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CEGL004396 Sedum nuttallianum - Selaginella peruviana Granitic Outcrop Sparse Vegetation
Type Concept Sentence: No Data Available
Common (Translated Scientific) Name: Yellow Stonecrop - Peruvian Spikemoss Granitic Outcrop Sparse Vegetation
Colloquial Name: No Data Available
Hierarchy Level: Association
Type Concept: This community contains large expanses of exposed granite surfaces, with scattered soil-filled depressions, crevices, gravel areas, and shallow pools. The vegetation is dominated by annuals and species adapted to drought conditions. Bare rock is occupied by scattered patches of crustose and foliose lichens, mosses, and several ferns and fern allies including Selaginella peruviana, Selaginella arenicola ssp. riddellii, Cheilanthes lindheimeri, Cheilanthes tomentosa, Woodsia obtusa ssp. occidentalis, and Pellaea ternifolia. Typical species that occur in areas where shallow sand or gravel accumulate include Sedum nuttallianum, Plantago wrightiana, Phemeranthus parviflorus, Helenium amarum, Campanula reverchonii, Aphanostephus skirrhobasis, Hypericum gentianoides. Areas with deeper soils are dominated by Schizachyrium scoparium occurring with other grasses such as Bouteloua hirsuta, Bouteloua curtipendula, and Aristida purpurea. Large crevices that contain sufficient soil accumulation support woody species characteristic of the surrounding woodland, including Quercus stellata, Quercus marilandica, and Carya texana. Narrow, shallow crevices harbor species tolerant of the most xeric conditions including Echinocereus reichenbachii, Eriogonum tenellum, and Cylindropuntia leptocaulis. This community occurs on gently sloping, exposed massifs of late Precambrian granite in Texas and Oklahoma. It is known from southwestern Oklahoma, in the Wichita Mountains, and from central Texas, in the Llano Uplift (Central Mineral Region of the Edwards Plateau).
Diagnostic Characteristics: No Data Available
Rationale for Nominal Species or Physiognomic Features: No Data Available
Classification Comments: This community has similar microhabitats and shares several common genera with granitic communities in the eastern Gulf and Atlantic coastal plains. It is typically surrounded by dry woodlands dominated by Quercus stellata, Quercus marilandica, and Carya texana.
Similar NVC Types: No Data Available
note: No Data Available
Physiognomy and Structure: No Data Available
Floristics: This community contains large expanses of exposed granite surfaces, with scattered soil-filled depressions, crevices, gravel areas, and shallow pools. The vegetation is dominated by annuals and species adapted to drought conditions. Bare rock is occupied by scattered patches of crustose and foliose lichens, mosses, and several ferns and fern allies, including Selaginella peruviana, Selaginella arenicola ssp. riddellii, Cheilanthes lindheimeri, Cheilanthes tomentosa, Woodsia obtusa, and Pellaea ternifolia. Typical species that occur in areas where shallow sand or gravel accumulate include Sedum nuttallianum, Plantago wrightiana, Phemeranthus parviflorus (= Talinum parviflorum), Helenium amarum, Campanula reverchonii, Aphanostephus skirrhobasis, and Hypericum gentianoides. Areas with deeper soils are dominated by Schizachyrium scoparium occurring with other grasses, such as Bouteloua hirsuta, Bouteloua curtipendula, and Aristida purpurea. Large crevices that contain sufficient soil accumulation support woody species characteristic of the surrounding woodland, including Quercus stellata, Quercus marilandica, and Carya texana. Narrow, shallow crevices harbor species tolerant of the most xeric conditions, including Echinocereus reichenbachii, Eriogonum tenellum, and Cylindropuntia leptocaulis (= Opuntia leptocaulis).
Dynamics: Vegetation dynamics in this community are strongly related to the development of a complex soil-depth gradient involving changes in temperature, soil depth, and water-holding capacity.
Environmental Description: This community occurs on gently sloping, exposed massifs of late Precambrian granite. The dominant substrate is medium- to coarse-grained rock, with patches of coarse gravel and shallow accumulations of organic material in narrow crevices and depressions. Low moisture and nutrient availability are the primary limiting factors for vegetation in this habitat. The climate is characterized by dry winters and hot-humid summers, with drought and high temperatures occurring during the growing season.
Geographic Range: This community occurs on outcrops of granite in Texas and Oklahoma. It is known from southwestern Oklahoma, in the Wichita Mountains, and from central Texas, in the Central Mineral Region of the Edwards Plateau.
Nations: US
States/Provinces: OK, TX
Plot Analysis Summary:
http://vegbank.org/natureserve/ELEMENT_GLOBAL.2.687159
Confidence Level: Low - Poorly Documented
Confidence Level Comments: No Data Available
Grank: G2
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.5 Ashe''s Juniper - Pinchot''s Juniper - Mohr Oak Scrub & Open Vegetation Macrogroup | M158 | 2.B.2.Nb.5 |
| Group | 2.B.2.Nb.5.a Yellow Stonecrop - Gordon''s Bladderpod - Poverty Dropseed Glade Vegetation Group | G598 | 2.B.2.Nb.5.a |
| Alliance | A3308 Stonecrop species - Little Bluestem Comanchian Open Grassland Alliance | A3308 | 2.B.2.Nb.5.a |
| Association | CEGL004396 Yellow Stonecrop - Peruvian Spikemoss Granitic Outcrop Sparse Vegetation | CEGL004396 | 2.B.2.Nb.5.a |
Concept Lineage: No Data Available
Predecessors: No Data Available
Obsolete Names: No Data Available
Obsolete Parents: No Data Available
Synonomy: < IE6d. Western Acidic Rock Outcrop (Allard 1990)
- Allard, D. J. 1990. Southeastern United States ecological community classification. Interim report, Version 1.2. The Nature Conservancy, Southeast Regional Office, Chapel Hill, NC. 96 pp.
- Collins, S. L., G. S. Mitchell, and S. C. Klahr. 1989. Vegetation-environment relationships in a rock outcrop community in southern Oklahoma. American Midland Naturalist 122:339-348.
- Eddy, A. 1990. Vegetation of Ten-Acre Rock. Transactions of the Oklahoma Junior Academy of Science 17:4-10.
- Hoagland, B. 2000. The vegetation of Oklahoma: A classification for landscape mapping and conservation planning. The Southwestern Naturalist 45(4):385-420.
- Hoagland, B. W. 1997. Preliminary plant community classification for Oklahoma. Unpublished draft document, version 35629. University of Oklahoma, Oklahoma Natural Heritage Inventory, Norman. 47 pp.
- Southeastern Ecology Working Group of NatureServe. No date. International Ecological Classification Standard: International Vegetation Classification. Terrestrial Vegetation. NatureServe, Durham, NC.
- Uno, G. E., and S. L. Collins. 1987. Primary succession on granite outcrops of southwestern Oklahoma. Bulletin of the Torrey Botanical Club 114:387-392.
- Walters, T. W., and R. Wyatt. 1982. The vascular flora of granite outcrops in the Central Mineral Region of Texas. Bulletin of the Torrey Botanical Club 109:344-364.
- Whitehouse, E. 1933. Plant succession on central Texas granite. Ecology 14:391-405.