Print Report
CEGL003284 Populus balsamifera ssp. trichocarpa / Oplopanax horridus Riparian Woodland
Type Concept Sentence: No Data Available
Common (Translated Scientific) Name: Black Cottonwood / Devil''s-club Riparian Woodland
Colloquial Name: No Data Available
Hierarchy Level: Association
Type Concept: This plant association is common in southeastern Alaska and Prince William Sound. It is found on newly exposed, well-drained gravels of outburst and active floodplains. Populus balsamifera ssp. trichocarpa dominates the association ranging to 20 m (65 feet) tall, 20-76 cm (8-30 inches) in diameter, and 40-150 years old. Downed logs are uncommon. Picea sitchensis and Populus balsamifera ssp. trichocarpa regeneration are uncommon in the thick shrub cover. Alnus viridis ssp. sinuata, Oplopanax horridus, and Sambucus racemosa often form a nearly impenetrable thicket between the widely spaced Populus balsamifera ssp. trichocarpa trees. Forbs are sparsely represented and include Circaea alpina and Athyrium filix-femina. This is an early-seral type that will eventually be replaced by a Picea sitchensis forest and then, possibly, by Tsuga heterophylla.
Diagnostic Characteristics: No Data Available
Rationale for Nominal Species or Physiognomic Features: No Data Available
Classification Comments: The first published account for this type is from the Yakutat Foreland (Shephard 1995). These woodlands also occur in the Stikine Area, Tongass National Forest (Pawuk and Kissinger 1989), the Copper River Delta (Boggs 1996), and on the South Kenai (Ward 1995, NRCS, unpubl.). This association is synonymous with the Populus trichocarpa / Alnus sinuata - Echinopanax horridus plant association from southeastern Alaska (Pawuk and Kissinger 1989), the Populus trichocarpa / Echinopanax horridus plant association from the Kenai Peninsula (DeVelice et al. 1999), and portions of the Populus trichocarpa / Alnus crispa and Populus trichocarpa / Aruncus sylvester plant associations from the Copper River Delta, Alaska (Boggs 2000).
Similar NVC Types: No Data Available
note: No Data Available
Physiognomy and Structure: No Data Available
Floristics: Populus balsamifera ssp. trichocarpa (= Populus trichocarpa) dominates the association ranging to 20 m (65 feet) tall, 20-76 cm (8-30 inches) in diameter, and 40-150 years old. Downed logs are uncommon. Picea sitchensis and Populus balsamifera ssp. trichocarpa regeneration are uncommon in the thick shrub cover. Alnus viridis ssp. sinuata (= Alnus sinuata), Oplopanax horridus (= Echinopanax horridus), and Sambucus racemosa often form a nearly impenetrable thicket between the widely spaced Populus balsamifera ssp. trichocarpa trees. Forbs are sparsely represented and include Circaea alpina and Athyrium filix-femina.
Dynamics: This is an early-seral type that will eventually be replaced by a Picea sitchensis forest and then, possibly, by Tsuga heterophylla.
Environmental Description: This plant association is common in southeastern Alaska and Prince William Sound on newly exposed, well-drained gravels of outburst and active floodplains.
Geographic Range: The association is restricted to southeastern Alaska and the rainforest portions of south-central Alaska.
Nations: US
States/Provinces: AK
Plot Analysis Summary:
http://vegbank.org/natureserve/ELEMENT_GLOBAL.2.687637
Confidence Level: Moderate
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.3 Temperate Flooded & Swamp Forest Formation | F026 | 1.B.3 |
| Division | 1.B.3.Ng Vancouverian Flooded & Swamp Forest Division | D193 | 1.B.3.Ng |
| Macrogroup | 1.B.3.Ng.1 Vancouverian Flooded & Swamp Forest Macrogroup | M035 | 1.B.3.Ng.1 |
| Group | 1.B.3.Ng.1.f Sitka Spruce - Black Cottonwood Alaskan Riparian Woodland Group | G852 | 1.B.3.Ng.1.f |
| Alliance | A3744 Black Cottonwood - Sitka Spruce - Western Hemlock Riparian Forest Alliance | A3744 | 1.B.3.Ng.1.f |
| Association | CEGL003284 Black Cottonwood / Devil''s-club Riparian Woodland | CEGL003284 | 1.B.3.Ng.1.f |
Concept Lineage: No Data Available
Predecessors: No Data Available
Obsolete Names: No Data Available
Obsolete Parents: No Data Available
Synonomy: > Populus trichocarpa / Alnus crispa (Boggs 2000)
= Populus trichocarpa / Alnus sinuata - Echinopanax horridus (Pawuk and Kissinger 1989)
> Populus trichocarpa / Aruncus sylvester (Boggs 2000)
= Populus trichocarpa / Echinopanax horridus (DeVelice et al. 1999)
= Populus trichocarpa / Alnus sinuata - Echinopanax horridus (Pawuk and Kissinger 1989)
> Populus trichocarpa / Aruncus sylvester (Boggs 2000)
= Populus trichocarpa / Echinopanax horridus (DeVelice et al. 1999)
- Boggs, K. 1996. Forested plant communities of maritime southcentral and southeast Alaska. Unpublished report of the Alaska Natural Heritage Program, University of Alaska, Anchorage.
- Boggs, K. 2000. Classification of community types, successional sequences and landscapes of the Copper River Delta, Alaska. General Technical Report PNW-GTR-469. USDA Forest Service, Pacific Northwest Research Station, Portland, OR. March 2000. 244 pp.
- 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.
- DeVelice, R. L., C. J. Hubbard, K. Boggs, S. Boudreau, M. Potkin, T. Boucher, and C. Wertheim. 1999. Plant community types of the Chugach National Forest: South-central Alaska. Technical Publication R10-TP-76. USDA Forest Service, Chugach National Forest, Alaska Region. 375 pp.
- Pawuk, W. H., and E. J. Kissinger. 1989. Preliminary forest plant associations of the Stikine Area, Tongass National Forest. Technical Publication R10-TP-72. USDA Forest Service, Alaska Region, Juneau, AK. 126 pp.
- Shephard, M. E. 1995. Plant community ecology and classification of the Yakutat Foreland, Alaska. R10-TP-56. USDA Forest Service, Alaska Region. 213 pp. plus appendices.
- Western Ecology Working Group of NatureServe. No date. International Ecological Classification Standard: International Vegetation Classification. Terrestrial Vegetation. NatureServe, Boulder, CO.