Print Report
CEGL000131 Pinus albicaulis / Vaccinium scoparium Forest
Type Concept Sentence: No Data Available
Common (Translated Scientific) Name: Whitebark Pine / Grouse Whortleberry Forest
Colloquial Name: No Data Available
Hierarchy Level: Association
Type Concept: This is on of the highest subalpine forests below timberline on protected sites and on exposed ridges or south-facing slopes at lower elevations. Slopes are 8-50% gradients on south-, southeast-, and west-facing aspects. Soils are dry, cold gravelly loams to silts, generally acidic to very acidic on the surface. It occurs from 2591 to 3200 m (8500-10,500 feet) in elevation. These are generally open forests with sparse understory cover. Pinus albicaulis is the dominant tree. Pinus flexilis can be codominant or not present. Other tree species that may be present, but never codominant, include Abies lasiocarpa, Picea engelmannii, and Pinus contorta, depending on the elevation of the stand. The understory is sparse, generally only obtaining at most 50% cover. Vaccinium scoparium is the most abundant and commonly present shrub with 10-50% cover. Other shrubs present include Ribes montigenum and Juniperus communis. Few and scattered herbaceous species are common in very low amounts and include Arnica latifolia, Poa nervosa, Carex geyeri, and Carex rossii. This association is differentiated from similar associations by the dominance of Pinus albicaulis to the exclusion of other conifers.
Diagnostic Characteristics: No Data Available
Rationale for Nominal Species or Physiognomic Features: No Data Available
Classification Comments: No Data Available
Similar NVC Types: No Data Available
note: No Data Available
Physiognomy and Structure: No Data Available
Floristics: These are generally open forests with sparse understory cover. Pinus albicaulis is the predominant tree. Pinus flexilis can be codominant. Other tree species that may be present include Abies lasiocarpa, Picea engelmannii, and Pinus contorta, depending on the elevation of the stand. The understory is sparse, generally only obtaining at most 50% cover. Vaccinium scoparium is the most abundant and commonly present shrub with 10-50% cover. Other shrubs present include Ribes montigenum and Juniperus communis. Few and scattered herbaceous species are common in very low amounts and include Arnica latifolia, Poa nervosa, Carex geyeri, and Carex rossii. Pine duff litter, bare ground and rock outcrops make up the bulk of the ground cover.
Dynamics: No Data Available
Environmental Description: This is one of the highest subalpine forests below timberline on protected sites and on exposed ridges or south-facing slopes at lower elevations. Slopes are 25-40% gradients on south-, southeast-, and west-facing aspects. Soils are dry, cold gravelly loams to silts, generally acidic to very acidic on the surface. It occurs from 2591 to 3200 m (8500-10,500 feet) in elevation.
Geographic Range: This open subalpine forest occurs in Idaho, Montana, Oregon, and Wyoming. It is suspected to also occur in Alberta and British Columbia, Canada.
Nations: CA?,US
States/Provinces: AB?, ID, MT, OR, WY
Plot Analysis Summary:
http://vegbank.org/natureserve/ELEMENT_GLOBAL.2.688072
Confidence Level: Moderate
Confidence Level Comments: No Data Available
Grank: G4
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.Nb Rocky Mountain Forest & Woodland Division | D194 | 1.B.2.Nb |
| Macrogroup | 1.B.2.Nb.5 Subalpine Fir - Engelmann Spruce - Whitebark Pine Rocky Mountain Forest Macrogroup | M020 | 1.B.2.Nb.5 |
| Group | 1.B.2.Nb.5.g Whitebark Pine - Subalpine Fir - Subalpine Larch Northern Rocky Mountain Woodland Group | G223 | 1.B.2.Nb.5.g |
| Alliance | A3368 Whitebark Pine Forest & Woodland Alliance | A3368 | 1.B.2.Nb.5.g |
| Association | CEGL000131 Whitebark Pine / Grouse Whortleberry Forest | CEGL000131 | 1.B.2.Nb.5.g |
Concept Lineage: No Data Available
Predecessors: No Data Available
Obsolete Names: No Data Available
Obsolete Parents: No Data Available
Synonomy: = Pinus albicaulis - Pinus flexilis / Potentilla diversifolia Habitat Type (Reed 1969) [description (p.25), tree data Table 7 (p.43), and understory data Table 13 (p.56).]
= Pinus albicaulis - Vaccinium scoparium Habitat Type (Reed 1976) [(p.168)]
= Pinus albicaulis / Vaccinium scoparium Habitat Type (Cooper 1975) [(p.52)]
= Pinus albicaulis / Vaccinium scoparium Habitat Type (Steele et al. 1983) [(p.66)]
= Pinus albicaulis / Vaccinium scoparium Plant Association (Johnston 1987) [(p.100)]
= Pinus albicaulis - Vaccinium scoparium Habitat Type (Reed 1976) [(p.168)]
= Pinus albicaulis / Vaccinium scoparium Habitat Type (Cooper 1975) [(p.52)]
= Pinus albicaulis / Vaccinium scoparium Habitat Type (Steele et al. 1983) [(p.66)]
= Pinus albicaulis / Vaccinium scoparium Plant Association (Johnston 1987) [(p.100)]
- ANHIC [Alberta Natural Heritage Information Centre]. 2018. Community database files. Alberta Natural Heritage Information Centre, Parks and Protected Areas Division, Alberta Community Development, Edmonton.
- 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.
- Cogan, D., K. Varga, and G. Kittel. 2005. USGS-NPS Vegetation Mapping Program: Grand Teton National Park and John D. Rockefeller, Jr. Memorial Parkway. Final Project Report 2002-2005 Vegetation Mapping Project. Technical Memorandum 8260-06-02. USDI Bureau of Reclamation, Denver, CO. 87 pp. plus Appendixes A-F.
- Cooper, S. V. 1975. Forest habitat types of northwestern Wyoming and contiguous portion of Montana and Idaho. Unpublished dissertation, Washington State University, Pullman. 190 pp.
- Johnston, B. C. 1987. Plant associations of Region Two: Potential plant communities of Wyoming, South Dakota, Nebraska, Colorado, and Kansas. R2-ECOL-87-2. USDA Forest Service, Rocky Mountain Region. Lakewood, CO. 429 pp.
- Jones, G. P. 1999. Ecological evaluation of the potential Roaring Fork Mountain Research Natural Area within the Shoshone National Forest, Fremont County, Wyoming. Prepared for the Shoshone National Forest, USDA Forest Service by the Wyoming Natural Diversity Database. 47 pp.
- Jones, G., and S. Ogle. 2000. Characterization abstracts for vegetation types on the Bighorn, Medicine Bow, and Shoshone national forests. Prepared for USDA Forest Service, Region 2 by the Wyoming Natural Diversity Database, University of Wyoming.
- Kagan, J. S., J. A. Christy, M. P. Murray, and J. A. Titus. 2004. Classification of native vegetation of Oregon. January 2004. Oregon Natural Heritage Information Center, Portland. 52 pp.
- MTNHP [Montana Natural Heritage Program]. 2002b. List of ecological communities for Montana. Montana Natural Heritage Program, Montana State Library, Helena, MT.
- Reed, R. M. 1969. A study of forest vegetation in the Wind River Mountains, Wyoming. Unpublished dissertation, Washington State University, Pullman. 77 pp.
- Reed, R. M. 1976. Coniferous forest habitat types of the Wind River Mountains, Wyoming. The American Midland Naturalist 95(1):159-173.
- Steele, R., S. V. Cooper, D. M. Ondov, D. W. Roberts, and R. D. Pfister. 1983. Forest habitat types of eastern Idaho - western Wyoming. General Technical Report INT-144. USDA Forest Service, Intermountain Forest and Range Experiment Station, Ogden, UT. 122 pp.
- Terwilliger, C., K. Hess, and C. Wasser. 1979a. Key to the preliminary habitat types of Region 2. Addendum to initial progress report for habitat type classification. USDA Forest Service, Rocky Mountain Forest and Range Experiment Station. Fort Collins, CO.
- Western Ecology Working Group of NatureServe. No date. International Ecological Classification Standard: International Vegetation Classification. Terrestrial Vegetation. NatureServe, Boulder, CO.