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CEGL006226 Tsuga canadensis - Betula alleghaniensis / Ilex verticillata / Sphagnum spp. Swamp Forest

Type Concept Sentence: No Data Available

Common (Translated Scientific) Name: Eastern Hemlock - Yellow Birch / Common Winterberry / Peatmoss species Swamp Forest

Colloquial Name: Hemlock - Hardwood Swamp Forest

Hierarchy Level:  Association

Type Concept: These hemlock-hardwood swamps are common throughout most of New England, New York and Pennsylvania, mostly in glaciated areas south of spruce-fir forest regions. Most are mixed-canopy wetland forests, but in some may be strongly coniferous. They occur in poorly drained basins over bedrock or compacted till. "Pocket swamps," small isolated basins in upland forests, are one setting, and these swamps also occur adjacent to streams and lakes in larger basins. The acidic, organic soils remain saturated for most or all of the growing season; they may partially dry out, particularly in smaller basins. Canopy closure is nearly complete, and shrubs are sparse. The herbaceous layer may be well-developed, with ferns especially characteristic. Bryophyte cover varies, but is usually extensive. Tsuga canadensis is either canopy dominant or is mixed with other trees including Acer rubrum, Betula alleghaniensis, Pinus strobus, Nyssa sylvatica, and Fraxinus nigra. Scattered shrubs include Vaccinium corymbosum, Ilex verticillata, Lyonia ligustrina, Ilex mucronata, and Viburnum nudum var. cassinoides. Osmunda cinnamomea, Osmunda regalis, and Onoclea sensibilis are prominent ferns; associated herbs include Carex folliculata, Carex trisperma, Carex disperma, Maianthemum canadense, Coptis trifolia, Dryopteris cristata, Rubus pubescens, and Mitchella repens. Bryophytes include Sphagnum girgensohnii, Sphagnum palustre, and other Sphagnum species, as well as Pleurozium schreberi and Bazzania trilobata. These forests lack the species of more southerly affinity, such as Rhododendron maximum or Liriodendron tulipifera, that characterize hemlock swamps to the south, which are covered by ~Tsuga canadensis / Rhododendron maximum / Sphagnum spp. Swamp Forest (CEGL006279)$$. Mixed expression of these swamps may be similar in canopy composition to ~Betula alleghaniensis - Acer rubrum - (Tsuga canadensis, Abies balsamea) / Osmunda cinnamomea Swamp Forest (CEGL006380)$$; those are mineral-soil wetlands in seepage-influenced areas, typically at wetland-upland ecotones, and usually occur on slopes rather than in basins. ~Acer rubrum - Nyssa sylvatica - Betula alleghaniensis / Sphagnum spp. Swamp Forest (CEGL006014)$$ is ecologically similar but is more strongly deciduous, with limited hemlock.

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: Canopy closure is nearly complete, and shrubs are sparse. The herbaceous layer may be well-developed, with ferns especially characteristic. Bryophyte cover varies, but is usually extensive. Tsuga canadensis is either canopy dominant or is mixed with other trees including Acer rubrum, Betula alleghaniensis, Pinus strobus, Nyssa sylvatica, and Fraxinus nigra. Scattered shrubs include Vaccinium corymbosum, Ilex verticillata, Lyonia ligustrina, Ilex mucronata (= Nemopanthus mucronatus), and Viburnum nudum var. cassinoides. Osmunda cinnamomea, Osmunda regalis, and Onoclea sensibilis are prominent ferns; associated herbs include Carex folliculata, Carex trisperma, Carex disperma, Maianthemum canadense, Coptis trifolia, Dryopteris cristata, Rubus pubescens, and Mitchella repens. Bryophytes include Sphagnum girgensohnii, Sphagnum palustre, and other Sphagnum species, as well as Pleurozium schreberi and Bazzania trilobata. These forests lack the species of more southerly affinity, such as Rhododendron maximum or Liriodendron tulipifera, that characterize hemlock swamps to the south.

Dynamics:  No Data Available
Environmental Description:  These hemlock-hardwood swamps are common throughout most of New England, New York and Pennsylvania, mostly in glaciated areas south of spruce-fir forest regions. Most are mixed-canopy wetland forests, but in some may be strongly coniferous. They occur in poorly drained basins over bedrock or compacted till. "Pocket swamps," small isolated basins in upland forests, are one setting, and these swamps also occur adjacent to streams and lakes in larger basins. The acidic, organic soils remain saturated for most or all of the growing season; they may partially dry out, particularly in smaller basins.
Geographic Range: This community occurs in glaciated areas ranging from New Jersey and Pennsylvania north through New York and New England to New Brunswick and possibly Nova Scotia, Canada.

Nations: CA,US

States/Provinces:  CT, MA, ME, NB, NH, NJ, NS?, NY, PA, RI, VT


Confidence Level: Moderate

Confidence Level Comments: No Data Available
Grank: G5

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.3 Temperate Flooded & Swamp Forest Formation F026 1.B.3
Division 1.B.3.Na Eastern North American-Great Plains Flooded & Swamp Forest Division D011 1.B.3.Na
Macrogroup 1.B.3.Na.2 Pin Oak - Green Ash - Blackgum Swamp Forest Macrogroup M503 1.B.3.Na.2
Group 1.B.3.Na.2.f Red Maple - Blackgum - Green Ash Swamp Forest Group G902 1.B.3.Na.2.f
Alliance A3416 Yellow Birch - Eastern Hemlock Swamp Forest Alliance A3416 1.B.3.Na.2.f
Association CEGL006226 Eastern Hemlock - Yellow Birch / Common Winterberry / Peatmoss species Swamp Forest CEGL006226 1.B.3.Na.2.f
Concept Lineage: No Data Available

Predecessors: No Data Available

Obsolete Names: No Data Available

Obsolete Parents: No Data Available
Synonomy: < Hardwood-Conifer Swamp (Breden 1989)
< Hemlock - Yellow Birch: 24 (Eyre 1980)
< Inland Atlantic white cedar swamp (Reschke 1990)
< Northern New England basin swamp (Rawinski 1984a)
Concept Author(s): J. Lundgren

Author of Description: J. Lundgren and E. Largay

Acknowledgements: No Data Available

Version Date: 08-23-06
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