribes lacustre, or Vaccinium scoparium.
Dynamics: Disturbance by gophers appears to be necessary to maintaining forb dominance in these subalpine meadows. Gregory (1983) reports that the use of herbicides to control Delphinium x occidentale, which is poisonous to cattle, may have caused grass species to be more important in these meadows than they would be in untreated situations. Stands of Populus tremuloides / Ligusticum filicinum reported from the same area (e.g., Youngblood and Mueggler 1981) have nearly identical herbaceous components and may result in part from the invasion of Ligusticum filicinum - Delphinium x occidentale meadows by aspen.
Environmental Description: This mesic tall-forb meadow association occurs in mid- to upper-subalpine sites in the mountains of northwestern Wyoming. Elevations range from 1981 to 3109 m (6500-10,200 feet). Stands may be located on gentle to moderately steep slopes (2-60%) oriented to any aspect but often occur on lee slopes where snow collects and melts later in the spring. Litter and rock cover most of the unvegetated surface, and most stands have less than 10% cover by bare ground. Soils are derived from a variety of sources, including loess, limestone, shale, siltstone, glacial till and colluvium. Soil textures are generally silt loam or silty clay loam.
Geographic Range: This association has been documented from northwestern Wyoming, where it is a common and important wet meadow community on both the Bridger-Teton National Forest (Gregory 1983) and in Grand Teton National Park.
Nations: US
States/Provinces: ID, WY
Plot Analysis Summary:
http://vegbank.org/natureserve/ELEMENT_GLOBAL.2.686423
Confidence Level: High
Confidence Level Comments: No Data Available
Grank: G3
Greasons: No Data Available
| Type | Name | Database Code | Classification Code |
|---|---|---|---|
| Class | 2 Shrub & Herb Vegetation Class | C02 | 2 |
| Subclass | 2.B Temperate & Boreal Grassland & Shrubland Subclass | S18 | 2.B |
| Formation | 2.B.2 Temperate Grassland & Shrubland Formation | F012 | 2.B.2 |
| Division | 2.B.2.Nf Western North American Grassland & Shrubland Division | D022 | 2.B.2.Nf |
| Macrogroup | 2.B.2.Nf.3 Tufted Hairgrass - Licorice-root species - Mountain Muhly Subalpine-High Montane Mesic Meadow Macrogroup | M168 | 2.B.2.Nf.3 |
| Group | 2.B.2.Nf.3.b Greenleaf Fescue - Tufted Hairgrass - Licorice-root species Rocky Mountain-Vancouverian Grassland & Meadow Group | G271 | 2.B.2.Nf.3.b |
| Alliance | A3951 Licorice-root species - Lupine species - Larkspur species Montane Mesic Meadow Alliance | A3951 | 2.B.2.Nf.3.b |
| Association | CEGL001941 Fernleaf Licorice-root - Duncecap Larkspur Meadow | CEGL001941 | 2.B.2.Nf.3.b |
Concept Lineage: No Data Available
Predecessors: No Data Available
Obsolete Names: No Data Available
Obsolete Parents: No Data Available
Synonomy: = Ligusticum filicinum - Delphinium occidentale Cover Type (Gregory 1983)
- 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.
- Cogan, D., K. Varga, and G. Kittel. 2005. USGS-NPS Vegetation Mapping Program: Grand Teton National Park and John D. Rockefeller, Jr. Memorial Parkway. Final Project Report 2002-2005 Vegetation Mapping Project. Technical Memorandum 8260-06-02. USDI Bureau of Reclamation, Denver, CO. 87 pp. plus Appendixes A-F.
- Gregory, S. 1983. Subalpine forb community types of the Bridger-Teton National Forest, Wyoming. Unpublished completion report #36 for USDA Forest Service Cooperative Education Agreement (contract 40-8555-3-115). Bozeman, MT 63 pp.
- Horton, L. E. 1971. Vegetation and ecological relationships, west slope of the Teton study area, Targhee National Forest. USDA Forest Service, Intermountain Region. Unpublished mimeographed report. 50 pp. plus appendices.
- WNDD [Wyoming Natural Diversity Database]. No date. Unpublished data on file. Wyoming Natural Diversity Database, University of Wyoming, Laramie, WY.
- Western Ecology Working Group of NatureServe. No date. International Ecological Classification Standard: International Vegetation Classification. Terrestrial Vegetation. NatureServe, Boulder, CO.
- Youngblood, A. P., and W. F. Mueggler. 1981. Aspen community types on the Bridger-Teton National Forest in western Wyoming. Research Paper INT-272. USDA Forest Service, Intermountain Forest and Range Experiment Station, Ogden, UT. 34 pp.