Print Report
CEGL004117 Schoenoplectus pungens - Fimbristylis (castanea, caroliniana) Marsh
Type Concept Sentence: No Data Available
Common (Translated Scientific) Name: Common Threesquare - (Marsh Fimbry, Carolina Fimbry) Marsh
Colloquial Name: Mid-Atlantic Interdunal Swale
Hierarchy Level: Association
Type Concept: This interdunal swale community of the Eastern Shore of Virginia and Maryland is characterized by dense cover of Schoenoplectus pungens and/or Spartina patens, with Fimbristylis castanea or Fimbristylis caroliniana. There is usually shallow standing water present in these swales in the spring, when Schoenoplectus pungens or Spartina patens is generally dominant with few other associates except species of Eleocharis. By late summer a number of other species such as Fimbristylis castanea and Sabatia stellaris contribute more substantial cover. Other herbs contribute very little to the overall vegetative cover. These associated species include Andropogon virginicus, Andropogon glomeratus, Eleocharis rostellata, Phragmites australis, Pluchea foetida, Pluchea odorata, Cyperus filicinus, Juncus scirpoides, Hydrocotyle umbellata, Eleocharis parvula, Panicum amarum, Fimbristylis autumnalis, Sabatia stellaris, Ptilimnium capillaceum, Fuirena pumila, and Juncus canadensis. Diagnostic species are Schoenoplectus pungens and Fimbristylis castanea. Related vegetation of the Atlantic Coast from North Carolina southward is accommodated under ~Fimbristylis castanea - Schoenoplectus pungens Marsh (CEGL003790)$$.
Diagnostic Characteristics: No Data Available
Rationale for Nominal Species or Physiognomic Features: No Data Available
Classification Comments: This association is similar to ~Juncus (dichotomus, scirpoides) - Drosera intermedia Wet Meadow (CEGL004111)$$ in environment, but lacks Xyris spp., Pogonia spp., and Lycopodiella appressa. It may represent a successional phase or be slightly more brackish. Subsequent vegetation classification and mapping of adjoining Chincoteague National Wildlife Refuge noted the presence of a variant occurring in shallow interdunal ponds. This variant, referred to as the Eleocharis spp. - Schoenoplectus pungens variant, differs from the typic association in its absence of Fimbristylis spp., lower diversity, and dominance of Eleocharis albida and/or Eleocharis quadrangulata and Schoenoplectus pungens. Associated species include Panicum rigidulum, Panicum virgatum, Proserpinaca palustris, and others.
Similar NVC Types: No Data Available
note: No Data Available
Physiognomy and Structure: No Data Available
Floristics: This association is characterized by dense cover of Schoenoplectus pungens (= Scirpus pungens) or Spartina patens in association with Fimbristylis castanea or Fimbristylis caroliniana. In early spring, Schoenoplectus pungens and/or Spartina patens is usually dominant, with few other associates visible. By later summer as the water table drops, additional species emerge, including abundant Fimbristylis castanea and Sabatia stellaris. Cover and composition of associated species are variable but in aggregate include Andropogon virginicus, Andropogon glomeratus, Eleocharis rostellata, Phragmites australis, Pluchea foetida, Pluchea odorata, Cyperus filicinus, Juncus scirpoides, Hydrocotyle umbellata, Eleocharis parvula, Panicum amarum, Fimbristylis autumnalis, Sabatia stellaris, Ptilimnium capillaceum, Fuirena pumila, and Juncus canadensis.
Dynamics: No Data Available
Environmental Description: This association is characterized by seasonally wet maritime interdunal depressions, commonly known as "interdunal swales." There is usually standing water present in these swales in the spring. The Eleocharis spp. - Schoenoplectus pungens variant of this association occurs in similar habitat but tends to be flooded for a longer period of the year. Although this association occurs in swales, it occurs in association with the highest dunes on the island and so has a higher relative elevation than any other island wetlands. Average elevation of this association at Assateague Island National Seashore is 1.23 m, as calculated from lidar-derived data of Brock et al. (2007).
Geographic Range: This association is currently described from Maryland and Virginia.
Nations: US
States/Provinces: MD, VA
Plot Analysis Summary:
http://vegbank.org/natureserve/ELEMENT_GLOBAL.2.688217
Confidence Level: Moderate
Confidence Level Comments: No Data Available
Grank: G1G2
Greasons: No Data Available
| Type | Name | Database Code | Classification Code |
|---|---|---|---|
| Class | 2 Shrub & Herb Vegetation Class | C02 | 2 |
| Subclass | 2.C Shrub & Herb Wetland Subclass | S44 | 2.C |
| Formation | 2.C.4 Temperate to Polar Freshwater Marsh, Wet Meadow & Shrubland Formation | F013 | 2.C.4 |
| Division | 2.C.4.Ne Atlantic & Gulf Coastal Marsh, Wet Meadow & Shrubland Division | D322 | 2.C.4.Ne |
| Macrogroup | 2.C.4.Ne.2 Beaksedge species - Spikerush species - Panicgrass species Atlantic & Gulf Coastal Plain Wet Prairie & Marsh Macrogroup | M067 | 2.C.4.Ne.2 |
| Group | 2.C.4.Ne.2.c Marsh Fimbry - Spikerush species - Southern Umbrella-sedge Coastal Interdunal Marsh & Prairie Group | G777 | 2.C.4.Ne.2.c |
| Alliance | A1372 Marsh Fimbry - Common Threesquare Coastal Marsh Alliance | A1372 | 2.C.4.Ne.2.c |
| Association | CEGL004117 Common Threesquare - (Marsh Fimbry, Carolina Fimbry) Marsh | CEGL004117 | 2.C.4.Ne.2.c |
Concept Lineage: No Data Available
Predecessors: No Data Available
Obsolete Names: No Data Available
Obsolete Parents: No Data Available
Synonomy: = Fimbristylis (castanea, caroliniana) - Scirpus pungens Herbaceous Vegetation (Berdine 1998)
? Juncus scirpoides-Scirpus pungens interdunal wetland association (McAvoy and Clancy 1994) [Delaware.]
< Fresh marsh community (Hill 1986) [Assateague Island.]
< Fresh marsh community (Higgins et al. 1971) [Assateague Island.]
? Wet community of barrier flats (Travis and Godfrey 1976) [North Carolina.]
? Juncus scirpoides-Scirpus pungens interdunal wetland association (McAvoy and Clancy 1994) [Delaware.]
< Fresh marsh community (Hill 1986) [Assateague Island.]
< Fresh marsh community (Higgins et al. 1971) [Assateague Island.]
? Wet community of barrier flats (Travis and Godfrey 1976) [North Carolina.]
- Berdine, M. A. 1998. Maryland vegetation classification. Maryland Department of Natural Resources, Annapolis, MD.
- Brock, J. C., C. W. Wright, M. Patterson, A. Naeghandi, and L. J. Travers. 2007. EAARL bare earth topography - Assateague Island National Seashore. U.S. Geological Survey Open File Report 2007-1176. [http://pubs.usgs.gov/of/2007/1176/start.html]
- Eastern Ecology Working Group of NatureServe. No date. International Ecological Classification Standard: International Vegetation Classification. Terrestrial Vegetation. NatureServe, Boston, MA.
- Fleming, G. P., K. D. Patterson, and K. Taverna. 2017. The natural communities of Virginia: A classification of ecological community groups and community types. Third approximation. Version 3.0. Virginia Department of Conservation and Recreation, Division of Natural Heritage, Richmond, VA. [http://www.dcr.virginia.gov/natural-heritage/natural-communities/]
- Harrison, J. W. 2011. The natural communities of Maryland: 2011 working list of ecological community groups and community types. Unpublished report. Maryland Department of Natural Resources, Wildlife and Heritage Service, Natural Heritage Program, Annapolis. 33 pp.
- Harrison, J. W., compiler. 2004. Classification of vegetation communities of Maryland: First iteration. A subset of the International Classification of Ecological Communities: Terrestrial Vegetation of the United States, NatureServe. Maryland Natural Heritage Program, Maryland Department of Natural Resources, Annapolis. 243 pp.
- Higgins, E. A. T., R. D. Rappleye, and R. G. Brown. 1971. The flora and ecology of Assateague Island. University of Maryland Experiment Station Bulletin A-172. 70 pp.
- Hill, S. R. 1986. An annotated checklist of the vascular flora of Assateague Island (Maryland and Virginia). Castanea 5:265-305.
- McAvoy, W., and K. Clancy. 1994. Community classification and mapping criteria for Category I interdunal swales and coastal plain pond wetlands in Delaware. Final Report submitted to the Division of Water Resources in the Department of Natural Resources and Environmental Control. 47 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.
- Sneddon, L., J. Menke, A. Berdine, E. Largay, and S. Gawler. 2017. Vegetation classification and mapping of Assateague Island National Seashore. Natural Resource Report NPS/ASIS/NRR--2017/1422. National Park Service, Fort Collins, CO. 512 pp.
- Sneddon, L., M. Anderson, and K. Metzler. 1996. Community alliances and elements of the Eastern Region. Unpublished report. The Nature Conservancy, Eastern Heritage Task Force, Boston, MA. 235 pp.
- TNC [The Nature Conservancy]. 1995c. NBS/NPS Vegetation Mapping Program: Vegetation classification of Assateague Island National Seashore. Unpublished report. The Nature Conservancy, Eastern Regional Office, Boston, MA.
- TNC [The Nature Conservancy]. 1997a. Vegetation classification of Assateague Island National Seashore and Chincoteague National Wildlife Refuge. Report to the NBS/NPS Vegetation Mapping Program. The Nature Conservancy. Eastern Regional Office, Boston, MA.
- Travis, R. W., and P. J. Godfrey. 1976. Interactions of plant communities and oceanic overwash on the manipulated barrier islands of Cape Hatteras National Seashore, North Carolina. Pages 777-780 in: Proceedings of the First Conference on Scientific Research in the National Parks, Volume II.