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CEGL006004 Pinus strobus - Betula populifolia / Comptonia peregrina / Schizachyrium scoparium Scrub
Type Concept Sentence: No Data Available
Common (Translated Scientific) Name: Eastern White Pine - Gray Birch / Sweet-fern / Little Bluestem Scrub
Colloquial Name: Dry River Bluff
Hierarchy Level: Association
Type Concept: This dry sandy riverbluff community occurs on the Merrimack and Soucook rivers in New Hampshire, and may occur elsewhere in New England. The steeply sloping bluffs of glacial sand deposits derived from glacial Lake Merrimack are kept open by the erosion of the base of the bluff by the river flow. The physiognomy of this community is variable, but on average is an open tree canopy characterized by one or more of the following trees: Betula populifolia, Pinus strobus, Populus tremuloides, and Betula papyrifera. Comptonia peregrina is typically present in the sparsely distributed shrub layer, and Quercus ilicifolia may also occur. The herbaceous layer is dominated by Schizachyrium scoparium, Polygonella articulata, Lechea spp., and Lespedeza capitata. Hudsonia ericoides and Lupinus perennis, although not present in all occurrences, are particularly characteristic.
Diagnostic Characteristics: No Data Available
Rationale for Nominal Species or Physiognomic Features: No Data Available
Classification Comments: Other bluffs along the rivers are either too unstable to support the association or stable enough to support trees and other vegetation. The latter creates too shady an environment for the characteristic species to occur. Long-term perpetuation of this community depends on the preservation of larger areas of riverine corridor to allow for migration of the community as the river channel meanders.
Similar NVC Types: No Data Available
note: No Data Available
Physiognomy and Structure: No Data Available
Floristics: The community is characterized by Hudsonia ericoides and Lupinus perennis which occupy the more stable portions of the eroding bluffs. Hudsonia ericoides is more abundant on the ridge crests, while the lupine occurs only on the bluff face. A sparse tree layer of Betula populifolia, Betula papyrifera, Populus tremuloides, or Pinus strobus is typically present. A number of species found in nearby pitch pine scrub oak barrens also occur including Schizachyrium scoparium, Lespedeza capitata, Juniperus communis, Polygonella articulata, and Lechea spp. Numerous species of moss also occur in this community. Both Hudsonia ericoides and Lupinus perennis are rare in New Hampshire.
Dynamics: No Data Available
Environmental Description: This woodland is found along steep, sandy river bluffs where they cut through outwash deposits of the glacial Lake Merrimack. Soils are sandy and nutrient-poor. The community occurs under open conditions where there tends to be a balance between destabilization by river undercutting and groundwater seepage and stabilization by vegetation. Generally it is found on the slopes and bluff edges of southern and western exposures.
Geographic Range: This community is only known from south-central New Hampshire in the Merrimack River Valley; it may also occur further south in New Hampshire, and is also possible in Massachusetts and southern Maine.
Nations: US
States/Provinces: MA, NH
Plot Analysis Summary:
http://vegbank.org/natureserve/ELEMENT_GLOBAL.2.687664
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.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.2 American Beachgrass - Sea-oats - Seaside Goldenrod Dune & Grassland Macrogroup | M057 | 2.B.4.Na.2 |
| Group | 2.B.4.Na.2.e Bear Oak - Sheep Laurel - Kinnikinnick Sand Barrens Group | G063 | 2.B.4.Na.2.e |
| Alliance | A0682 Little Bluestem River Bluff Alliance | A0682 | 2.B.4.Na.2.e |
| Association | CEGL006004 Eastern White Pine - Gray Birch / Sweet-fern / Little Bluestem Scrub | CEGL006004 | 2.B.4.Na.2.e |
Concept Lineage: No Data Available
Predecessors: No Data Available
Obsolete Names: No Data Available
Obsolete Parents: No Data Available
Synonomy: ? Dry sandy riverbluff opening (Rawinski 1984a)
- Eastern Ecology Working Group of NatureServe. No date. International Ecological Classification Standard: International Vegetation Classification. Terrestrial Vegetation. NatureServe, Boston, MA.
- Grossman, D. H., K. Lemon Goodin, and C. L. Reuss, editors. 1994. Rare plant communities of the conterminous United States: An initial survey. The Nature Conservancy. Arlington, VA. 620 pp.
- Nichols, W. F., J. M. Hoy, and D. D. Sperduto. 2001. Open riparian communities and riparian complexes in New Hampshire. New Hampshire Natural Heritage Inventory, DRED Division of Forests and Lands, Concord, NH. 82 pp. plus appendices.
- Rawinski, T. 1984a. Natural community description abstract - southern New England calcareous seepage swamp. Unpublished report. The Nature Conservancy, Boston, MA. 6 pp.
- Rawinski, T. J. 1985. Dry sandy riverbluff community abstract: Draft. Unpublished report. The Nature Conservancy, Boston, MA.
- Sperduto, D. D., and W. F. Nichols. 2004. Natural communities of New Hampshire: A guide and classification. New Hampshire Natural Heritage Bureau, DRED Division of Forests and Lands, Concord. 242 pp.
- Swain, P. C., and J. B. Kearsley. 2014. Classification of the natural communities of Massachusetts. Version 2.0. Natural Heritage & Endangered Species Program, Massachusetts Division of Fisheries and Wildlife. Westborough, MA. [http://www.mass.gov/nhesp/http://www.mass.gov/eea/agencies/dfg/dfw/natural-heritage/natural-communities/classification-of-natural-communities.html]