Print Report

CEGL006282 Quercus montana - Quercus (rubra, velutina) / Vaccinium (angustifolium, pallidum) Forest

Type Concept Sentence: No Data Available

Common (Translated Scientific) Name: Chestnut Oak - (Northern Red Oak, Black Oak) / (Lowbush Blueberry, Blue Ridge Blueberry) Forest

Colloquial Name: Lower New England High Slope Chestnut Oak Forest

Hierarchy Level:  Association

Type Concept: This dry to xeric oak-heath forest of central and southern New England ranges south to the northern Piedmont and central Appalachian Mountains. It occurs on upper slopes and ridgetops with thin, nutrient-poor, acidic soils. Windthrow, fire and ice damage are common natural disturbances. The canopy is closed to partially open and is dominated by Quercus montana, which can be codominant with Quercus rubra. Quercus alba, Quercus velutina, and Acer rubrum are common associates, with other less frequent trees including Betula lenta, Quercus coccinea, Amelanchier arborea, Pinus rigida, and Pinus strobus. Sassafras albidum, Cornus florida, and Nyssa sylvatica can be minor associates at the southern and western portions of the range. The low-shrub layer is well-developed and comprised chiefly of ericaceous species, including Vaccinium angustifolium, Vaccinium pallidum, Vaccinium stamineum, Gaylussacia baccata, or Kalmia angustifolia. A tall-shrub layer is often lacking but when present may include Castanea dentata, Kalmia latifolia, Viburnum acerifolium, Hamamelis virginiana, Quercus ilicifolia, and Viburnum prunifolium. Ilex montana, Rhododendron prinophyllum, and Menziesia pilosa are minor shrub associates at the southern end of the range. The herbaceous layer is of sparse to moderate cover, depending on shrub cover, and may include Carex pensylvanica, Deschampsia flexuosa, Danthonia spicata, Ageratina altissima var. altissima, Antennaria plantaginifolia, Aralia nudicaulis, Aureolaria laevigata, Gaultheria procumbens, Chimaphila maculata, Carex rosea, Carex swanii, Carex pensylvanica, Corydalis sempervirens, Comandra umbellata, Cypripedium acaule, Dryopteris marginalis, Epigaea repens, Goodyera pubescens, Hieracium venosum, Lycopodium clavatum, Medeola virginiana, Melampyrum lineare, Monotropa uniflora, Potentilla canadensis, Pteridium aquilinum, and Uvularia sessilifolia.

Diagnostic Characteristics: No Data Available

Rationale for Nominal Species or Physiognomic Features: No Data Available

Classification Comments: This community type is closely related to other oak / heath. It is distinguished by the presence of northern species, such as Pinus strobus and Vaccinium angustifolium, and its general lack of Southern Appalachian species, such as Gaylussacia ursina, Eubotrys recurvus, and Galax urceolata. In comparison to ~Quercus montana - Quercus (alba, coccinea) / Viburnum acerifolium - (Kalmia latifolia) Forest (CEGL005023)$$, it lacks Oxydendrum arboreum, Pinus echinata, and Pinus virginiana. It occupies poorer sites and has a more abundant ericaceous shrub component than ~Quercus montana - Quercus rubra / Hamamelis virginiana Forest (CEGL006057)$$. The Chestnut Oak / Low-Elevation Subtype of Virginia intergrades with the more southern ~Quercus (montana, coccinea) / Kalmia latifolia / (Galax urceolata, Gaultheria procumbens) Forest (CEGL006271)$$ throughout west-central Virginia. A well-developed Piedmont example of the Chestnut Oak / Low-Elevation Subtype is described by Allard and Leonard (1943). The Chestnut Oak - Northern Red Oak / High-Elevation Subtype of Virginia is similar to ~Quercus montana - Quercus rubra / Vaccinium pallidum - (Rhododendron periclymenoides) Forest (CEGL008523)$$ of high-elevation granitic terrain on the northern Blue Ridge, but lacks Quercus velutina, Rhododendron periclymenoides, and the suite of low-cover herbaceous species characteristic of mineral soil microhabitats in that unit. The recognition of global subtypes equivalent to two distinct state community types is well supported by quantitative analysis of compositional and environmental data. Further study may support the elevation of these subtypes to full association-level status in the USNVC.

In West Virginia, 13 plots from relatively high elevations in the Ridge and Valley are classified to this association. They are distinguished from plots of ~Quercus montana - (Quercus coccinea, Quercus rubra) / Kalmia latifolia / Vaccinium pallidum Forest (CEGL006299)$$ at lower elevations in the Ridge and Valley by having canopies codominated by Quercus rubra and lacking Quercus coccinea, and by the presence of Menziesia pilosa, Vaccinium angustifolium, or Kalmia angustifolia in the shrub layers.

Similar NVC Types: No Data Available
note: No Data Available
Physiognomy and Structure: No Data Available

Floristics: The canopy is closed to partially open and dominated by Quercus montana (= Quercus prinus), which can be codominant with Quercus rubra. Quercus alba, Quercus velutina, and Acer rubrum are common associates, with other less frequent trees including Betula lenta, Quercus coccinea, Amelanchier arborea, Pinus rigida, and Pinus strobus. Sassafras albidum, Cornus florida, and Nyssa sylvatica can be minor associates at the southern and western portions of the range. The low-shrub layer is well-developed and comprised chiefly of ericaceous species, including Vaccinium angustifolium, Vaccinium pallidum, Vaccinium stamineum, Gaylussacia baccata, or Kalmia angustifolia. A tall-shrub layer is often lacking but when present may include Castanea dentata, Kalmia latifolia, Viburnum acerifolium, Hamamelis virginiana, Quercus ilicifolia, and Viburnum prunifolium. Ilex montana, Rhododendron prinophyllum, and Menziesia pilosa are minor shrub associates at the southern end of the range. The herbaceous layer is of sparse to moderate cover, depending on shrub cover, and may include Carex pensylvanica, Deschampsia flexuosa, Danthonia spicata, Ageratina altissima var. altissima, Antennaria plantaginifolia, Aralia nudicaulis, Aureolaria laevigata, Gaultheria procumbens, Chimaphila maculata, Carex rosea, Carex swanii, Carex pensylvanica, Corydalis sempervirens, Comandra umbellata, Cypripedium acaule, Dryopteris marginalis, Epigaea repens, Goodyera pubescens, Hieracium venosum, Lycopodium clavatum, Medeola virginiana, Melampyrum lineare, Monotropa uniflora, Potentilla canadensis, Pteridium aquilinum, Uvularia sessilifolia, and Uvularia puberula in southern examples.

Dynamics:  Periodic fire is likely an important ecological factor in oak regeneration.
Environmental Description:  This forest generally occurs on xeric upper slopes and ridgetops and steep sideslopes with shallow, acidic, rocky, infertile soils. Windthrow, fire, and ice storms are common natural disturbances in these habitats.
Geographic Range: This community ranges from southern Maine through the Central Appalachians to higher elevations in Virginia and West Virginia, and north more locally in the Piedmont (an estimated 215,000 square km based on approximate acreage of subsections of occurrence).

Nations: US

States/Provinces:  CT, DE, MA, MD, ME, NH, NJ, NY, PA, RI, VA, VT, WV


Confidence Level: Moderate

Confidence Level Comments: No Data Available
Grank: G5

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.Na Eastern North American Forest & Woodland Division D008 1.B.2.Na
Macrogroup 1.B.2.Na.2 Appalachian-Northeastern Oak - Hardwood - Pine Forest & Woodland Macrogroup M502 1.B.2.Na.2
Group 1.B.2.Na.2.c White Oak - Chestnut Oak - Pignut Hickory Forest & Woodland Group G650 1.B.2.Na.2.c
Alliance A4467 <i>Quercus montana - Quercus rubra</i> / Lowbush Blueberry Rocky Woodland A4467 1.B.2.Na.2.c
Association CEGL006282 Chestnut Oak - (Northern Red Oak, Black Oak) / (Lowbush Blueberry, Blue Ridge Blueberry) Forest CEGL006282 1.B.2.Na.2.c
Concept Lineage: No Data Available

Predecessors: No Data Available

Obsolete Names: No Data Available

Obsolete Parents: No Data Available
Synonomy: ? Quercus (prinus, rubra) / Calamagrostis porteri Ridgetop Forest (Walton et al. 1997)
= Quercus montana / Kalmia latifolia / Gaultheria procumbens Association (Rawinski et al. 1994)
= Quercus prinus - Quercus (rubra, velutina) / Vaccinium angustifolium Forest (Fleming and Patterson 2009a)
= Quercus prinus - Quercus (rubra, velutina) / Vaccinium angustifolium Forest (Fleming and Taverna 2006)
? Quercus prinus - Quercus rubra / Acer pensylvanicum Association: Betula lenta / Ilex montana Subassociation (Fleming and Moorhead 1996)
> Quercus prinus - Quercus rubra / Kalmia latifolia / Vaccinium angustifolium - Gaultheria procumbens Forest (Fleming and Coulling 2001)
> Quercus prinus - Quercus rubra / Vaccinium pallidum - Gaylussacia baccata - Menziesia pilosa - (Vaccinium angustifolium) Forest [Eastern Montane Oak / Heath Forest] (Vanderhorst 2017d)
? CNE dry hardwood forest on acidic bedrock or till (Rawinski 1984a)
< Chestnut Oak: 44 (Eyre 1980) [typical variant and chestnut oak - northern red oak variant.]
? Oak - Chestnut (Keever 1973) [only tree spp.]
< SNE dry oak/pine forests on acidic bedrock or till (Rawinski 1984a)
? SNE mesic oak/pine forest on acidic bedrock or till (Rawinski 1984a)
Concept Author(s): Eastern Ecology Group

Author of Description: G. Fleming, P. Coulling, S.L. Neid, L.A. Sneddon and S.C. Gawler

Acknowledgements: No Data Available

Version Date: 06-19-06
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