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CEGL000806 Pinus flexilis / Festuca campestris Woodland
Type Concept Sentence: No Data Available
Common (Translated Scientific) Name: Limber Pine / Rough Fescue Woodland
Colloquial Name: No Data Available
Hierarchy Level: Association
Type Concept: This is a somewhat circumscribed community found in the northern Rocky Mountains from central Montana to southwestern Alberta on dry and often wind-swept slopes. Typically stands are small patches, but some on the Rocky Mountain Front foothills and western extremity of the northwestern Great Plains are extensive. The documented elevation range is from 1400 m (4600 feet) in the Rocky Mountain Front foothills to 1830 m (6000 feet) within the Lewis Range; reconnaissance within this range has placed stands at considerably higher elevations (these sites often occur on west- to southwest-facing slopes impacted by prevailing winds). Though not restricted to calcareous substrates, it frequently occurs on such owing to extensive exposures of Madison limestone within the type''s distribution. Substrates are always excessively drained and gravelly with textures ranging from silts to sandy loams. Ground cover is dominated by litter, but moderate amounts of rock (15%) and soil (10%) are found. Tree canopy structure ranges from very open (15-20% cover) to approaching 60% cover. Though Pinus flexilis is usually dominant, Pseudotsuga menziesii is invariably present and not infrequently shares canopy dominance with Pinus flexilis. Pinus ponderosa and Pinus contorta occur in a small fraction of the stands and usually as minor components. With the exception of locally high coverages of Juniperus horizontalis, shrubs are generally a minor component, with those of highest constancy being Arctostaphylos uva-ursi, Shepherdia canadensis, Juniperus communis, Artemisia frigida, and Amelanchier alnifolia. The herbaceous layer is bunchgrass dominated, with Festuca campestris and Festuca idahoensis about equally abundant in stands with well-regulated grazing and Pseudoroegneria spicata and Koeleria macrantha having considerable cover in particular circumstances. Forbs comprise a minor component, with Allium cernuum, Galium boreale, Achillea millefolium, Lithospermum ruderale, and Balsamorhiza sagittata exhibiting the highest constancy; the last three species sporadically occur with greater than 10% cover. In the case of Achillea millefolium, over-grazing is frequently the cause.
Diagnostic Characteristics: No Data Available
Rationale for Nominal Species or Physiognomic Features: No Data Available
Classification Comments: No Data Available
Similar NVC Types: No Data Available
note: No Data Available
Physiognomy and Structure: No Data Available
Floristics: Tree canopy structure ranges from very open (15-20% cover) to approaching 60% cover. Though Pinus flexilis is usually dominant, Pseudotsuga menziesii is invariably present and not infrequently shares canopy dominance with Pinus flexilis. Pinus ponderosa and Pinus contorta occur in a small fraction of the stands and usually as minor components. With the exception of locally high coverages of Juniperus horizontalis, shrubs are generally a minor component, with those of highest constancy being Arctostaphylos uva-ursi, Shepherdia canadensis, Juniperus communis, Artemisia frigida, and Amelanchier alnifolia. The herbaceous layer is bunchgrass-dominated, with Festuca campestris and Festuca idahoensis about equally abundant in stands with well-regulated grazing and Pseudoroegneria spicata and Koeleria macrantha having considerable cover in particular circumstances. Forbs comprise a minor component, with Allium cernuum, Galium boreale, Achillea millefolium, Lithospermum ruderale, and Balsamorhiza sagittata exhibiting the highest constancy; the last three species sporadically occur with greater than 10% cover. In the case of Achillea millefolium, overgrazing is frequently the cause.
Dynamics: The prevalence and severity of white pine blister rust (Cronartium ribicola) in Pinus flexilis populations within and adjacent to Glacier National Park and along the Rocky Mountain Front is becoming quite evident. Heavy mortality has been noted in all size classes of Pinus flexilis; on the Blackfeet Indian Reservation it has been extirpated in some stands and, on U.S. Forest Service lands to the south, mortality has been sufficient to convert stands to an "un-treed" status (Pinus flexilis / Festuca campestris becoming Festuca campestris - Festuca idahoensis or Arctostaphylos uva-ursi / Festuca campestris) or has left Pseudotsuga as the dominant tree by default.
Environmental Description: This community is found in the northern Rocky Mountains from central Montana to southwestern Alberta on dry and often wind-swept slopes. Typically stands are small patches, but some on the Rocky Mountain Front foothills and western extremity of the northwestern Great Plains are extensive. The documented elevation range is from 1400 m (4600 feet) in the Rocky Mountain Front foothills to 1830 m (6000 feet) within the Lewis Range; reconnaissance within this range has placed stands at considerably higher elevations (these sites often occur on west- to southwest-facing slopes impacted by prevailing winds). Though not restricted to calcareous substrates, it frequently occurs on such owing to extensive exposures of Madison limestone within the type''s distribution. Substrates are always excessively drained and gravelly with textures ranging from silts to sandy loams. Ground cover is dominated by litter, but moderate amounts of rock (15%) and soil (10%) are found.
Geographic Range: This association occurs east of the Continental Divide in and adjacent to the northern Rocky Mountains of Montana and Alberta, as well as in the isolated ranges of central Montana.
Nations: CA,US
States/Provinces: AB, MT
Plot Analysis Summary:
http://vegbank.org/natureserve/ELEMENT_GLOBAL.2.686574
Confidence Level: Low
Confidence Level Comments: No Data Available
Grank: G3
Greasons: No Data Available
| Type | Name | Database Code | Classification Code |
|---|---|---|---|
| Class | 1 Forest & Woodland Class | C01 | 1 |
| Subclass | 1.B Temperate & Boreal Forest & Woodland Subclass | S15 | 1.B |
| Formation | 1.B.2 Cool Temperate Forest & Woodland Formation | F008 | 1.B.2 |
| Division | 1.B.2.Nb Rocky Mountain Forest & Woodland Division | D194 | 1.B.2.Nb |
| Macrogroup | 1.B.2.Nb.5 Subalpine Fir - Engelmann Spruce - Whitebark Pine Rocky Mountain Forest Macrogroup | M020 | 1.B.2.Nb.5 |
| Group | 1.B.2.Nb.5.e Limber Pine - Bristlecone Pine Rocky Mountain Subalpine-Montane Woodland Group | G221 | 1.B.2.Nb.5.e |
| Alliance | A0540 Limber Pine Rocky Mountain Woodland Alliance | A0540 | 1.B.2.Nb.5.e |
| Association | CEGL000806 Limber Pine / Rough Fescue Woodland | CEGL000806 | 1.B.2.Nb.5.e |
Concept Lineage: No Data Available
Predecessors: No Data Available
Obsolete Names: No Data Available
Obsolete Parents: No Data Available
Synonomy: = Pinus flexilis / Festuca idahoensis Habitat Type, Festuca scabrella Phase (Pfister et al. 1977)
- ANHIC [Alberta Natural Heritage Information Centre]. 2018. Community database files. Alberta Natural Heritage Information Centre, Parks and Protected Areas Division, Alberta Community Development, Edmonton.
- 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.
- Hop, K., M. Reid, J. Dieck, S. Lubinski, and S. Cooper. 2007. U.S. Geological Survey-National Park Service Vegetation Mapping Program: Waterton-Glacier International Peace Park. U.S. Geological Survey, Upper Midwest Environmental Sciences Center, La Crosse, WI. 131 pp. plus Appendices A-L.
- MTNHP [Montana Natural Heritage Program]. 2002b. List of ecological communities for Montana. Montana Natural Heritage Program, Montana State Library, Helena, MT.
- MTNHP [Montana Natural Heritage Program]. No date. Unpublished data on file. Montana Natural Heritage Program, Helena, MT.
- Pfister, R. D., B. L. Kovalchik, S. F. Arno, and R. C. Presby. 1977. Forest habitat types of Montana. General Technical Report INT-34. USDA Forest Service, Intermountain Forest and Range Experiment Station, Ogden, UT. 174 pp.
- Reid, M. S., S. V. Cooper, and G. Kittel. 2004. Vegetation classification of Waterton-Glacier International Peace Park. Final report for USGS-NPS Vegetation Mapping Program, International Peace Park Mapping Project. NatureServe, Arlington VA.
- Western Ecology Working Group of NatureServe. No date. International Ecological Classification Standard: International Vegetation Classification. Terrestrial Vegetation. NatureServe, Boulder, CO.