Print Report
CEGL002248 Schizachyrium scoparium - Bouteloua curtipendula Red Hills Grassland
Type Concept Sentence: No Data Available
Common (Translated Scientific) Name: Little Bluestem - Sideoats Grama Red Hills Grassland
Colloquial Name: Red Hills Little Bluestem Mixedgrass Prairie
Hierarchy Level: Association
Type Concept: This little bluestem mixedgrass prairie community is found in the southern Great Plains of the United States in the Red Hills of southern Kansas and northern Oklahoma. Stands occur on gently sloping to strongly dissected Hills and escarpments on uplands. Soils consist of silt, loam, or clay. They are well-drained and range from shallow to deep. The parent material is red silty shale, red silty sandstone, red sandstone, or clayey shale. This community is dominated by short and mid grasses with abundant forbs. The herbaceous vegetation often forms two distinct layers with the lower one more dense than the taller. Andropogon gerardii, Bouteloua curtipendula, Bouteloua gracilis, Bouteloua hirsuta, and Schizachyrium scoparium are the dominant species. Other herbaceous plants that are commonly found in this community are Ambrosia psilostachya, Symphyotrichum ericoides, Callirhoe involucrata, Gutierrezia sarothrae, Calylophus serrulatus, Sporobolus compositus, and Sporobolus cryptandrus. There are low Juniperus virginiana trees scattered across the landscape of this community. Groves of small deciduous trees and shrubs can be found on north-facing slopes and in valleys. In these groves Celtis occidentalis, Prunus angustifolia, Rhus glabra, and Symphoricarpos occidentalis are usually the dominant woody plants.
Diagnostic Characteristics: No Data Available
Rationale for Nominal Species or Physiognomic Features: No Data Available
Classification Comments: The type concept is taken from the Kansas state type Red Hills mixed prairie (Lauver et al. 1999). The type should be compared with ~Juniperus virginiana / Schizachyrium scoparium - Bouteloua curtipendula Great Plains Grassland (CEGL004066)$$ which is attributed to several sections and subsections in eastern Oklahoma. Are these two distinct entities, and do they belong in the same formation or two different ones?
Similar NVC Types: No Data Available
note: No Data Available
Physiognomy and Structure: No Data Available
Floristics: This community is dominated by short and mid grasses. Forbs are abundant. The herbaceous vegetation often forms two distinct layers with the lower one being more dense than the taller (Kuchler 1974). Andropogon gerardii, Bouteloua curtipendula, Bouteloua gracilis, Bouteloua hirsuta, and Schizachyrium scoparium are the dominant species. Other herbaceous plants that are commonly found in this community are Ambrosia psilostachya, Symphyotrichum ericoides (= Aster ericoides), Callirhoe involucrata, Gutierrezia sarothrae, Calylophus serrulatus (= Oenothera serrulata), Sporobolus compositus (= Sporobolus asper), and Sporobolus cryptandrus. There are low Juniperus virginiana trees scattered across the landscape of this community. Groves of small deciduous trees and shrubs can be found on north-facing slopes and in valleys. In these groves Celtis occidentalis, Prunus angustifolia, Rhus glabra, and Symphoricarpos occidentalis are usually the dominant woody plants (Lauver et al. 1999).
Dynamics: No Data Available
Environmental Description: This community occurs on gently sloping to strongly dissected hills and escarpments on uplands. Soils consist of silt, loam, or clay. They are well-drained and range from shallow to deep. The parent material is red silty shale, red silty sandstone, red sandstone, or clayey shale. The surface of this community is not flooded or saturated during the year (Lauver et al. 1999).
Geographic Range: This little bluestem mixedgrass prairie community is found in the southern Great Plains of the United States, in the Red Hills of southern Kansas and northern Oklahoma.
Nations: US
States/Provinces: KS, OK
Plot Analysis Summary:
http://vegbank.org/natureserve/ELEMENT_GLOBAL.2.686706
Confidence Level: Low - Poorly Documented
Confidence Level Comments: No Data Available
Grank: G2Q
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.Nb Central North American Grassland & Shrubland Division | D023 | 2.B.2.Nb |
| Macrogroup | 2.B.2.Nb.2 Needle-and-Thread - Western Wheatgrass - Plains Rough Fescue Grassland Macrogroup | M051 | 2.B.2.Nb.2 |
| Group | 2.B.2.Nb.2.a Little Bluestem - Sideoats Grama - Western Wheatgrass Mixedgrass Prairie Group | G133 | 2.B.2.Nb.2.a |
| Alliance | A4042 Little Bluestem - Sideoats Grama Central Plains Grassland Alliance | A4042 | 2.B.2.Nb.2.a |
| Association | CEGL002248 Little Bluestem - Sideoats Grama Red Hills Grassland | CEGL002248 | 2.B.2.Nb.2.a |
Concept Lineage: No Data Available
Predecessors: No Data Available
Obsolete Names: No Data Available
Obsolete Parents: No Data Available
Synonomy: = Schizachyrium scoparium - Bouteloua curtipendula Red Hills Herbaceous Vegetation (Faber-Langendoen 2001)
? Cedar Hills Prairie (Küchler 1974)
? Hillside Prairie, Ashland (Tomanek and Albertson 1957)
= Red Hills mixed prairie (Lauver et al. 1999)
? Cedar Hills Prairie (Küchler 1974)
? Hillside Prairie, Ashland (Tomanek and Albertson 1957)
= Red Hills mixed prairie (Lauver et al. 1999)
- Faber-Langendoen, D., editor. 2001. Plant communities of the Midwest: Classification in an ecological context. Association for Biodiversity Information, Arlington, VA. 61 pp. plus appendix (705 pp.).
- Küchler, A. W. 1974. A new vegetation map of Kansas. Ecology 55:586-604 (with map supplement).
- Lauver, C. L., K. Kindscher, D. Faber-Langendoen, and R. Schneider. 1999. A classification of the natural vegetation of Kansas. The Southwestern Naturalist 44:421-443.
- Midwestern Ecology Working Group of NatureServe. No date. International Ecological Classification Standard: International Vegetation Classification. Terrestrial Vegetation. NatureServe, Minneapolis, MN.
- Tomanek, G. W., and F. W. Albertson. 1957. Variations in cover, composition, production, and roots of vegetation in two prairies in western Kansas. Ecological Monographs 27(3):267-281.