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CEGL001972 Lomatium martindalei Grassland
Type Concept Sentence: No Data Available
Common (Translated Scientific) Name: Cascade Desert-parsley Grassland
Colloquial Name: No Data Available
Hierarchy Level: Association
Type Concept: This is a rocky bald or cliff community dominated by mixed forbs and bunchgrasses. These habitats are found from low elevations in the western Oregon valley margins, and on coastal bluffs just above the ocean. Elevation ranges from 15-460 m (50-1500 feet). Stands are also found on higher elevation peaks in the Oregon Coast Ranges, on localized balds, usually at elevations of 820-1040 m (2700-3400 feet). In the Coast Range, it is most common on west-facing aspects, but can also occur on south- and southeast-facing slopes, ranging from 5-30%. It is rarely found on north slopes, which are forested. Soils are thin to non-existent, generally on basalt or gabbros. The association was originally described as a rock garden community, but is characterized by low cover of Lomatium martindalei, Selaginella wallacei, and mosses. Sites have a very low but consistent cover of perennial grasses including Festuca rubra, Festuca idahoensis ssp. roemeri, and Festuca idahoensis ssp. idahoensis, in addition to Poa secunda, Koeleria macrantha, Danthonia californica, and Agrostis pallens. Forbs vary in the different areas, but Lewisia columbiana var. rupicola, Sedum spathulifolium, Saxifraga bronchialis, Allium cernuum, Lupinus lepidus, and Agoseris heterophylla are the most important. Endemic plants, including Saxifraga hitchcockiana, Cardamine pattersonii, Dodecatheon austrofrigidum, Erythronium oregonum and Castilleja chambersii, are found primarily in this community.
Diagnostic Characteristics: No Data Available
Rationale for Nominal Species or Physiognomic Features: No Data Available
Classification Comments: This is a very unique community, which is easily identified in the field. It has been well inventoried in the Oregon Coast Ranges, although its potential distribution outside of Oregon is less well known. Although none of the dominant species extend much beyond Oregon''s borders, stands likely occur in southwestern Washington on balds, and along the southern margins of the Puget Trough. This vegetation is chasmophytic (rooting in fissures of rocks) and may be better classified in a sparsely vegetated pavement formation.
Similar NVC Types: No Data Available
note: No Data Available
Physiognomy and Structure: No Data Available
Floristics: This is an herbaceous meadow association, dominated by a mix of perennial forbs, and characterized by 3-10% cover of Lomatium martindalei, 1-20% cover of Selaginella wallacei, and 1-5% cover of moss. Sites have a very low but consistent cover of perennial grasses including Festuca rubra (along the ocean), and Festuca idahoensis ssp. roemeri (in Oregon''s western interior valleys), and Festuca idahoensis ssp. idahoensis (in the Cascades), in addition to Poa secunda, Koeleria macrantha, Danthonia californica, Agrostis pallens (= Agrostis diegoensis), and Aira praecox (introduced from Europe). Forbs vary in the different areas, but Lewisia columbiana var. rupicola, Sedum spathulifolium, Saxifraga bronchialis, Allium cernuum, Lupinus lepidus, and Agoseris heterophylla are the most important. Endemic plants, including Saxifraga hitchcockiana, Cardamine pattersonii, Dodecatheon austrofrigidum, Erythronium oregonum and Castilleja chambersii, are found primarily in this community. The nonvascular layer is important in this association and is composed of mosses and, probably, lichens. Nonvascular species present are not known. No other information is available on species cover or composition.
Dynamics: No Data Available
Environmental Description: The Coast Ranges, where this association occurs, are characterized by a maritime climate. Summers are cool and dry, while winters are mild and wet. Precipitation averages 120-305 cm (47-120 inches) annually, 80% of it occurring from October to March, primarily as rain. The association occurs on some of the peaks of the Coast Ranges, ranging from 762 m to a little over 1220 m (2500-4000 feet) elevation. The peaks are composed of intrusive igneous bedrock and in scattered localities support areas of non-forested meadows, known as grass balds. These balds are small openings in areas otherwise heavily forested, implying the presence of the association is due to an unusual combination of topo-edaphic factors. This association is found in these non-forested patches, adjacent to bedrock outcrops and restricted to shallow, rocky and well-drained soils.
Geographic Range: Restricted to the central and northern Oregon Coast Range, the margins of the western Oregon interior valleys, and possibly to southwestern Oregon.
Nations: US
States/Provinces: OR, WA?
Plot Analysis Summary:
http://vegbank.org/natureserve/ELEMENT_GLOBAL.2.688320
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.2 Temperate Grassland & Shrubland Formation | F012 | 2.B.2 |
| Division | 2.B.2.Nf Western North American Grassland & Shrubland Division | D022 | 2.B.2.Nf |
| Macrogroup | 2.B.2.Nf.4 Southern Vancouverian Lowland Grassland & Shrubland Macrogroup | M050 | 2.B.2.Nf.4 |
| Group | 2.B.2.Nf.4.a Manzanita species / Roemer''s Fescue - California Oatgrass Shrubland & Grassland Group | G488 | 2.B.2.Nf.4.a |
| Alliance | A1647 Cascade Desert-parsley Meadow Alliance | A1647 | 2.B.2.Nf.4.a |
| Association | CEGL001972 Cascade Desert-parsley Grassland | CEGL001972 | 2.B.2.Nf.4.a |
Concept Lineage: No Data Available
Predecessors: No Data Available
Obsolete Names: No Data Available
Obsolete Parents: No Data Available
Synonomy: ? Lomatium martindalei Association (Chappell 2006a) [12 plots; tends to have higher percent cover of vascular plants and some different associated species than the Oregon sites.]
- Alaback, P. A., and R. E. Frenkel. 1978. Preserve analysis: Saddle Mountain. Oregon Natural Area Preserves Advisory Committee. Division of State Lands, Salem.
- Aldrich, F. T. 1972. A chorological analysis of the grass balds in the Oregon Coast Range. Ph.D. dissertation, Oregon State University, Corvallis.
- 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.
- Chappell, C. B. 2006a. Plant associations of balds and bluffs of western Washington. Natural Heritage Report 2006-02. Washington Natural Heritage Program, Washington Department of Natural Resources, Olympia. [http://www.dnr.wa.gov/nhp/refdesk/communities/pdf/balds_veg.pdf]
- Franklin, J. F., and C. T. Dyrness. 1973. Natural vegetation of Oregon and Washington. General Technical Report PNW-8. USDA Forest Service, Pacific Northwest Forest and Range Experiment Station, Portland, OR. 417 pp.
- Frenkel, R. E., and W. N. Copeland. 1979. Preserve analysis: Onion Peak. Oregon Natural Area Preserves Advisory Committee to the State Land Board, Salem, OR. 53 pp.
- Kagan, J. S., E. M. Nielsen, M. D. Noone, J. C. van Warmerdam, L. K. Wise, G. Kittel, and C. Copass. 2012. Lewis and Clark National Historic Park vegetation classification and mapping project report. Natural Resource Report NPS/NCCN/NRR--2012/597. National Park Service, Fort Collins, CO.
- 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.
- ORNHP [Oregon Natural Heritage Program]. No date. Unpublished data files. Oregon Natural Heritage Program, The Nature Conservancy, Portland, OR.
- Western Ecology Working Group of NatureServe. No date. International Ecological Classification Standard: International Vegetation Classification. Terrestrial Vegetation. NatureServe, Boulder, CO.