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CEGL005215 Basalt - Conglomerate Bedrock Great Lakes Shore Sparse Vegetation
Type Concept Sentence: No Data Available
Common (Translated Scientific) Name: Basalt - Conglomerate Bedrock Great Lakes Shore Sparse Vegetation
Colloquial Name: Great Lakes Basalt - Conglomerate Bedrock Shore
Hierarchy Level: Association
Type Concept: This basalt bedrock lakeshore is found along the Lake Superior shoreline of both the United States and Canada. The bedrock consists of basalts, volcanic conglomerates, and localized rhyolites. Volcanic conglomerate shores may be more species rich than basalt shores due to the presence of cracks or small cavities in the former. Wave action and ice scour action are strongest near the shore, producing a wave-washed zone almost devoid of vegetation, except for scattered patches of mosses and lichens, and pockets of herbaceous species around bedrock pools. With increasing distance above the lake, herbaceous and nonvascular plant cover increases, though still very patchy, with lichens predominating, particularly on high, dry rocks. Herbaceous species include Achillea millefolium, Campanula rotundifolia, Fragaria virginiana, Sibbaldiopsis tridentata, and Solidago simplex. Perched meadows, dominated by tufted graminoids, are found at the edge of seasonal pools. The most common meadow species are Calamagrostis canadensis, Carex buxbaumii, Carex castanea, Danthonia spicata, Deschampsia cespitosa, Trichophorum cespitosum, and Trisetum spicatum, as well as Pinguicula vulgaris. Lichens, mosses, and liverworts are prominent. Scattered, often stunted, woody trees and shrubs are found throughout, including Abies balsamea, Amelanchier spp., Juniperus communis, Picea glauca, Populus tremuloides, Rubus pubescens, Shepherdia canadensis, Thuja occidentalis, and Vaccinium angustifolium.
Diagnostic Characteristics: No Data Available
Rationale for Nominal Species or Physiognomic Features: No Data Available
Classification Comments: This type grades into the Basalt Bedrock Glade, ~Picea glauca - Abies balsamea Basalt - Conglomerate Woodland (CEGL005214)$$. This description is taken largely from Albert et al. (1995). In Michigan this type is predominantly nonvascular, with over 25% foliose and fruticose lichens.
Similar NVC Types: No Data Available
note: No Data Available
Physiognomy and Structure: No Data Available
Floristics: Wave action and ice scour action are strongest near the shore, producing a wave-washed zone almost devoid of vegetation, except for scattered patches of mosses and lichens, and pockets of herbaceous species around bedrock pools. With increasing distance above the lake, herbaceous and nonvascular plant cover increases, though still very patchy, with lichens predominating, particularly on high, dry rocks. Herbaceous species include Achillea millefolium, Campanula rotundifolia, Fragaria virginiana, Sibbaldiopsis tridentata (= Potentilla tridentata), and Solidago simplex. Perched meadows, dominated by tufted graminoids, are found at the edge of seasonal pools. The most common meadow species are Calamagrostis canadensis, Carex buxbaumii, Carex castanea, Danthonia spicata, Deschampsia cespitosa, Trichophorum cespitosum (= Scirpus cespitosus), and Trisetum spicatum, as well as Pinguicula vulgaris. Lichens, mosses, and liverworts are prominent. Scattered, often stunted, woody trees and shrubs are found throughout, including Abies balsamea, Amelanchier spp., Juniperus communis, Picea glauca, Populus tremuloides, Rubus pubescens, Shepherdia canadensis, Thuja occidentalis, and Vaccinium angustifolium (Albert et al. 1995).
Dynamics: Wave action and ice-scour action are the primary disturbances affecting the vegetation. Near the lakeshore a wave-washed zone is almost devoid of vegetation. A gradient of increasing vegetation occurs further above the lakeshore (Albert et al. 1995).
Environmental Description: The bedrock consists of basalts, volcanic conglomerates, and localized rhyolites. Volcanic conglomerate shores may be more species rich than basalt shores due to the presence of cracks or small cavities in the former.
Geographic Range: This basalt bedrock lakeshore is found along the Lake Superior shoreline of both the United States and Canada, ranging from Michigan to Minnesota and Ontario.
Nations: CA,US
States/Provinces: MI, MN, ON
Plot Analysis Summary:
http://vegbank.org/natureserve/ELEMENT_GLOBAL.2.686802
Confidence Level: Moderate
Confidence Level Comments: No Data Available
Grank: G4G5
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.4 Temperate to Polar Scrub & Herb Coastal Vegetation Formation | F005 | 2.B.4 |
| Division | 2.B.4.Na Eastern North American Coastal Scrub & Herb Vegetation Division | D026 | 2.B.4.Na |
| Macrogroup | 2.B.4.Na.1 Eastern North American Coastal Beach & Rocky Shore Macrogroup | M060 | 2.B.4.Na.1 |
| Group | 2.B.4.Na.1.c Great Lakes Coastal Rocky Shore Group | G793 | 2.B.4.Na.1.c |
| Alliance | A3695 Tufted Hairgrass - Bluebell Bellflower Lakeshore Alliance | A3695 | 2.B.4.Na.1.c |
| Association | CEGL005215 Basalt - Conglomerate Bedrock Great Lakes Shore Sparse Vegetation | CEGL005215 | 2.B.4.Na.1.c |
Concept Lineage: No Data Available
Predecessors: No Data Available
Obsolete Names: No Data Available
Obsolete Parents: No Data Available
Synonomy: = Basalt - Conglomerate Bedrock Great Lakes Shore Sparse Vegetation (Faber-Langendoen 2001)
- Albert, D. A., P. J. Comer, R. A. Corner, D. Cuthrell, M. Penskar, and M. Rabe. 1995. Bedrock shoreline survey of the Niagaran Escarpment in Michigan''s Upper Peninsula: Mackinac County to Delta County. Michigan Natural Features Inventory for Land and Water Management Division (grant # CD-0.02).
- 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.).
- Kost, M. A., D. A. Albert, J. G. Cohen, B. S. Slaughter, R. K. Schillo, C. R. Weber, and K. A. Chapman. 2007. Natural communities of Michigan: Classification and description. Report No. 2007-21, Michigan Natural Features Inventory, Lansing. 314 pp. [http://web4.msue.msu.edu/mnfi/reports/2007-21_Natural_Communites_of_Michigan_Classification_and_Description.pdf]
- MNNHP [Minnesota Natural Heritage Program]. 1993. Minnesota''s native vegetation: A key to natural communities. Version 1.5. Minnesota Department of Natural Resources, Natural Heritage Program, St. Paul, MN. 110 pp.
- Midwestern Ecology Working Group of NatureServe. No date. International Ecological Classification Standard: International Vegetation Classification. Terrestrial Vegetation. NatureServe, Minneapolis, MN.
- Minnesota DNR [Minnesota Department of Natural Resources]. 2003-2005a. Field guide to the native plant communities of Minnesota. Three volumes: The Laurentian Mixed Forest Province (2003), The Eastern Broadleaf Forest Province (2005c), The Prairie Parkland and Tallgrass Aspen Parklands provinces (2005b). Ecological Land Classification Program, Minnesota County Biological Survey, and Natural Heritage and Nongame Research Program. Minnesota Department of Natural Resources, St. Paul.
- Minnesota DNR [Minnesota Department of Natural Resources]. 2003. Field guide to the native plant communities of Minnesota: The Laurentian Mixed Forest Province. Ecological Land Classification Program, Minnesota County Biological Survey, and Natural Heritage and Nongame Research Program. Minnesota Department of Natural Resources, St. Paul.
- ONHIC [Ontario Natural Heritage Information Centre]. 2018. Unpublished data. Ontario Natural Heritage Information Centre, Ministry of Natural Resources, Ontario, Canada.
- TNC [The Nature Conservancy]. 1999b. USGS-NPS Vegetation Mapping Program: Classification of the vegetation of Isle Royale National Park. The Nature Conservancy, Midwest Regional Office, Minneapolis, MN, and International Headquarters, Arlington, VA. 143 pp.