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CEGL007102 Pinus strobus - Tsuga canadensis / Rhododendron maximum - (Leucothoe fontanesiana) Forest
Type Concept Sentence: No Data Available
Common (Translated Scientific) Name: Eastern White Pine - Eastern Hemlock / Great Laurel - (Highland Doghobble) Forest
Colloquial Name: Southern Appalachian Eastern Hemlock Forest (White Pine Type)
Hierarchy Level: Association
Type Concept: This community occurs on creek and river margins and on lower or protected slopes. This association occurs in the Southern Blue Ridge and extends into adjacent ecoregions, such as the Cumberlands of Kentucky and Tennessee. This forest vegetation has a canopy dominated by Pinus strobus, sometimes codominating with Tsuga canadensis, occurring over a shrub stratum dominated by Rhododendron maximum. This is an evergreen forest, but deciduous trees may form a minor part of the canopy. Other minor canopy species may include Liriodendron tulipifera, Betula lenta, Magnolia fraseri (within its range), Acer rubrum, and Tilia americana var. heterophylla. Other shrub species may include Kalmia latifolia, Leucothoe fontanesiana, Lindera benzoin, and Ilex opaca var. opaca. Herbaceous cover is typically sparse. The Kentucky examples lack Leucothoe fontanesiana and have Magnolia macrophylla rather than Magnolia fraseri. Large stems of Smilax rotundifolia may be present in stands of this vegetation.
Diagnostic Characteristics: No Data Available
Rationale for Nominal Species or Physiognomic Features: No Data Available
Classification Comments: This association is distinguished by a strong evergreen dominance in all strata and the importance of Pinus strobus in the canopy. Forests (included here) in the Cumberlands of Kentucky lack Leucothoe fontanesiana and have Magnolia macrophylla rather than Magnolia fraseri.
Similar NVC Types: No Data Available
note: No Data Available
Physiognomy and Structure: No Data Available
Floristics: This forest vegetation has a canopy dominated by Pinus strobus, sometimes codominating with Tsuga canadensis, occurring over a shrub stratum dominated by Rhododendron maximum. This is an evergreen forest, with evergreen species dominating in all strata, but deciduous trees may form a minor part of the canopy. Other minor canopy or subcanopy species may include Liriodendron tulipifera, Betula lenta, Magnolia fraseri (within its range), Acer rubrum, Quercus alba, Oxydendrum arboreum, and Tilia americana var. heterophylla. Other shrub species may include Kalmia latifolia, Leucothoe fontanesiana, Lindera benzoin, Hamamelis virginiana, and Ilex opaca var. opaca. Herbaceous cover is typically sparse. Typical herbs include Thelypteris noveboracensis, Chimaphila maculata, Mitchella repens, Polystichum acrostichoides, Medeola virginiana, Galax urceolata, and Tiarella cordifolia. Kentucky Cumberland examples lack Leucothoe fontanesiana and have Magnolia macrophylla rather than Magnolia fraseri. Large stems of Smilax rotundifolia may be present in stands of this vegetation.
Dynamics: No Data Available
Environmental Description: This community occurs on creek and river margins and on lower or protected slopes, at elevations below 915 m (3000 feet) in the southern Appalachian Mountains, including the Cumberland Mountains of Kentucky and Tennessee.
Geographic Range: This community occurs in the Southern Blue Ridge, but extends into adjacent Cumberland Plateau or Ridge and Valley.
Nations: US
States/Provinces: GA, KY, NC, SC, TN, VA?
Plot Analysis Summary:
http://vegbank.org/natureserve/ELEMENT_GLOBAL.2.688204
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.Na Eastern North American Forest & Woodland Division | D008 | 1.B.2.Na |
| Macrogroup | 1.B.2.Na.3 Appalachian-Interior-Northeastern Mesic Forest Macrogroup | M883 | 1.B.2.Na.3 |
| Group | 1.B.2.Na.3.a American Beech - Tuliptree - Yellow Buckeye Forest Group | G020 | 1.B.2.Na.3.a |
| Alliance | A3304 Eastern Hemlock - Tuliptree Forest Alliance | A3304 | 1.B.2.Na.3.a |
| Association | CEGL007102 Eastern White Pine - Eastern Hemlock / Great Laurel - (Highland Doghobble) Forest | CEGL007102 | 1.B.2.Na.3.a |
Concept Lineage: No Data Available
Predecessors: No Data Available
Obsolete Names: No Data Available
Obsolete Parents: No Data Available
Synonomy: = Tsuga canadensis - Pinus strobus / Rhododendron maximum Forest (Patterson 1994)
< Eastern Hemlock: 23 (Eyre 1980)
< Hemlock Type (Schmalzer and DeSelm 1982)
< IA5b. Southern Appalachian Hemlock Cove Forest (Allard 1990)
< White Pine - Hemlock: 22 (Eyre 1980)
? White pine-eastern hemlock/great laurel dry forest: southern type (CAP pers. comm. 1998)
< Eastern Hemlock: 23 (Eyre 1980)
< Hemlock Type (Schmalzer and DeSelm 1982)
< IA5b. Southern Appalachian Hemlock Cove Forest (Allard 1990)
< White Pine - Hemlock: 22 (Eyre 1980)
? White pine-eastern hemlock/great laurel dry forest: southern type (CAP pers. comm. 1998)
- 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.
- CAP [Central Appalachian Forest Working Group]. 1998. Central Appalachian Working group discussions. The Nature Conservancy, Boston, MA.
- Eyre, F. H., editor. 1980. Forest cover types of the United States and Canada. Society of American Foresters, Washington, DC. 148 pp.
- Fleming, G. P., and K. D. Patterson. 2009a. A vegetation classification for the Appalachian Trail: Virginia south to Georgia. Virginia Department of Conservation and Recreation, Division of Natural Heritage. In-house analysis, March 2009.
- Nelson, J. B. 1986. The natural communities of South Carolina: Initial classification and description. South Carolina Wildlife and Marine Resources Department, Division of Wildlife and Freshwater Fisheries, Columbia, SC. 55 pp.
- Patterson, K. D. 1994. Classification of vegetation in Ellicott Rock Wilderness, Southeastern Blue Ridge Escarpment. M.S. thesis, North Carolina State University, Raleigh. 91 pp.
- Peet, R. K., T. R. Wentworth, M. P. Schafale, and A.S. Weakley. No date. Unpublished data of the North Carolina Vegetation Survey. University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill.
- Schafale, M. P. 2012. Classification of the natural communities of North Carolina, 4th Approximation. North Carolina Department of Environment, Health, and Natural Resources, Division of Parks and Recreation, Natural Heritage Program, Raleigh.
- Schafale, M. P., and A. S. Weakley. 1990. Classification of the natural communities of North Carolina. Third approximation. North Carolina Department of Environment, Health, and Natural Resources, Division of Parks and Recreation, Natural Heritage Program, Raleigh. 325 pp.
- Schmalzer, P. A., and H. R. DeSelm. 1982. Vegetation, endangered and threatened plants, critical plant habitats and vascular flora of the Obed Wild and Scenic River. Unpublished report. USDI National Park Service, Obed Wild and Scenic River. 2 volumes. 369 pp.
- Southeastern Ecology Working Group of NatureServe. No date. International Ecological Classification Standard: International Vegetation Classification. Terrestrial Vegetation. NatureServe, Durham, NC.
- TDNH [Tennessee Division of Natural Heritage]. 2018. Unpublished data. Tennessee Division of Natural Heritage, Nashville, TN.