Print Report
CEGL002457 Acer saccharum - Betula alleghaniensis - Tilia americana Forest
Type Concept Sentence: No Data Available
Common (Translated Scientific) Name: Sugar Maple - Yellow Birch - American Basswood Forest
Colloquial Name: Northern Sugar Maple - Yellow Birch - Basswood Forest
Hierarchy Level: Association
Type Concept: This northern hardwoods community type occurs in the western and central Great Lakes area of the United States and Canada. Stands are found on moderate to deep (60->150 cm) sandy loam, clay loam, or loamy sand soils. The soils are typically slightly acidic to circumneutral, dry-mesic to wet-mesic and moderately nutrient rich. Most stands develop on flat to moderate slopes over glacial till. The community is dominated by deciduous trees with scattered conifers in some stands. Acer saccharum is a dominant throughout the range of this community. It may form nearly pure stands. Other common canopy trees include Acer rubrum, Betula alleghaniensis, Fraxinus americana, and Tilia americana. Boreal conifers such as Abies balsamea and Picea glauca are essentially lacking, but Pinus strobus, Thuja occidentalis, and Tsuga canadensis can be found in some stands. The shrub layer is typically sparse; however, it can be moderately developed where the tree canopy is not fully closed. Typical shrubs include Acer spicatum, Corylus cornuta, Lonicera canadensis, and Taxus canadensis. The herbaceous stratum includes Clintonia borealis, Dryopteris carthusiana, Lycopodium spp., Maianthemum canadense, Maianthemum racemosum, Osmorhiza claytonii, Polygonatum pubescens, Streptopus lanceolatus var. longipes, and Viola spp. Diagnostic features include the deciduous hardwood dominance, the lack of Fagus grandifolia, and the presence of a typical northern hardwood ground layer.
Diagnostic Characteristics: No Data Available
Rationale for Nominal Species or Physiognomic Features: No Data Available
Classification Comments: This community has a typical northern hardwoods herbaceous layer. It is found in the central region of Minnesota, east across northern Wisconsin and Michigan into Ontario. In Minnesota it may lack Betula alleghaniensis, but it shares with the other states the lack of any typical subboreal tree species (Abies balsamea, Picea glauca, Thuja occidentalis). Fraxinus americana, Tsuga canadensis, and Fagus grandifolia may occur in some stands in Wisconsin and Michigan. This type probably includes both the western Upper Peninsula Maple-Basswood type and the Sugar Maple - Yellow Birch type on the presettlement map (Albert and Comer 2008). The range of this type, from extreme west-central Minnesota to central Ontario, may be too variable for one association, but further study is needed. The moderate to somewhat species-poor ground layer may be a useful feature to differentiate this community from the similar ~Acer saccharum - Fraxinus americana / Acer spicatum / Caulophyllum thalictroides Forest (CEGL006636)$$ and ~Acer saccharum - Tilia americana / Acer pensylvanicum / Caulophyllum thalictroides Forest (CEGL006637)$$. Some stands can have a scattered supercanopy of Pinus strobus (less than 25% cover), and although floristically such stands are very similar to this type, there may be some value in recognizing a separate type, ~Acer saccharum - Pinus strobus / Acer pensylvanicum Forest (CEGL005005)$$. Further review of this issue is needed.
Similar NVC Types: No Data Available
note: No Data Available
Physiognomy and Structure: No Data Available
Floristics: This forest community is dominated by deciduous trees with scattered conifers in some stands. Acer saccharum is a dominant throughout the range of this community. It may form nearly pure stands (Flaccus and Ohmann 1964, Hansen et al. 1973). Other common canopy trees include Acer rubrum, Betula alleghaniensis, Fraxinus americana, and Tilia americana. Conifers, such as Abies balsamea, Picea glauca, Pinus strobus, Thuja occidentalis, and Tsuga canadensis, can be found in some stands. The shrub layer is sparse; however, it can be moderately developed where the tree canopy is not fully closed. Typical shrubs include Acer spicatum, Corylus cornuta, Lonicera canadensis, and Taxus canadensis. The herbaceous stratum includes Clintonia borealis, Lycopodium spp., Maianthemum canadense, Osmorhiza claytonii, Streptopus lanceolatus var. longipes (= Streptopus roseus), and Viola spp. (Chambers et al. 1997). Boreal conifers, especially Abies balsamea and Picea glauca, increase in abundance and are common associates in northern Minnesota and on Isle Royale (Flaccus and Ohmann 1964, Hansen et al. 1973). Tilia americana is present along Minnesota''s Lake Superior shore only about halfway to the Canadian border (Flaccus and Ohmann 1964).
Dynamics: No Data Available
Environmental Description: This community is found on moderate to deep (60-150 cm) sandy loam, clay loam, or loamy sand soils (Coffman and Willis 1977, Pregitzer and Barnes 1984). The soils are typically slightly acidic to circumneutral, mesic to wet-mesic and nutrient rich (Kotar and Burger 1989). Most stands develop on flat to moderate slopes over glacial till.
Geographic Range: This northern hardwoods community occurs in the western and central Great Lakes area of the United States and Canada, ranging from Minnesota and Ontario east to Michigan.
Nations: CA,US
States/Provinces: MI, MN, ON, QC?, WI
Plot Analysis Summary:
http://vegbank.org/natureserve/ELEMENT_GLOBAL.2.688533
Confidence Level: High
Confidence Level Comments: No Data Available
Grank: G3G4
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.7 Sugar Maple - Yellow Birch - Eastern Hemlock Forest Macrogroup | M014 | 1.B.2.Na.7 |
| Group | 1.B.2.Na.7.h <i>Acer saccharum - Tilia americana - Fagus grandifolia</i> Forest Group | G921 | 1.B.2.Na.7.h |
| Alliance | A4446 Sugar Maple - American Basswood Laurentian Forest Alliance | A4446 | 1.B.2.Na.7.h |
| Association | CEGL002457 Sugar Maple - Yellow Birch - American Basswood Forest | CEGL002457 | 1.B.2.Na.7.h |
Concept Lineage: No Data Available
Predecessors: No Data Available
Obsolete Names: No Data Available
Obsolete Parents: No Data Available
Synonomy: = Acer / Hydrophyllum Habitat Type (Kotar and Burger 1989)
= Acer saccharum - Betula alleghaniensis - (Tilia americana) Forest (Faber-Langendoen 2001) [Northern Mesic Forest Sugar Maple-Yellow Birch Subtype]
= Acer saccharum - Viola pennsylvanica - Osmorhiza claytonii Association (Coffman and Willis 1977)
= Northern Hardwood Forest (Northern Section) (MNNHP 1993)
= Yellow Birch - Sugar Maple (Hansen et al. 1973)
= Acer saccharum - Betula alleghaniensis - (Tilia americana) Forest (Faber-Langendoen 2001) [Northern Mesic Forest Sugar Maple-Yellow Birch Subtype]
= Acer saccharum - Viola pennsylvanica - Osmorhiza claytonii Association (Coffman and Willis 1977)
= Northern Hardwood Forest (Northern Section) (MNNHP 1993)
= Yellow Birch - Sugar Maple (Hansen et al. 1973)
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